Samsung’s Bonus Dispute Sparks Calls for Structural Reform

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Samsung Electronics is facing mounting criticism over its newly approved wage and performance bonus system, which grants large payouts to employees across its semiconductor division, including support staff and workers in loss-making units, according to South Korean outlet Chosun.

Critics argue the compensation structure is inequitable, pointing to large bonuses awarded in underperforming semiconductor businesses while employees in consistently profitable divisions, such as smartphones, were excluded. The controversy has intensified concerns over growing divisions between Samsung’s semiconductor and consumer electronics operations.

Industry experts and academics say Samsung’s current model — which ties bonuses largely to business division performance and salary levels — is unsustainable for a diversified electronics company. Proposed reforms include company-wide bonus pools, individual performance-based compensation, and more transparent evaluation metrics. Some experts also advocated structural changes. Sanford Jacoby, a distinguished research professor at UCLA Anderson with appointments in public policy and history recommended the most structural solution, stating, “Samsung must consider spinning off the DS division.” Jacoby proposed that a spun-off DS division pay a fixed sum to headquarters for 10 years, with those funds redistributed across business units to reduce internal conflict.

Kauffman Study Shows Post-Pandemic Entrepreneurial Surge Alongside Growing Financial Uncertainty

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The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation’s latest 30-year study, as reported by KCUR’s Up To Date, shows that entrepreneurship in the United States has rebounded to post-pandemic levels, with millions of Americans launching new businesses in 2025. However, researchers also caution that the nature of entrepreneurship is shifting in important ways.

While startup activity is up, more individuals are beginning businesses out of financial necessity rather than opportunity, raising concerns about long-term economic stability and job quality. The study also highlights persistent barriers to entrepreneurship, particularly for women and historically underserved communities, including limited access to capital and uneven survival rates for new businesses.

Luskin professor of public policy Robert Fairlie and lead researcher of the Kauffman Indicators, notes that broader labor trends may be reshaping how Americans think about work. “Maybe it’s not just one job anymore,” Fairlie said. “People are piecing together income from multiple kinds of work… and entrepreneurship is becoming part of that mix.”

New Center for Neighborhood Knowledge Analysis Undercuts “Worst of the Worst” Deportation Claims

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A new report from the UCLA Center for Neighborhood Knowledge (CNK), produced in partnership with Unseen, examines recent trends in federal immigration enforcement and finds a dramatic increase in ICE arrests, detentions and deportations of Latinos during the first 13 months of President Trump’s second administration.

The report “Latino ICE Arrests, Detentions, and Removals: Updates“ builds on previous CNK analyses and draws on federal immigration enforcement data from January 2024 through February 2026. Researchers found that Latino ICE arrests increased fivefold during that period, while Latino detentions peaked in December 2025 at more than three times the levels seen under the Biden administration.

According to the report, non-criminal immigrants increasingly became the focus of enforcement operations. Non-criminals represented 36% of Latino arrests, 33% of detentions and 32% of deportations under the Trump administration — significantly higher shares than in previous years. Meanwhile, the proportion of deportees categorized as violent offenders or “worst of the worst” declined substantially.

The report also highlights a major increase in community enforcement operations, including arrests in neighborhoods, workplaces and public spaces. Researchers found that nearly half of Latino arrests occurred through these highly visible interior enforcement tactics, contributing to a sharp rise in non-criminal detentions.

“This report shows a mass deportation apparatus targeting working people, families, and long-term community members with no criminal histories,” said CNK Director Paul Ong. “What we are witnessing is the normalization of an immigration system driven by volume, fear, and spectacle, not public safety.”

The report draws from data compiled by the Deportation Data Project, which is based at UCLA and UC Berkeley School of Law, and provides one of the most detailed analyses to date of immigration enforcement trends affecting Latino communities.

The full report is available here.

Rethinking Parking Lots to Combat Urban Heat and Flooding

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Cities across the U.S. are experimenting with alternatives to traditional asphalt parking lots to reduce urban heat and improve stormwater management as climate change intensifies. An Associated Press article highlighted new approaches include permeable pavement, reflective coatings, rain gardens, solar shade structures and reducing mandatory parking requirements altogether. Projects in cities such as New Orleans, Sacramento and Indianapolis aim to cool surfaces, absorb rainwater and cut pollution runoff into waterways.

According to urban planning professor Adam Millard—Ball, in some downtowns, parking takes up a quarter or more of the land, and studies show that more than a third of parking spaces can sit empty at any given time.

