KQED's The California Report

As the state legislature works to tackle a $12 billion budget deficit, a bill aimed at delivering vital resources right to farmworkers’ front doors is being put on hold. It’s modeled after an existing program run by Ayudando Latinos a Soñar, a nonprofit based in Half Moon Bay. Reporter: Madi Bolanos, The California Report The federal government and the ACLU are facing off in district court Friday over the future of a program offering legal services to undocumented families. Reporter: Juan Carlos Lara, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The podcast dives into the complex story of Darryl Mefferd, whose in-custody death was initially deemed an accidental overdose, but new evidence raises questions about the true circumstances. It highlights the struggle families face to obtain transparency after such tragedies. Additionally, discussions on California's $12 billion budget deficit reveal proposed cuts affecting healthcare for undocumented immigrants and reproductive health services, while also addressing contentious infrastructure projects that have been debated for decades.

It’s budget season at the State Capitol, which means grassroots advocates from around California come to plead for the funding they need for key community programs and projects. But, participating in the budget process and public committee hearings can be a heavy lift – especially for those outside Sacramento’s high-powered lobbyist class. (Reporter: Laura Fitzgerald, CapRadio) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In recent years, the population of homeless people has aged, with about 20% of them now 55 or older. Many have never been homeless before. (Reporter: Jane Vaughan, Jefferson Public Radio) Conservative activists are welcoming an announcement from Governor Gavin Newsom this week pushing cities to ban homeless encampments across California. Advocates for unhoused people are condemning the move as cruel and counterproductive. (Reporter: Vanessa Rancaño, KQED) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is a federal agency that funds programs in libraries nationwide. In March, President Trump signed an executive order to slash the agency’s funding. And California's Braille and Talking Book Library, which serves the state's blind and print-disabled community, could be hit by these cuts. Reporter: Jasmine Ascencio, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism Over the weekend, Catholic churchgoers attended the first Sunday mass since the election of the first pope with Creole ancestry. Reporter: Billy Cruz, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Los Angeles County's Annenberg Wildlife Crossing is a  90-million-dollar bridge now under construction. It's designed to connect green spaces between a freeway so animals can cross safely. But animals don’t need these kinds of crossings to be so expensive and fancy. There are smaller and cheaper ways to cross the road. Guest: Seth Riley, Biologist, National Park Service Some of the country’s cities, including parts of San Francisco, are slowly sinking, according to a new study. But in San Francisco, tectonic activity and areas built on reclaimed land are causing the subsidence. Reporter: Ezra David Romero, KQED Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A bill introduced in the state legislature by Sacramento Democratic Assembly member Maggy Krell aims to increase penalties for loitering to solicit minors for sex. But a provision specifically aimed at soliciting 16- and 17-year olds has divided state Democrats, and given Republicans a political opportunity to criticize their opponents.  Reporter: Laura Fitzgerald, CapRadio California's tiny home industry is experiencing a boom in production, which signals hope for a new era of homeownership. The boom also could face road blocks, such as soaring construction prices and local zoning challenges. Reporter: Saul Gonzalez, The California Report Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For a long time, California's Central Valley has been a bastion of conservative political support; the red spot in a state that's awash in blue. However, there are signs that support for the right could be wavering, as President Trump's policies on trade and immigration are impacting livelihoods in the Central Valley; and some of the biggest progressives in the country are eyeing the region as a place that is ready for change. Since Covered California went into effect more than ten years ago, millions of state residents have relied on the program to obtain healthcare, year after year. However, the trust that Californians have put into the program may start to fray, after a CalMatters investigation revealed that Covered California is sending people's personal information to private companies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last week, the Trump administration announced its goal of cutting $6 billion from NASA or nearly a quarter of the space agency's budget. Science programs would be hit especially hard, like the work done by NASA facilities in California. Guest: Casey Dreier, Chief of Space Policy, Planetary Society Three people are dead, four have received medical attention and at least seven remain missing after a small boat believed to be carrying migrants capsized near San Diego on Monday morning. Reporter: Gustavo Solis, KPBS Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For decades, wolves were thought to have been hunted and poisoned into extinction in California with the last sighting of the animal in the 1920s. But that changed in late 2011 when a wolf wearing a radio collar crossed into the state from Oregon. In the years since, California’s gray wolf population has grown into the dozens, threatening the livelihood of cattle ranchers in places as far north as Modoc County. Reporter: Saul Gonzalez, The California Report Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices