Great Moments in Unintended Consequences: Road Noise Meters, San Francisco Red State Boycott, and Pennsylvania's Political Cartoon Ban (Vol. 15)
Good intentions, bad results.
San Francisco
Proposition E Would Make It Easier for Police To Surveil San Francisco
The measure, which will be on the March 5 ballot, would greatly expand the SFPD's power while subjecting it to even less scrutiny.
San Francisco Police Spent 193 Hours Over 3 Months Watching Private Surveillance Footage
The surveillance yielded 49 arrests, of which 42 were for possession or sale of narcotics.
California Stopped San Francisco's $1.7 Million Toilet. The City Can't Build Something Cheaper.
"Why isn't there a toilet here? I just don't get it. Nobody does," one resident told The New York Times last week. "It's yet another example of the city that can't."
Self-Driving Cars Have Arrived. They Will Make Us Safer.
The good news: Regulators have exercised unusual restraint.
Will the Climate Deal Do Anything?
Plus: White supremacists and plagiarism, Milei and shock therapy, checking in on California, and more...
New York's Broken Housing Court Lets Tenant Stay For Years Without Paying Rent
Plus: Austin and Salt Lake City pass very different "middle housing" reforms, Democrats in Congress want to ban hedge fund–owned rental housing, and a look at GOP presidential candidate's housing policy positions.
Ivy League Double Standards
Plus: Deepfakes in porn, Randi Weingarten's amnesia, San Francisco's Chinese-name crackdown, and more...
San Francisco's Can-Kicking on Zoning Reform Could See It Lose All Zoning Powers
Plus: the U.S. Justice Department says zoning restrictions on a church's soup kitchen are likely illegal, more cities pass middle housing reforms, and California gears up for another rent control fight.
Xi Jinping's in the House
Plus: AKs in the MRI room, protesters at Chuck Schumer's house, Sonic Youth takes on Javier Milei, and more...
San Francisco's APEC Cleanup Hasn't 'Fixed' Its Homelessness Problem
No amount of encampment sweeps and pressure-washing sidewalks is going to solve the problem of thousands of people living on the streets.
Bill Maher Attacks 'the Real Deep State' of Government Regulators, Administrators, and Zoning Officers
The comedian blames America's endless reams of regulatory red tape for slowing down new wind farms, housing, and public toilets.
Damning New Audit Finds San Francisco Takes 3 Years To Approve New Housing
The state housing officials who performed the audit describe San Francisco's approval process as a "notoriously complex and cumbersome" mess.
The Hidden Failures of Social Housing in 'Red Vienna'
A new report details how the city's famed social housing system is suffering from diminishing affordability, deteriorating quality, and funding shortfalls.
RIP Anchor Steam, the San Francisco Brew That Saved Craft Beer in America
Anchor Brewing was sunk by the same forces that former owner Fritz Maytag helped unleash by nurturing America's craft beer revolution.
1 Year After Chesa Boudin's Recall, Is San Francisco Safer Under His Successor's More Punitive Policies?
Brooke Jenkins took office one year ago this week promising more prosecution for drug and property crime offenders. Crime and overdoses still went up.
Study: San Francisco Rent Control Expansion Led to More Evictions
A new study from researchers at Northwestern University found that landlords were incentivized by rising rents to replace existing tenants with new market-rate-paying tenants.
San Francisco Gets $20 Million Zoning Reform Grant the Same Week It Halts New Housing For Casting Shadows
This is the second RAISE grant San Francisco has received since the Biden administration retooled the program to reward jurisdictions for adopting zoning reforms.
Transit Agencies Demand Taxpayer Subsidies To Stave Off 'Death Spirals.' There's a Better Way.
Service cuts that reflect falling demand and zoning reforms that bring more fare-paying residents back to cities could shore up transit agencies' budgets.
San Francisco's Got Problems. There's No Need To Exaggerate Them for Political Reasons.
If you don't like San Francisco, that's fine, but don't tell tall tales about it.
Why Homelessness Is Worse in California Than in Texas
Today, the Lone Star state counts 90 homeless people per every 100,000 residents. In California, the problem is almost five times as bad.
San Francisco Sits on Carry Permit Applications As Legislators Consider New Gun Restrictions
The city has not granted a single permit since the Supreme Court upheld the right to bear arms last June.
A Former Obama Drug Policy Adviser Blames 'Libertarianism' for 'Fueling San Francisco's Drug Crisis'
Stanford University psychologist Keith Humphreys misconstrues libertarianism and ignores its critique of prohibition's deadly impact.
City That Forced Landlords To Evict Tenants Suspected of Crimes Will Pay $1 Million To Settle DOJ Lawsuit
Plus: Elon Musk bans Twitter account that tracks his private jet, Iong permit waits to build new apartment buildings in San Francisco, and more...
Elon Musk Isn't the Only One Fighting Regulators for Turning Offices Into Bedrooms
The rise of remote work has piqued developers' interest in converting empty downtown offices to apartments. Zoning codes and building regulations often make that impossible.
San Francisco Votes To Allow Killer Robots
Plus: Same-sex marriage bill passes Senate, Montana "mountain man" takes property rights case to SCOTUS, and more...
What Message Are Prosecutors Sending by Charging Paul Pelosi's Attacker With 8 State and Federal Felonies?
In addition to six state charges, David DePape faces two federal charges, each punishable by decades in prison.
San Francisco Wants To Spend $1.7 Million on a Single Public Toilet
Local officials argue that the eye-popping sum is necessary due to rising construction costs, but experts disagree.
A Top-Ranked High School Got Rid of Merit-Based Admissions. Then Students' Grades Tanked.
Data show that students admitted by lottery to San Francisco's Lowell High School are academically faring much worse than their peers.
San Francisco Police Can Now Have Live Access to Nearly Any Camera in the City
A new ordinance passed by the city's Board of Supervisors allows police to request live access to private security cameras even for misdemeanor violations.
As California Embraces Development, San Francisco Mayor Vetoes Fake Housing Reform Bill
The proposed policy was offensive to property rights and disincentivized construction. The mayor's rejection of it shows the state's increasing interest in allowing more building.
Elementary School Calls Cops on 4-Year-Old for Violating Mask Mandate
In the Bay Area and in Los Angeles County, authorities are quickly learning there's little public will to follow their mandates.
San Francisco Spent Over $20,000 on a Trash Can
“We need to have a trash can that works for the city of San Francisco,” said city project manager Lisa Zhuo.
Are San Francisco's NIMBYs Finally Getting Their Comeuppance?
State housing officials have launched a first-ever investigation of the city's housing policies and practices, setting the stage for far more sweeping interventions.
Walgreens 'Helped Fuel' Opioid Crisis in San Francisco, Says Judge
Plus: Americans want to vote on abortion, why the housing crisis has gone national, and more...
NYC and San Francisco Prioritize 'First Doses First' for Monkeypox Vaccine. Why Won't the CDC Do the Same?
The CDC and FDA, when confronted with scarce vaccine supply, refuse to learn from their COVID-19 mistakes.
San Francisco's New D.A. Leans Into Prohibition, Will Roll Back Plea Agreements Offered by Her Predecessor
"We have to make changes now to save lives," Brooke Jenkins said, announcing tougher penalties for fentanyl dealers.
COVID Taught More Than 1 Million Parents the Value of School Choice
Educational freedom is good for everybody but unions, bureaucrats, and the education establishment.
San Francisco Fines Businesses for Getting Vandalized
The city halted its practice of fining graffitied businesses during the pandemic. But now it's firing up its enforcement machine again.