The Brief

California’s Insurance Department has launched a formal investigation into State Farm over its handling of claims from the Los Angeles County fires.

The investigation, expected to take months, will allow for a more comprehensive regulatory review, the department said in a press release today. Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said in the release that the review will help determine whether State Farm has complied with the state’s consumer-protection and claims-handling laws.

“No one should be left in uncertainty, forced to fight for what they are owed, or face endless delays that often lead consumers to give up," Lara said.

Survivors of the January fires and lawmakers who represent them had urged the commissioner to open the investigation into the state’s largest provider of property insurance.

Residents of Pasadena and Altadena have complained about delays in payments; being assigned multiple claims adjusters; having to fight to be reimbursed for smoke damage; and more. His staff will also investigate inconsistent management of similar claims and poor record-keeping, Lara said.

“I’m happy to hear the commissioner has chosen to look deeper,” said Andrew Wessels, whose Altadena home has smoke damage, high levels of lead and more. “But I’ll believe stuff when I see it on any of these things.”

Wessels, his wife and two children have lived in seven places since the Eaton Fire. He told CalMatters today that he is waiting on at least $25,000 in reimbursements from State Farm, and has not yet bothered to submit “a bunch” more requests for reimbursement because it seems futile at this moment. Last week, the insurer assigned him a new adjuster — the fourth so far.

State Farm said it is cooperating with the investigation.

“A fair review will find that thousands of State Farm customers are being helped by our teams on the ground in Los Angeles County and are very satisfied,” said Sevag Sarkissian, spokesperson for State Farm. He said the company has paid more than $3.96 billion on more than 12,000 claims by its California customers as of this week.

As part of the investigation, the insurance department is asking State Farm customers to continue to submit complaints. The department has so far received hundreds of claims related to the L.A.-area fires, a significant number of which are about State Farm, department spokesperson Gabriel Sanchez said today.

Formal investigations by the insurance department are known as market-conduct examinations. They have resulted in correcting insurance companies’ practices, said department spokesperson Michael Soller. After wildfires in 2015 and 2017, the department’s investigations of a handful of insurers including State Farm resulted in about $158 million more in claims recovered, Soller said.

State Farm received approval to raise the premiums of its California customers last month, and is seeking additional rate increases.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

If your child’s teacher hasn’t threatened to go on strike recently, they probably will soon.

Thousands of California K-12 teachers have walked off their jobs or voted to strike in the past few months, as part of a strategic, statewide effort by the California Teachers Association to boost salaries and benefits — and get the public’s attention.

“All these districts going out on strike — it’s not a coincidence at all,” said David Goldberg, president of the California Teachers Association, the state’s largest teachers union. “Everywhere in the state there are people with unmet needs. The conditions have been ripe for a long time.”

San Francisco teachers went on strike for four days this month. West Contra Costa teachers went on strike in December. San Diego, Woodland, Apple Valley, Duarte and Madera teachers planned to strike in the past few months but reached a settlement at the last minute. Teachers in Los Angeles, Oakland, Dublin, West Sacramento, Twin Rivers and Natomas have voted overwhelmingly to strike. In Berkeley, Soquel and other districts, teachers are holding rallies and appear headed for strike votes.

Ten local teachers unions under the umbrella of the California Teachers Association worked for years to align their contracts so they’d expire at the same time: June 30, 2025. The idea, Goldberg said, was to trigger a wave of negotiations and potential strikes to garner public attention and flex political muscle. Teachers unions from at least a dozen other districts have also joined the effort, even though they weren’t part of the original cohort.

“We’re a strong union with a lot of resources, and we’re taking advantage of that,” Goldberg said, whose union represents about 310,000 teachers. “Teachers are learning from each other, and getting some clarity on how to win resources for public schools.”

Public and political priorities

Teacher contracts vary by district, but the demands are similar: higher salaries, better benefits and amenities that affect student well-being, such as sanctuary protection for immigrants.

Considering the ever-escalating cost of living in California, the demands are not a surprise, said Julia Koppich, an education consultant who specializes in labor-management relations.

Teachers in expensive cities like San Francisco often can’t afford to live near their jobs, she said, noting that starting teachers in San Francisco Unified earn about $80,000. San Francisco’s starting police officers, by comparison, make about $120,000.

It’s been a frustration for the teaching profession for decades, she said. But districts don’t have much control over their revenues and substantial increases in spending would have to come from the state, she said.

“To be sure, the issue of marshaling sufficient resources is a district conversation about teacher worth,” Koppich said. “But, ultimately, it’s a state discussion about public and political priorities."

District financial hardships

At the same time that teachers are demanding more money, school districts are facing financial hardships. Declining enrollment, especially in urban districts, has meant half-empty classrooms and less money from the state, which funds schools based on how many students show up every day. Closing schools is the obvious answer, but that’s proven to be deeply unpopular and few school boards appear willing to take that step.

