• Having passed the state Senate Public Safety Committee and state Senate Local Government Committee, Assembly Bill 2257—authored by Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara)—will advance to the Senate floor in August. Focused on county jail accountability, the bill would give boards of supervisors throughout California the option to exercise confirmation authority over a sheriff’s top jail administrator. When deciding to confirm or deny a nominee for a three-year term, a board of supervisors could consider certain relevant factors, such as a nominee’s experience overseeing correctional health and mental health care, proficiency in public budgeting, knowledge of rehabilitation best practices, and commitment to advancing the civil rights of the incarcerated. “For the benefit of the public, incarcerated people, and the correctional workforce, this bill gives county officials a focused tool to promote greater accountability and cooperation from sheriffs in addressing jail issues,” Hart said in a July 1 statement. “California’s county jails are in crisis. Deaths are occurring at record-high levels, people with mental illness are languishing without care, and costs are skyrocketing without improved outcomes.” Santa Barbara County 2nd District Supervisor Laura Capps said in a statement that she’s grateful to Hart for “his leadership in advancing this commonsense reform” and “restoring greater accountability and balance in jail oversight.”
• The Bureau of Land Management’s 30-day public scoping period to receive public input on potential oil and gas lease sales in San Luis Obispo County and other parts of California will end on Aug. 1. U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) commented on the scoping period in a July 8 statement. “I remain strongly opposed to the Bureau of Land Management’s actions and will continue working with state and local partners to stop any attempt to build new oil wells on our public lands,” Carbajal said. “The Trump administration continues to favor Big Oil at the expense of our environment and public health. While this 30-day public scoping period does not mean new oil wells will spring up tomorrow, it represents yet another reckless step toward handing public lands over to the oil industry. Californians have been clear from the start: We do not want any more oil drilling on public lands—especially areas close to our state’s natural treasures such as the Carrizo Plain National Monument.” Carbajal argued against claims that expanding oil drilling is necessary for California’s energy security. “Just last month, [the Trump administration] blocked a wind energy project in Morro Bay that would have provided the state with a new source of clean power,” he stated. “These actions reveal a pattern of favoritism toward Big Oil.”
• State Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that a lawsuit settlement in late June ended with three major egg producers agreeing to donate more than 8 million eggs collectively to California food banks, including the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County. The settlement resolved allegations that Cal-Maine Foods, Versova, and Hickman’s conspired to raise the cost of eggs nationwide in violation of antitrust laws, according to Bonta’s office. The producers agreed to pay $3.3 million to each of the 17 states included in the lawsuit and donate more than 53 million eggs to food banks in those states. “As Californians scrambled to feed their families, three egg producers conspired to act illegally and hatched a plan to raise the cost of eggs nationwide,” Bonta stated. “My office is committed to cracking down on companies that run afoul of the law and unlawfully conspire to raise prices for Californians who are already struggling with a crisis of affordability.”
This article appears in July 16 – July 23, 2026.
