California
After exam fiasco, California State Bar faces deeper financial crisis
The California State Bar’s botched roll out of a new exam — a move that the cash-strapped agency made in the hopes of saving money — could ultimately end up costing it an additional $5.6 million.
Leah T. Wilson, executive director of the State Bar, told state lawmakers at a Senate Judiciary hearing Tuesday that the agency expects to pay around $3 million to offer free exams to test takers, an additional $2 million to book in-person testing sites in July, and $620,000 to return the test to its traditional system of multiple-choice questions in July.
Wilson, who announced last week she will step down when her term ends this summer, revealed the costs during a 90-minute hearing called by Sen. Thomas J. Umberg (D-Orange), chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, to find out what went so “spectacularly wrong.”
Chaos ensued in February when thousands of test takers seeking to practice law in California sat for the new exam. Some reported they couldn’t log into the exam because online testing platforms repeatedly crashed. Many experienced screen lags and error messages, struggled to finish and save essays and complained of multiple-choice questions that were worded improperly and included typos.
“The question is, how did we come to this place?” Umberg said at the beginning of the hearing. “And how do we make sure we never ever come back to this place?”
Last year, the State Bar was on the verge of a financial crisis when it announced a plan to develop a new bar exam: its 2024 budget forecast a deficit of $3.8 million in its admissions fund, which deals with fees and expenses related to administering the bar exam. The fund, it warned, faced insolvency in 2026.
The agency made plans to ditch the traditional national bar exam, which requires test takers sit in-person, and develop its own exam that would allow for remote testing. The State Bar promoted its plan as a “historic agreement” that would save up to $3.8 million a year.
It’s unclear how much the State Bar could pay next year if it goes back to experimenting with its own exam. Its expenses are likely to shift as it pursues a lawsuit against Meazure Learning, the vendor that administered the February test.
But the cost to the State Bar is not just financial. After the exam debacle, the agency faces the embarrassment of reverting to traditional in-person exams in July and the prospect of more scrutiny.
After hearing from February test takers, law school deans and leaders of the State Bar, the Senate committee approved an independent review of the exam by the California State Auditor.
Test taker Andrea Lynch told lawmakers she faced constant disruptions during the exam from proctors, technical glitches and computer crashes. Near the end, as she prepared to begin a final section of the exam, a message popped up telling her her exam had been submitted before she’d even seen the questions.
“This was just not a technical failure,” Lynch told lawmakers. “It was a systemic failure, a breakdown in the integrity, accessibility and fairness of one of the most important professional milestones in the legal profession. I urge this committee to consider what it means when a test intended to uphold justice fails to deliver it to its own applicants.”
The State Bar has filed a civil complaint against Meazure Learning in Los Angeles Superior Court, accusing the vendor of fraud, negligent misrepresentation, and breach of contract by claiming it could administer a remote and in-person exam in a two-day window.
But critics of the State Bar argue that agency leadership bears responsibility for failing to take enough time to develop the new test.
Jessica Berg, Dean of UC Davis School of Law, told lawmakers that the State Bar’s rush to roll out of the bar exam and lack of transparency throughout the process caused financial and emotional harm to the test takers and significant financial and reputational harm to the State Bar and the state of California.
“The problems that we saw with the bar exam were absolutely predictable and they rest on two pieces of what was going on here — problems with the substance of the exam and problems with the administration of the exam,” Berg said.
The hearing explored problems with the exam’s multiple-choice questions.
Two weeks ago, the State Bar revealed that its independent psychometrician — who measures the reliability of exams and recommends scoring adjustments, but is not a lawyer — drafted a subset of 29 multiple-choice questions using artificial intelligence.
Under questioning by Umberg, Wilson, the State Bar’s executive director, admitted “no lawyer assisted in the initial drafting.” She said she did not find out until after the exam that some questions were drafted by Chat GPT.
Wilson also admitted that the State Bar did not copy edit test questions ahead of the exam.
Asked when she learned that some multiple-choice questions had typos, Wilson said after the exam “when I saw it on Reddit.”
Then, Sen. Umberg raised a new concern: the fairness of exam grading.
The State Bar announced Monday that the pass rate for the February exam was 55.9%, the highest spring pass rate since 1965. Last February, the pass rate was significantly lower at 33.9%.
“I don’t think anyone here has any interest in going back and revisiting this issue for those who pass the bar, but what it tells me is that there are issues with respect to grading,” Umberg said.
“How do you account for this huge disparity between what happened in the February bar in terms of passage rate and what’s happened historically?” he asked.
Alex Chan, an attorney who serves as chair of the State Bar’s Committee of Bar Examiners, said that despite the bar exam’s problems, the grading process remained rigorous and consistent with previous administrations. He attributed the high passing score to the California Supreme Court’s approval of his committee’s petition to lower the total raw passing score for general bar exam takers to 534 points or higher on the essay, performance test and multiple-choice questions.
“The scoring adjustments were not designed to be lenient in any way,” Chan said. “They were designed to be fair and measured in light of the circumstances and the unprecedented and well documented technical failures.”
Wilson also noted that the February 2025 test takers had a higher average raw score on the written section of the bar exam than their 2024 or 2023 cohorts. “This is without any psychometric adjustment,” she said. “So looking apples to apples, these 2025 test takers performed better.”
“So this deviation was because they were smarter,” said Umberg. “What would the passage rate have been if the score wasn’t lowered?”
Donna S. Hershkowitz, the State Bar’s chief of admissions, said the overall pass rate would have been 46.9% — still significantly higher than normal— if the minimum raw passing score had not been lowered.
“I’ll be curious as to what happens next year when we use the old format,” Umberg said. “In any event — again to assure those who pass — we’re not going to go back.”
California
CDFW News | California Fish and Game Commission Takes Emergency Action to Prevent White Shark Take and Reduce Potential Interactions Between Hooked Sharks and Swimmers
Prosecutors Honored for Their Work to Protect Wildlife; Southern Resident Killer Whale Named CESA Candidate
Anticipating a larger presence of white sharks in Southern California as a result of warmer El Niño ocean conditions, the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) adopted emergency regulations at its June 17-18, 2026 meeting to further protect the large ocean predator and reduce the potential for dangerous interactions with ocean users. These regulations will prohibit the use of certain fishing gear from beaches and nearshore that are used to hook large sharks and could create hazards for nearby beachgoers.
Forecasted warmer waters shift the preferred range for juvenile white sharks northward from Mexico and lead them to stay in California nearshore areas later in the year. The emergency regulations protect not only white sharks but also people recreating in the ocean, decreasing the risk of dangerous human encounters with sharks that are hooked with wire leaders from piers and beaches.
Specific gear types used to target large sharks, including hooks greater than 1.5 inches in maximum inside measurement and wire or metallic lines and leaders, will be prohibited when recreational fishing from shore or within 1,000 yards of shore from Pigeon Point (San Mateo County) south to the U.S.-Mexico border. Shore fishing includes beaches, banks, piers, jetties, breakwaters, docks and other man-made structures connected to the shore. Unless extended, the emergency regulations will expire 180 days after being filed with the secretary of state. The Commission may pursue up to two 90-day extensions of the emergency action and, ultimately, may propose continuing the restrictions through a regular rulemaking if the regulations prove to be effective.
Prosecutor of the Year
Commissioners recognized two deputy district attorneys who have demonstrated their dedication to protecting California’s natural resources and have effectively collaborated with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to prosecute wildlife crimes. San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Ken Jorgensen and San Diego County Deputy District Attorney Michael McCann were presented with the Prosecutor of the Year Award for 2025.
Jorgenson’s work resulted in a landmark $165,000 settlement and injunctions in a case involving rare plant habitat destruction, and in another case a $12,500 fine and five years of probation for often under-prosecuted commercial fishing violations.
McCann assisted in the prosecution and investigation surrounding a global wildlife trafficking ring connected to illegal drug and firearm trade. The investigation disrupted a sophisticated trafficking network and resulted in multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, with more anticipated.
Southern Resident Killer Whale
The Commission named the southern resident killer whale (orca) a candidate species for listing under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). This population of orcas inhabits ocean waters from British Columbia to California and is estimated to now number as few as 75.
Orcas face threats such as limited availability of prey; Chinook salmon are a primary food source and have experienced population decline across the entire West Coast range of orcas. The species’ abundance has also been impacted by past practices of capture for live display.
CDFW will have one year to complete a review on the status of orcas, of the best available science, before the Commission can make a final decision on CESA listing. Orca is currently listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act and is considered depleted under the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Western Spadefoot
Continued from the Commission’s April meeting, a decision to consider CESA candidacy for western spadefoot frog was postponed to the August meeting to give environmental advocates and the solar industry additional time to collaborate on proposing exceptions to CESA protections that would be allowed under Fish and Game Code Section 2084.
Meeting Participation and Next Meeting
Commission President Eric Sklar, Vice President Darius Anderson and Commissioners Samantha Murray and Erica Zavaleta were in attendance for both days of the June Commission meeting. Commissioner Jacque Hostler-Carmesin was in attendance for the first day. The meeting was held in Sacramento.
