Know Your Voting Plan
In a time when our federal administration is favoring ideologies that oppose diversity, individual freedoms and environmental protection, making your voice heard is more important than ever. In the 2026 June primary election in Santa Cruz County, 29.52 percent of eligible voters aged 18-29 turned...
City on a Hill’s Voter Guide
Whether you’re voting here in Santa Cruz, or a different part of the state you call home, 14 hotly contested statewide propositions proposing changes to taxes, housing, voter ID laws and healthcare are etched in black ink on California’s Nov. 3 ballot. City on a...
The Sickly State of Science: Proposed Measures to Fund Scientific Research in California
Research funding is the catalyst for discoveries like vaccines or the Human Genome Project — a map of our genetic makeup curated here at UC Santa Cruz. In 2025, the Trump administration slashed roughly $3 billion in scientific research funding by canceling grants. Renowned establishments...
To Tax or Not to Tax: A Dive into Proposition 40
With midterm elections coming up, voters Are exposed to exorbitant amounts of advertisements and endorsements, especially in regards to Proposition 40, known as the “Billionaire Tax.” If Proposition 40 passes on Nov. 3, California will administer a one-time 5 percent tax on California’s 250 billionaires...
Natural Bridges State Park Welcomes Thousands of Migrating Monarchs
“This incredible little butterfly that weighs the same as a paperclip [is] migrating hundreds to thousands of miles each direction and surviving the winter,” said Isis Howard, a conservation biologist working on the endangered species team at the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. Santa Cruz’s...
Ohlone Tiger Beetle: Santa Cruz’s Native, Endangered Bug
Small, green and mighty, the Ohlone tiger beetle — like many other insects — is in danger of extinction. This endemic species, only found in one place, has called Santa Cruz County its home since the Pleistocene era, when the woolly mammoths roamed the Earth. ...
Sex and the City on a Hill: Fake it Fanny
Hi Laye Texx, I’ve recently had a lot of conversations with friends about “faking it” and performing a certain way in bed. It seems like a lot of us either feel like sex needs to be spruced up for someone else, or feel anxiety that...
It’s Been a Year Since Planned Parenthood Shut Down in Santa Cruz. Now What?
Within the span of one year, effects from the Trump administration’s H.R. 1, or “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA) have forced nearly 30 Planned Parenthood clinics across the country to close their doors. “More and more clinics will begin to close, and will most likely...
ICE Facility Sparks Cross-County Outcry: ICE Out of Gilroy
Editor’s Note: Some sources in this article are left anonymous and images are digitally altered for safety and privacy reasons. The digital version of this piece has been edited and lengthened as developments occur. The original version can be found in City on a Hill...
The “Celebration of Life!” Fundraiser: Where Culture Meets Cultivation
Editors’ Note: Some sources in this piece are left anonymous for safety and privacy reasons. City on a Hill Press is committed to protecting the identity of these individuals. Cultivating joy and resilience in the midst of Israel’s occupation of 60 percent of Gaza and...