Another financial challenge has been the end of pandemic relief money. California schools received more than $23.4 billion in one-time grants intended to help students recover from pandemic-related learning loss. State and federal authorities advised schools to spend the money on temporary tutors, after-school and summer programs and other short-term expenses. But some districts, including Los Angeles Unified, San Diego Unified and San Francisco Unified, used some of their funds to increase teacher pay or hire permanent staff, which they’re now struggling to pay for after the grant money ended.

So even though the state has increased K-12 school funding the past few years, some districts are financially strapped. It’s unclear whether they can afford teachers’ demands for higher salaries or more generous benefits, said Marguerite Roza, director of the Edunomics Lab at Georgetown University.

Los Angeles Unified, for example, gave its teachers 5% raises plus a $2,000 one-time stipend and a $500 bonus. The district’s nurses, who are also represented by the union, got $5,000 stipends.

“The unions are saying, ‘We know you have an ATM back there. If you were nice, you’d push the buttons,’” Roza said. But districts’ money is tight, she said, “so we’re at a stand off.”

If districts agree to teachers’ demands, cuts will have to come from somewhere — most likely from programs considered non-essential, such as sports, electives, advanced placement classes and other offerings, she said.

It could also mean staff layoffs. Tutors, classroom aides and newer teachers would be the most vulnerable.

Those cuts would harm low-income students the most, Roza said, because they’re more likely to rely on special school programs and attend schools with newer teachers. Low-income students are also more likely to be affected by a strike, she said, because families typically have fewer options for child care and those students are more likely to suffer from academic disruptions.

School boards need to stand up for those students, she said, and do a better job negotiating with teachers unions. That entails more transparency about finances and a willingness to close under-used schools.

“It’s so irresponsible to erode services for vulnerable students because you don’t have a spine,” Roza said.

‘Kids as leverage’

Lance Christensen, vice president of education policy at the California Policy Center, said California should get rid of teachers unions altogether. Teachers deserve higher salaries, he said, but the teachers union does not always act in the interests of students.

The union devotes too much time to defending incompetent teachers, he said, and strikes are harmful to students and families. He also said the California Teachers Association has a political stranglehold on Sacramento that “overshadows every conversation in the Legislature, even if it’s not about education.”

He noted that charter schools and private schools are rarely unionized, and sometimes have better outcomes than traditional public schools. A handful of other states don’t allow teachers to collectively bargain, and at least 35 don’t allow teachers unions to strike.

“The union uses kids as leverage,” said Christensen, who ran for state superintendent of public instruction in 2022. “Right now, CTA is the biggest evil in California education.”

Next steps in San Francisco

In San Francisco, parent Meredith Dodson said she’s relieved the strike is over. Although most parents support teachers and believe they deserve better compensation, the strike was stressful for families and disrupted learning for thousands of students.

The $183 million settlement includes raises and improved benefits for teachers, which the district plans to pay for by draining its reserve funds.

Parents now are bracing for the inevitable cuts. The district’s finances remain shaky, and aren’t likely to improve any time soon.

“What comes next? Layoffs? Increased class sizes? State intervention?” said Dodson, who is executive director of the San Francisco Parents Coalition, a parent advocacy group. “There’s going to be some hard questions for the board, and they’re going to have to ask themselves, what’s best for kids?”

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

This story was originally published by The LA Local on Feb. 26, 2026.

Oaxacan cuisine is often defined by two pillars: mole and quesillo. They anchor dishes like tlayudas, memelas, tetelas and tamales, and their flavors travel well — you can find versions of them across Los Angeles and many parts of the world.

But one of Oaxaca’s most satisfying street foods rarely gets the same spotlight — the torta Oaxaqueña — messy, crunchy and loaded with individually transformed ingredients.

Unlike other regional tortas that use either freshly baked bollillo or birote saladao, the Oaxacan variety always features a flat toasted telera roll. It also always has plenty of melted quesillo and refried black bean paste. Then it’s loaded with strips of cecina enchilada (marinated pork), fried Oaxacan chorizo or tasajo (thinly sliced beef).

A chalkboard decorated with bright flowers and a drawing of a torta greets customers at Tortas Mexico in Pasadena.

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Cristabell Fierros

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The LA Local

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In Old Town Pasadena, Tortas Mexico has served Mexican and Oaxacan dishes for 26 years. The family-owned restaurant, operated by the Ramos family, is open seven days a week and offers a menu ranging from breakfast burritos and chilaquiles to birria tacos and enchiladas.

At the entrance, a chalkboard decorated with bright flowers and a drawing of a torta greets customers with the phrase “Hecho con amor y tradición” — made with love and tradition.

