California Lawmakers, News Leaders Rally Behind New Legislation to Boost Newsroom Jobs and Local Coverage

On March 27, California Assemblymember Christopher M. Ward held a press conference to build momentum for the Community Newsroom Employment and Workforce Sustainability Act (the Community NEWS Act, AB 2222). The new legislation would establish a refundable local journalist employment tax credit to strengthen local news across the state. Assemblymember Ward also highlighted the California Public Media Stabilization Fund, a complementary effort to support the state’s public media system.

The Community NEWS Act, introduced last month and developed in partnership with Rebuild Local News, would provide financial support to California news organizations based on the number of journalists they employ, with additional support for the smallest community outlets and for organizations creating new reporting positions. The measure has already been endorsed by organizations representing independent and ethnic media publishers, unionized journalists and journalism educators across the state.

“Local journalism is fundamental to a healthy democracy, yet too many communities across California are losing access to trusted, local reporting,” said Assemblymember Ward. “AB 2222 is a targeted solution that invests directly in newsroom jobs, helping news organizations hire and retain journalists so they can continue covering the issues that matter most to their communities. By strengthening local news, we are strengthening civic engagement, accountability, and public trust across our state.”

The event, hosted at KPBS Public Media in San Diego, brought together local elected officials, organized labor and media advocates to demonstrate broad support for the Community NEWS Act, including:

• • Patricia Dillard, Councilmember, City of La Mesa
  • Matt Pearce, Director of Policy, Rebuild Local News
  • Laura Rearwin Ward, Publisher, Ojai Valley News and Ventura County Sun; Founder and Board Chair, California Independent News Alliance
  • Arturo Carmona, President, Latino Media Collaborative
  • Lou Slocum, SAG-AFTRA National Board Member

Speakers voiced support for AB 2222 and emphasized the stakes for local journalism:

“The Community NEWS Act takes aim at the heart of the local news crisis by making it more affordable to hire and retain the journalists who cover our communities,” said Matt Pearce of Rebuild Local News. “This First Amendment-friendly policy directs extra support toward small community outlets and job creators hoping to expand local coverage.”

“[Journalism] is essential for keeping communities informed, connected and engaged. It plays a critical role in public awareness, civic engagement and keeping institutions accountable,” said Patricia Dillard, Councilmember for the City of La Mesa. “Supporting local journalism is an investment in stronger, more informed communities.”

“The industry business model for success has been gutted by big tech, hedge funds and private equity firms. And as news outlets are defunded, our rights to information, transparency, and free speech erode with them,” said Laura Rearwin Ward of the California Independent News Alliance. “I speak for California Independent print and digital news outlets when I say we need the support of AB 2222.”

“Ethnic media outlets that serve Black, Latino, Indigenous, and Asian communities are closing at an alarming rate — taking with them trusted, culturally competent voices,” said Arturo Carmona of Latino Media Collaborative. “That is why LMC is proud to support AB 2222 and thank Assemblymember Chris Ward. We applaud him for championing a targeted, fiscally responsible, and equitable approach to investing in the media infrastructure that elevates our democracy.”

“On behalf of SAG-AFTRA members across the state [I] applaud Assemblymember Ward for introducing AB 2222 and taking the action needed to defend journalism during this unprecedented time,” said Lou Slocum of SAG-AFTRA. “Though I’ve been in this business for over 30 years, I’ve never seen professional journalists encounter so many colossal threats to their professions as they have in 2025 and 2026. The stakes couldn’t be higher.”

Deanna Martin Mackey, General Manager of KPBS, was also a speaker, showing support for the California Public Media Stabilization Fund, a separate proposal designed to reinforce the public media infrastructure that serves communities across the state.

According to the Local Journalist Index, developed by Muck Rack and Rebuild Local News, California has an estimated 2,386 full‑time local journalists—just over six per 100,000 residents—ranking 42nd out of all 50 states in the nation. In 2002, the national average stood at roughly 40 full‑time local journalists per 100,000 residents. Since then, California has lost nearly 34 journalists per 100,000 residents, leaving the state with one of the lowest levels of local reporting capacity in the country.

Working closely with Assemblymember Ward, Rebuild Local News designed the policy behind the Community NEWS Act to ensure that local print, digital and broadcast outlets—including nonprofit, for‑profit and sole proprietorships—can benefit. Similar approaches have gained strong bipartisan traction in recent years, with lawmakers in Illinois, New York and New Mexico approving comparable measures backed by broad coalitions of local news stakeholders.

The bill creates two types of refundable tax credits to help newsrooms hire and retain local journalists. (“Refundable” means that credits exceeding an organization’s tax liability are paid out in cash, like a grant.)

• Job retention credit: $20,000 per journalist for up to five positions, plus $15,000 for each additional journalist.
• New hire credit: An additional $15,000 per newly created journalist position, stackable with the retention credit.

The legislation includes clear, objective safeguards to prevent abuse by partisan “pink slime” news sites and other bad actors. By defining eligibility in statute, rather than leaving decisions to government officials, the bill ensures the state cannot pick and choose which outlets benefit. This structure preserves editorial independence while keeping the focus squarely on supporting local journalism.

Rebuild Local News is a sponsor of the bill and has developed explainer materials to help California newsrooms understand the proposal, including a credit calculator that estimates the financial benefit an outlet could receive under the Community NEWS Act. The bill has been referred to the Assembly Committee on Revenue and Taxation. There will be a hearing on Monday, April 13, 2026.