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On November 8, 2016, California voters approved Proposition 64, launching a new era in the consumption, marketing, taxation and regulation of for what decades has been California’s largest cash crop, marijuana. In this paper, I will explore how the policy issues emerging from the legalization of recreational marijuana intersect with racial justice, education, youth wellbeing, the built environment and economic development.

On October 31, 2017, Smart Growth California hosted a webinar about Senate Bill 1 (Beall) California’s New Housing Transportation Bill. The presentation centered on the role funders can play in coalition-building and advocacy toward transportation equity, a criteria hotly debated by community advocacy groups before SB 1 passed last year. Speakers included:

Transportation connects people to places, and is a major determinant of access to opportunity and economic mobility. At the same time, it powerfully shapes both the location and the nature of development and land-use, whether that be a suburban subdivision accessible to a freeway exit, luxury
condominiums a short walk from a rail station, or a warehouse district near a port. In short, transportation creates both benefits (like access to opportunity) and burdens (like exposure to toxic emissions).

“A three-month sabbatical for nonprofit leaders can be a lever for whole systems change.”
- From Creative Disruption to Systems Change: A 20-Year Retrospective on the Durfee Foundation Sabbatical Program

The Durfee Foundation released the report From Creative Disruption to Systems Change: A 20-Year Retrospective on the Durfee Foundation Sabbatical Program. The results of this evaluation show both the short and long-term benefits for individuals and organizations that partake in a well-planned sabbatical.

Every ten years, the U.S. Constitution mandates a counting of every person living in the United States, regardless of their citizenship status. The next decennial census will be conducted in 2020. The counting of nearly 400 million persons is an endeavor that requires cooperation among federal, state, and local governments, community based organizations, and philanthropy.

The White House has proposed an outline for tax policy changes, entitled “Unified Framework for Fixing Our Broken Tax Code.”  

The proposed tax plan would affect individual income tax rates and corporate tax rates. This memorandum will focus on the proposed changes to the tax code that would have a direct impact to philanthropy, and follows up on an analysis by Southern California Grantmakers in May.