“The start of this restaurant business came from an idea by my cousin Francisco, his wife Patricia and my Aunt Macuca,” said Esteban Ramos, who later purchased the location with his wife Blanca.

Esteban and Blanca Ramos outside their Pasadena eatery Tortas Mexico.

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Cristabell Fierros

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The LA Local

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Inside, the space is modest and warm, decorated with artisanal Mexican décor. Above the counter, a sprawling menu lists dozens of options. In the kitchen, at least three cooks work the grill, including Blanca Ramos.

“The recipes primarily stem from my husband’s side of the family, specifically his Tía Macuca,” Ramos said. “She inspired the majority of the menu.”

In recent months, Tortas Mexico has attracted new customers through Instagram and TikTok videos, thanks to Esteban’s son, Neftali Ramos, who runs the restaurant’s social media.

“I want to continue building a spot where you know you’re getting real, authentic Mexican food — that tastes like your mom or your grandma made it,” he said.

Across Los Angeles, other Oaxacan kitchens are crafting their own versions of the regional specialty.

Here are the best Oaxacan tortas in Los Angeles ranked.

No. 5 Tlayuda Restaurant

A Oaxacan torta from El Valle Oaxaqueño in Pico-Union. They also have a second location in South LA.

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Cristabell Fierros

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The LA Local

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Best known for its heart-shaped tlayudas, Tlayuda Restaurant in East Hollywood also turns out a satisfying torta Oaxaqueña. A soft bolillo holds refried black beans, mayonnaise, melted quesillo, avocado, diced chorizo and thin-sliced beef — a balanced, filling torta without any unnecessary flash.

No. 4 El Valle Oaxaqueño

A Oaxacan torta.

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Cristabell Fierros

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The LA Local

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Part bakery, part market and restaurant, El Valle Oaxaqueño presses its house-baked telera rolls on a flat iron for extra crunch. The carne asada torta melts into layers of mayonnaise, black beans and quesillo. Other options include salchicha roja Oaxaqueña and chile relleno for vegetarians.

No. 3 Los Compadres de Oaxaca

A Oaxacan torta from Oaxacali in South Central.

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Cristabell Fierros

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The LA Local

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One of the newer Oaxacan additions to LA, Los Compadres De Oaxaca opened in 2025 and isn’t afraid to lean bold. Its torta Oaxaqueña arrives on a toasted bolillo stuffed with chorizo and carne asada, refried black beans, mayo, lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado and fresh quesillo. Fries and tortilla chips with house-made mole come on the side.

No. 2 Oaxacalifornia

A South LA institution for more than two decades, Oaxacalifornia blends Oaxacan flavors with Southern California influence. The vegetarian torta Oaxaqueña is the way to go here — crisp telera bread layered with refried black beans, mayonnaise, avocado, tomatoes and lightly salted quesillo. It comes with nopalito salad and smoky red salsa for extra depth.

No. 1 Tortas Mexico

At Tortas Mexico, their Oaxaqueña begins on a flat-top grill, where a sliced telera roll toasts while strips of cecina enchilada sizzle beside it. The paired grilling adds a rich flavor to the telera roll. That richness is enhanced by every ingredient. The bean paste adds texture that compliments the crunchy bread, followed by the gooey quesillo and the perfectly charred meat.

At the prep station, mayonnaise is spread on the top half of the roll. Lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, white onions and jalapeños follow. The torta is pressed together — warm, heavy, built to drip.

This story was originally published by The LA Local on Feb. 26, 2026.

The city’s police inspector general will begin monitoring LAPD encounters with federal immigration agents and report its findings to the Police Commission, the office confirmed to The LA Local.

“We’ll be working with the department to request notification of all future incidents of department personnel responding to calls for service at the scene of immigration enforcement action,” Inspector General Matthew Barragan introduced at the police commission meeting on Tuesday. “A police special investigator, a member of my team, will review all body worn video recordings and will report back to this full board at future meetings regarding compliance with the executive directive.”

The move follows Mayor Karen Bass’ Feb. 10 directive requiring the LAPD to turn on body cameras and ask federal immigration agents to identify themselves during operations.

LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said the department would be in “full compliance with the directive.”

McDonnell recently faced backlash from residents, state senators, City Council members and immigration rights advocates after saying he would not enforce a new law that makes it a crime for agents to wear masks during immigration operations. He argued the law was bad policy and could threaten public safety if enforced.

Soon after those statements, a judge temporarily blocked the mask ban while considering a federal government lawsuit claiming the law improperly limits its work. Other provisions, including requirements that agents identify themselves, remain in effect.

While McDonnell did not explicitly retract his earlier statements on the mask ban during Tuesday’s meeting, he said the mayor’s order is now being followed.