While alternative materials and redesigns can carry higher upfront costs, advocates argue their long-term environmental and public health benefits may outweigh initial expenses.

Manville Discusses Unintended Consequences of Los Angeles’ “Mansion Tax”

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Los Angeles’ “mansion tax,” Measure ULA, was created to fund affordable housing and homelessness programs through taxes on high-value property sales, but critics say it has also slowed apartment development amid the city’s housing shortage.

A recent article by The Wall Street Journal highlighted developers who abandoned multifamily housing projects after the tax increased costs on property transfers above $5.3 million, contributing to a sharp decline in multifamily construction permits and sales of multifamily-zoned properties.

“It’s a classic cautionary tale about this sort of ballot-box legislation,” said UCLA urban planning professor Michael Manville, pointing to the unintended consequences that can arise when complex housing policy is enacted through voter initiatives.

Supporters of the measure argue that high interest rates and broader economic conditions are largely responsible for the slowdown, and they defend the tax as an important funding source for tenant protections and affordable housing. Meanwhile, policymakers are considering amendments to the tax as opponents pursue a statewide repeal effort.

 

New toolkit helps communities prepare for heat Luskin Center for Innovation-led initiative offers practical guidance for local heat resilience planning and action

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In March, an unexpected spring heatwave brought record temperatures to much of the western United States, prompting warnings in several states. This followed several summers of unprecedented heat across the country, and one message became clear: we must prepare for hotter days ahead.

But for many decision-makers and planners, this is a daunting task. While many heat-decision-making tools are available, communities often lack practical guidance on how to create heat action plans and, crucially, implement them to address the unique problems they face locally.

Not anymore. The UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation-led Center for Heat Resilient Communities has made a significant step toward bridging this gap with a new toolkit that gives communities a step-by-step guide to pinpoint their needs and match them with evidence-based planning activities.

“Building Heat Resilient Communities: A Toolkit for Local Planning, Decision-Making, & Action” features:

  • A primer on heat-related topics with definitions of key terms
  • Guided activities to collect evidence and engage organizations and community groups in decision-making
  • Integrated worksheets to support data organization and interpretation
  • Tools to develop customized and locally relevant heat resilience strategies

The toolkit provides information on concepts such as heat exposure and vulnerability; cultural and equity considerations for heat resilience; and how to best involve and collaborate with community members.

We brought together leading researchers, practitioners, advocates, and federal agencies to create resources to help communities engage in more coordinated and effective responses to heat-health risks. This toolkit fills a critical gap for decision-makers who understand the urgency of preparing for a hotter future but need guidance on strategies tailored to their local needs.

– V. Kelly Turner, associate director of the Luskin Center for Innovation and leader of the Center for Heat Resilient Communities

The Center for Heat Resilient Communities was a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Integrated Heat Health Information System-funded initiative that brought together a network of more than 50 researchers, practitioners, and US communities to engage in local heat resilience planning. When the grant was suddenly canceled in May 2025, UCLA rushed into action along with co-leads Ladd Keith at the University of Arizona and Sara Meerow at Arizona State University.

“Minutes before we were due to announce participants for the center, we got the notice: no more funding,” said Zach Wampler, a project coordinator for the Luskin Center for Innovation. “But we couldn’t let these community partners down. This toolkit is part of our continued efforts to find ways to empower communities to develop local solutions to a shared problem. Moving forward, we will continue our commitment through a collaboration with the Atlantic Council’s Climate Resilience Center.”

You can access the toolkit here. Learn more about the Luskin Center for Innovation’s research on other heat-related topics, including shade mapping.

Brozen on the Safety of the Metro Influencing D Line Ridership

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Wilshire Boulevard is one of Los Angeles County’s most congested streets, sometimes taking nearly half an hour to move half a mile along the road. The recent opening of the D Line extension— a project decades in the making —promises dramatically shorter commutes between downtown, Beverly Hills, and the Westside. The line is predicted to move traffic through the entire city in approximately twenty-five minutes, but it remains to be seen how often residents of Los Angeles will use it.