The complete agenda for the meeting, along with supporting information, is available on the Commission website. Archived video of past Commission meetings is available online. The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Commission is scheduled for Aug. 12-13, 2026, at the California Natural Resources Agency building in Sacramento. Participants are encouraged to attend in person, with options available for Zoom or phone; for more information visit the Commission website.
The Commission authorized public notice of upcoming potential regulation changes related to:
Harpoons and Flying Gaffs Allowance: A discussion hearing is scheduled for Aug. 12-13 and an adoption hearing Oct. 14-15 on amendments to regulations related to allowing use of harpoons and flying gaffs in the recreational tuna fishery.
###
Media Contacts:
Krysten Kellum, CDFW Communications, (916) 825-7120
Alicia de la Garza, CDFW Communications, (916) 754-7237
California
Bug infestation found at California Department of Education headquarters, employees sent home
Bugs have once again been found inside the California Department of Education headquarters in downtown Sacramento, prompting employees to leave the building and raising concerns among workers about returning to the office.
Employees were instructed to go home after bugs were detected in the building, according to state workers and union representatives.
They say it’s not the first time. Union representatives and employees confirmed to CBS News Sacramento that this is the second bug-related incident at the headquarters in the past two years.
“If they’re in one place, it’s very easy for them to be throughout the entire building,” said Anica Walls, president of SEIU Local 100.
The discovery has renewed concerns about workplace safety, particularly as state employees prepare for expanded return-to-office requirements.
“Let’s do what’s necessary and make sure that our employees stay safe and that when they are in the building, they’re not contracting or taking home anything that they don’t need to be,” Walls said.
The California Department of Education confirmed the building experienced a bed bug incident in 2024. However, officials said they are still awaiting pest control reports to determine whether the insects recently discovered are bed bugs or another species.
State workers say they want a permanent solution rather than temporary fixes.
“It’s smart to fix the problem the correct way rather than trying to just mitigate the issue and shut down certain floors,” Walls said.
While most state agencies are scheduled to move to a four-day-a-week, in-office schedule beginning next week, California Department of Education employees will continue their current hybrid schedule of two in-office days per week through the end of the year.
In a statement, the department said it is working with the Department of General Services and pest control specialists to inspect the entire building.
“As stated in the message to our employees, we are actively coordinating follow-up inspections and remediation efforts and will provide updates as soon as additional information becomes available,” the department said.
Union representatives said the department was responsive during the previous infestation and expressed hope for a quicker resolution this time.
“Last time, they were really receptive to the conversations with employees, which was good. We’re hoping for another good outcome, hopefully just a little more expedient this time,” Walls said.
CBS News Sacramento also spoke with a local pest control company, which said that if the insects are confirmed to be bed bugs, treatment could take several months.
The process typically involves repeated inspections and treatments every one to two weeks, including high-heat treatments reaching approximately 160 degrees and extensive cleaning to prevent the infestation from returning.
California
First look: Space Shuttle Endeavour in ready-to-launch position at California Science Center
LOS ANGELES – This fall, space fans will get to see the Space Shuttle Endeavour like never before in its new permanent home at the California Science Center in the Exposition Park area.
What we know:
The new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center at the California Science Center officially opens on November 13.
Also, an introductory film includes footage from Endeavour’s final launch before being retired in 2011.
“We felt from the beginning this is the most impressive way to see the space shuttle and it gives people views that almost no one ever got a chance to see,” said Jeff Rudolph, President & CEO of the California Science Center.
What they’re saying:
Since 2012, Los Angeles has been home to the Space Shuttle Endeavour. It has been on display horizontally at the California Science Center.
But the vision was always to have it on display upright.
“It’s really exciting and everyone who sees it is in awe and that’s really what we were trying to do was create that real sense of emotional high and inspire people to learn more,” said Rudolph.
This is the only display of its kind and it can’t be duplicated. The orange tank attached to the shuttle is the last mission-ready one in existence.
“I think what we’ve done is present something that is going to be a truly life-changing and transformative experience for education,” said Kenneth Phillips, Curator for Aerospace Sciences at the California Science Center.
Visitors will also be able to see inside the space craft that carried astronauts to space 25 times, including Mae Jemison, the first Black woman to go to space and now-Arizona Senator Mark Kelly.
When the exhibit opens to the public in November, visitors will be able to ride up an elevator alongside the space shuttle and view it from the top.
“That’s the view that nobody but the crew saw. That was a very special vantage point. Nobody got to do that,” said Phillips.
What’s next:
The California Science Center expects the exhibit to be popular. Tickets will go on sale well before the opening.
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