California Legislature Passes Nation’s Largest Proposed Investment in Community News

The Community NEWS Act (AB 2222), which would create refundable tax credits to help California news organizations hire and retain local journalists, passed out of the California Legislature after getting supermajority support in both chambers. The bill now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom, who has until September 30 to sign or veto a landmark bill to support and rebuild local news outlets.

“We thank California lawmakers for championing this common-sense measure to help California communities get better access to high-quality information about their local schools, governments and community life,” said Matt Pearce, director of policy at Rebuild Local News, the bill’s sponsor. “AB 2222 will mean communities will be far more likely to have local journalists covering what’s important to them. It will also make it a more economically attractive investment for philanthropists and investors looking for new ways to strengthen community news outlets.”

The Assembly voted* on Monday, Aug. 31, to pass the legislation following the Senate’s own passage of the bill 30-10 on Sunday, Aug. 30. AB 2222 was introduced by Assemblymember Christopher M. Ward, jointly authored by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, and cosponsored by Senator Jerry McNerney and Assemblymembers Josh Lowenthal, Tina McKinnor and Sharon Quirk-Silvais. The bill is sponsored by Rebuild Local News, the leading national nonprofit organization advocating for effective public policies to strengthen community news and information.

As lawmakers across the U.S. introduce dozens of bills to direct more support to struggling local news outlets, AB 2222 would be the largest local news subsidy of its kind in the U.S. to date, directing more than $40 million a year in support to local news outlets across California.

AB 2222, which was based on Rebuild Local News’ model legislation for local journalist employment credits, would provide:

• • $20,000 per journalist for up to five positions each year, plus $15,000 for each additional journalist
  • $15,000 for new hires (stackable on top of the retention credits)
  • $7,500 credits for part-time journalist roles

The bill applies to commercial and nonprofit newsrooms alike and covers print, digital, broadcast including public media, and sole proprietors. The program is fully paid-for through a separate tax conformance measure in the bill, which would take away a California corporate tax break for executive compensation above $1 million.

The AB 2222 credits apply uniformly regardless of a news outlet’s medium or business model. A small-town newspaper in the Central Valley qualifies on the same terms as a nonprofit news site in Oakland. The program, by design, does not involve government review of editorial content and instead relies on objective criteria of eligibility. It also includes safeguards intended to prevent abuse by partisan “pink slime” operations while protecting editorial independence. Read our FAQ to learn more about the local journalist employment credit model.

Local journalist employment nationwide has fallen more than 80% since 2002, from roughly 40 journalists per 100,000 residents to 7.8, and more than two newspapers close somewhere in the country every week. California ranks among the 10 worst in the nation for journalists per 100,000 residents, has lost more than 40% of its newspapers since 2005, and has 37 counties — home to 30.5 million people — at or below the national average for local reporting capacity. A 2026 report found the shortage is already costing local governments roughly $1.1 billion a year in higher municipal borrowing costs, as lenders price in the reduced oversight that comes when no one is covering city hall.

Advocates describe AB 2222 as a way of strengthening communities by providing better local news coverage and information about schools, development, local businesses and more, while also providing jobs for local journalists.

The bill drew together a historically broad coalition of local news supporters – large and small publishers; ethnic media; for profits and nonprofits; print, digital, TV and radio; and labor unions representing journalists across California.

The AB 2222 coalition assembled by Rebuild Local News includes:

• • Media Guild of the West
  • California News Publishers Association
  • SAG‑AFTRA
  • California Independent News Alliance
  • California Broadcasters Association
  • Latino Media Collaborative
  • American Community Media
  • California Black Media
  • Pacific Media Workers Guild of The NewsGuild‑CWA
  • Institute for Nonprofit News
  • Local Independent Online News Publishers
  • Asian American Journalists Association of Los Angeles
  • The Journalism Chairs of the Cal State University System
  • News/Media Alliance

Individual news outlets that supported it include The LA Local, Lookout Local, Cityside Journalism Initiative, The Sacramento Observer, CalMatters, La Opinion, Hispanic LA, the Napa Valley Register and many others.

This is the latest in a series of state actions to help revive local news. Rebuild Local News estimates that in 2026, $82 million will flow to local newsrooms as a result of actions in just six states (not including AB 2222). The activity included a move by Vermont’s Republican Governor Phil Scott to prioritize local news in state advertising spending, as well as local journalist employment credits in Illinois, New York and New Mexico. The early results from Illinois’ program indicate that the approach is uniquely effective at reaching smaller newsrooms outside major urban areas.

*Note: The Assembly has finalized its vote, though the tally is not yet published. We will update this release once those numbers are available.

About Rebuild Local News

Rebuild Local News is the leading nonpartisan, nonprofit coalition developing and advancing effective public policies designed to strengthen community news and information. Our broad-based organization brings together the largest alliance of local publishers, labor unions, civic organizations and newsrooms representing both rural and urban communities. Together, these 56 organizations represent over 3,000 newsrooms and 15,000 journalists working together to revive local news.

Media Contact

Ray Garcia, marketing and communications manager, raygarcia@rebuildlocalnews.org