Immigration agents have regularly worked while masked and at times refused to provide their names, agencies and badge numbers to the public, a departure from longstanding law enforcement practice and a violation of recently enacted California law.

Bass directed the police department to enforce the portions of the law not under litigation. The order also requires the department to retain footage for potential use in legal actions by county or state prosecutors.

One commissioner said each LAPD division is expected to designate at least two officers as immigration liaisons, responsible for communicating with department leadership about what’s happening on the ground.

McDonnell said a department administrator would provide a more detailed update on the LAPD’s knowledge of immigration operations across the city at the next commission meeting. He also said the department plans additional public outreach to help communities better understand its role.

“We’re there not to enforce civil immigration law, but to be able to keep the peace at the scenes where this is occurring and to be able to be the police department for everybody,” McDonnell said. “Trust is our currency and we have some work to do to be able to build that up after the incidents we’ve seen since June. So that’s some work in progress, but we are including all of our community members.”

The priority deadline for California students to apply for federal and state-based financial aid is March 2. And as students hustle to meet this deadline, the state is also encouraging them to claim their CalKIDS scholarship—up to $1,500 that can be used to pay for college or a career training program.

Typically, scholarship applications involve writing essays, meeting GPA requirements and maybe even securing letters of recommendation in a competition for limited funds.

But the CalKIDS scholarship requires none of that, said Noah Lightman, assistant deputy director at ScholarShare Investment Board, which oversees the program.

About 60% of California’s public school students are eligible for the scholarship, and it’s non-competitive. Students are entitled to the money by state law, Lightman said — they just have to claim it.

CalKIDS launched in 2022. To date, about 850,000 California students have claimed their scholarships.

Lightman pointed to research showing that children with even a modest amount of money set aside for higher education are three times more likely to attend college—and four times more likely to graduate college than children who don’t have any savings.

He knows from personal experience, having juggled coursework, extracurriculars, standardized tests and college applications while figuring out how he’d pay for college. Knowing there’s easy-to-access money “can be life-changing,” he added.

How are the CalKIDS scholarship amounts determined? And how do I claim it?

Students in second grade and up who are eligible for a CalKIDS scholarship will get at least $500.

The state determines eligibility based on a variety of factors, including family income and whether the student is learning English as a second language. If a student is unhoused or fostered, they will receive an additional $500. Eligible students who are unhoused and fostered will receive $1,500.

Lightman encourages everyone to check, though.

To claim their scholarships, Lightman said, students just need their 10-digit Statewide Student Identifier, which is assigned to them at school. (If you don’t know what yours is, ask your teacher or counselor.) Once they have their SSID, students or their parents can go to the CalKIDS website, plug in that number, along with their birthdate and county where they attend school, and readily find out if they are eligible and, if so, for what amount.

Students do not need a Social Security number to access these funds.

The process takes about five minutes or less, said Julio Hernandez, a college and career administrative coordinator for Los Angeles Unified School District. Counseling teams across the district have been instructed to tell students about CalKIDS, Hernandez added. He’s also used the website to secure a $500 scholarship for his son. Once he graduates, Hernandez’s son will be able to use that money to help cover tuition or other higher ed expenses.

According to CalKIDS, students have used their scholarships to pay for everything from books to housing bills.

Students can start using their CalKIDS funds as young as 17, and they don’t have to spend it while they’re undergraduates. If they would like to hold on to that money till grad school, they may, Lightman said—but the money must be spent by the time they turn 26. Currently, he added, nearly 150,000 students are using CalKIDS to help pay for college.

What might keep students from claiming their scholarship?

At Long Beach Unified, counselors help students and parents navigate the claim process.

Counselors at the district also describe the process as quick and straightforward. But, Candyce Simpson, a counselor at Jordan High School, noted in an emailed statement to LAist that students and their parents are often “bombarded with emails about college and the cost of college.”

“There are predatory programs that spam our kids about scholarships, if you pay a fee,” she added. “As counselors, we constantly remind our students and families that if they ask for a credit card, they should delete the email immediately. These programs are very savvy, and they look very legitimate.”

Messages from CalKIDS may get “buried,” Simpson said. “Students know FAFSA and Studentaid.gov; we need to add CalKIDS to our narratives more intentionally.”

Hey, new parents! There is also a CalKIDS scholarship for babies 

Every baby born in California on or after July 1, 2022 is also eligible for a separate CalKIDS scholarship—regardless of their family income.

These scholarships start at $100. To access them, parents need their child’s 13-digit local registration number, which can be found on their birth certificate. If families choose to link this money with the state's official college savings program, ScholarShare 529, CalKIDS will add another $50 to their account.

The scholarship, though small in comparison to escalating college costs, “serves as a conversation starter,” Lightman said, “helping families look at college savings in general.”