December 31, 2022 By Karim Doumar Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It is New Year’s Eve: Dec. 31, 2022. All of us at The Times wish you a happy, healthy and safe 2023. Editor’s note: We will be taking Monday off. Essential California will be back in your inbox Tuesday, Jan. 3. Here’s a look at the top stories of the last week A House committee released six years of Trump tax returns documenting his aggressive efforts to minimize what he paid the IRS. With that, his seven-year battle to keep the public from seeing his taxes ended in defeat. The Jan. 6 committee is running out of time. Key documents may soon be locked away for decades. Southwest meltdown was “perfect storm” of well-known vulnerabilities, not a shock. Final California inflation relief payments are coming, with debit cards being sent by Jan. 14. The extensive professional relationships Sam Bankman-Fried cultivated with current and former federal regulators risk embarrassment for all.Good thing the L.A. Times got the emails showing his courtship of federal regulators. You should take a solo trip in January. Here are seven rejuvenating spots around California. UCLA football: How Chip Kelly and Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s mutual trust elevated UCLA.