One deterrent to use, according to several residents, is safety. Residents shared incidents where they felt unsafe, such as men screaming at them and following them, and a study found that about half of the university students who used the Metro were sexually harassed. An article by The New Yorker quoted deputy director of the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies Madeline Brozen, who shared, “What we found is that frequency of how often a bus or train arrived is the No. 1 solution that helps people feel safer…Once riders are on the bus or train, they’re in the safest part of the system.” Metro has taken measures over the years to increase the safety of its services, including implementing the Ambassador program and stricter fare gates, but it will take some time for Los Angeles to shift its perspective on the Metro as well.

How Public Affairs Helped Jesus Reyes Find His Voice and Community at UCLA With guidance from mentors and hands-on internships, Reyes is building a path toward a future in public service.

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By Sheryl Samala 

Jesus Reyes, a first-generation Latino from the San Fernando Valley, arrived at UCLA unsure of where he would find community. During his first year, he struggled to feel a sense of belonging. Originally a political science major, he ultimately found his place in public affairs, drawn to the program’s hands-on approach and focus on public policy. 

Reyes credits Luskin’s undergraduate counselors with helping him navigate that transition. From guiding him through the application process to ensuring he stayed on track for graduation, the counseling team played a key role in shaping his academic and professional path. 

“If it wasn’t for one of the counselors, Erika, I don’t think I would be where I am today,” says Reyes. “She motivates me to keep going.” He added that having mentors from similar backgrounds made a meaningful difference, providing not only academic guidance but also personal and professional support.

Reyes interned with Congresswoman Luz Rivas (CA—29) through the University of California, Washington Program (UCDC).

Through opportunities shared in Luskin’s student communications, Reyes secured his first internship in the California State Senate, working in the office of Sen. Caroline Menjivar. He later built that experience with roles in the offices of Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur and Congresswoman Luz Rivas, gaining exposure to policymaking at multiple levels of government.  Now graduating in just three years, Reyes has made the most of his time at UCLA. He participated in the UCDC Quarter in Washington program, representing his home community on a national stage, and studied abroad in Paris, where he explored issues of globalization.

Reyes at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, during his study abroad program.

“A lot of the classes I took here in Public Affairs mirrored what I was learning abroad,” Reyes said. “Many of the concepts I learned in school directly reflected what I saw, experienced, and studied in Paris.”

Reyes encourages other students to step outside their comfort zones and take advantage of opportunities such as study abroad, where classroom concepts come to life in new and meaningful ways.  

Far from the uncertain first-year student who arrived on campus three years ago, Reyes has steadily built on each opportunity he encountered at UCLA. His experience reflects the impact of Luskin’s hands-on approach—equipping students not just with knowledge, but with the experience and perspective to pursue careers in public service. 

Reyes with members of his League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) fellowship cohort.

Why Trees Are Still Disappearing After the Palisades Fire

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The Palisades Fire that swept through southern California in January of 2025 led to not only the destruction of numerous buildings and homes, but also a large population of trees, according to an article by the Los Angeles Times. Although many of the trees have since recovered, researchers from UCLA recently discovered that nearly 20% of surviving street trees have already disappeared since the fires, raising concerns about the long-term loss of shade, cooling, air quality, and neighborhood character.

Several possible reasons have been proposed, such as insufficient efforts by local governments to ensure the trees are watered, mistakes in identification of dead trees by debris removal crews, and rapid removal for construction. 

Edith de Guzman, a researcher at the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation investigating the trees affected by the fires, found these numbers concerning, as their study was focused only on public spaces, where the trees should have been under the protection of the city and county. She stated, “we are still seeing removals that are unnecessary, and the city is not sure who is responsible.”

Local groups are making efforts to save the remaining trees by supplying watering trucks, conducting property tree surveys, and planning a long-term planting program, ensuring that the trees which are vital to cooling California’s communities are protected.

Will the Opening of the D Line Change Commuter Behavior?

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The D Line connects several of Los Angeles’s most populated communities and includes stations near major destinations such as Beverly Hills and The Grove. While the extension is expected to provide a faster and more reliable alternative to driving, transportation experts question how much the new line will actually change commuter behavior

An article by the Los Angeles Times quoted Brian Taylor, professor of urban planning and public policy at UCLA, who shared that the line must be “the best way to get around,” more so than driving, which is still relatively underpriced.

Residents in southern California have also expressed mixed opinions about using the D line, with some planning on using the new line regularly, and others stating that the long wait times would deter their usage. A spokesperson for Metro acknowledged the longer wait times, but described them as a starting point limited by factors like funding and staffing. According to Metro officials, they view this line as the beginning of a longer campaign for shifting more Angelenos towards using mass transit.