Reporter Katy Murphy began covering the Capitol on Wednesday for the Mercury News of San Jose and the East Bay Times, both part of the Bay Area News Group. Murphy previously covered higher education for the news group and replaces Jessica Calefati who left to write about education issues for the journalism non-profit CALmatters. Like Calefati, Murphy will be a one-woman bureau and responsible for covering “all things state government” including the Legislature, Governor and state agencies, mostly in how they impact her readers in the Bay area. She is in the process of moving with her husband and 19-month-old daughter from Oakland to Davis and says she’s looking forward to seeing how the state’s business is run up close and joining the ranks of the Sacramento press corps. Her email is kmurphy@bayareanewsgroup.com. Contact: 916 441 2101.