KPCC

September begins the official fire season in California, and already, eight fires are burning across the state. Bill Davis, CEO of KPCC public radio in Southern California, gives The Takeaway an update from his front porch, where he’s watching the fires.

The California state legislature is late in approving the state’s latest budget -? as of today, 70 days late. Typically, this would be a minor bureaucratic matter confined to partisan squabbling in Sacramento. But Julie Small says the delay is now having human costs, with community colleges and hospitals feeling a pinch.

The FBI has arrested two people in connection with a multimillion-dollar Medicaid/Medi-Cal scam involving three private hospitals and hundreds ? possibly thousands ? of homeless people. This is an ongoing investigation ? more arrests could come. Guest: KPCC reporter Brian Watt