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• Shriver appears set to inherit Kennedy mantle -- After the deaths last month of Sen. Edward Kennedy and his sister, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, California first lady Maria Shriver took to the airwaves to debunk the notion that the passing of her uncle and mother spells the end of America's most formidable political dynasty. Carla Marinucci in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 9/5/09

Whitman gets caught up in Van Jones controversy -- A video from last spring has pulled GOP candidate Meg Whitman into the political firestorm surrounding Van Jones, President Obama's green energy czar. Torey Van Oot SacBee Capitol Alert -- 9/5/09

Car-repair legislation backed by auto insurers wins key vote -- The California Senate approves a bill that would make it easier for insurance companies to steer car owners to company-approved auto body shops. The bill is expected to go to Schwarzenegger next week. Marc Lifsher in the Los Angeles Times -- 9/5/09

California lawmakers OK bill to make vehicle histories more accessible -- The state will cancel its contract with a firm that charges $30 for the information and offer the facts online for much less money. Evan Halper in the Los Angeles Times -- 9/5/09

Satellite TV sales tax proposal runs out of time -- With the state legislative session heading into its last week, an effort backed by cable firms to impose a 5% levy on their competitors may be put off until next year or beyond. Marc Lifsher in the Los Angeles Times -- 9/5/09

California takes prison-overcrowding fight to U.S. Supreme Court -- California officials Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to block a lower court order that forces the state to quickly devise a plan to shed more than 40,000 inmates from its overcrowded prisons. Howard Mintz in the San Jose Mercury -- 9/5/09

Open primary could help ease Sacramento gridlock -- While the movement is growing for a constitutional convention to restructure the state's troubled government, some are pointing to more modest steps they say will help by easing the partisan polarization that can freeze Sacramento's legislative process. Martin Wisckol in the Orange County Register -- 9/5/09

Feds to Schwarzenegger: Water woes not caused by environmental rules -- As lawmakers prepared for a weekendlong sprint toward an elusive fix for the state's rickety water system, the Obama administration rejected Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's plea for relief from environmental protection laws. Mike Taugher in theContra Costa Times -- 9/5/09

Willie Brown Jr. wows Contra Costa mayors -- Term limits have robbed the Legislature of experienced lawmakers and the valuable relationships that produce solutions, he said. And the two-thirds rule has allowed a minority to hold the budget and the entire state of California hostage, something he says he never allowed when he was the Speaker of the Assembly. Lisa Vorderbrueggen Political Blotter weblog -- 9/5/09

Banks: Can the wrongs in California's criminal justice system be righted? -- The state's mix of tough laws and fixed terms doesn't give prison officials the flexibility to push low-risk offenders toward rehabilitation and keep dangerous criminals behind bars. Sandy Banks in the Los Angeles Times -- 9/5/09

Winning wines recession-proof at California State Fair -- At the oldest wine competition in the country, it appears that a bottle of the old 24-proof is also recession-proof – if it's good. M.S. Enkoji in the Sacramento Bee -- 9/5/09

Bill Saluting Harvey Milk Brings California Fight -- While the day of recognition — of which there are only three in California, for John Muir, teachers and the California poppy — would impose no specific requirements on schools or close state offices, opponents say the tribute could encourage discussion of Milk and gay issues in public schools. State law encourages schools to observe days of recognition and “conduct suitable commemorative exercises.” JENNIFER STEINHAUER in the New York Times -- 9/5/09

Calbuzz: Swap Meet: Greasy Poll, eMeg Patrol, GOPer Trolls -- Margin of error: The Houston-based oil company trying to win a lease for drilling in state waters off the coast of Santa Barbara is e-blasting an alleged summary of poll results about the controversial project, providing a case study of how scientific public opinion surveys can be manipulated for political purposes. Jerry Roberts and Phil Trounstine CalBuzz -- 9/5/09

State’s small firms cut jobs, wages in August -- California small businesses continued to trim their staff and pay in August, according to SurePayroll, an online payroll service. Jan Norman in the Orange County Register -- 9/5/09

Study: Workers do more but feel less secure -- More than half of employed Californians are working harder and experiencing less job security than they did two years ago, according to a study by Harris/Decima, a Harris Interactive company. Mark Glover in the Sacramento Bee -- 9/5/09

$115 million spent fighting fires since July 1 -- Between July 1 and Friday, California spent $115 million to fight fires around the state - that's on top of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection's regular budget. So where does that money go? James Rufus Koren in the Inland Daily Bulletin -- 9/5/09

Station fire has cost $37 million to fight; officials still assessing toll -- The deadly Station fire has cost more than $37 million to fight, and officials are still assessing the toll to property, wildlife and forest facilities. Ari B.Bloomekatz in the Los Angeles Times -- 9/5/09

The dream dies in Vegas -- Four transplants found opportunity in a booming city: shiny cars, new homes, high-paying jobs. Then the recession took it away. Ashley Powers in the Los Angeles Times -- 9/5/09

Panel finds middle ground in Chevron property-value dispute -- One figure was too low, the other too high. The property value of the Chevron Richmond refinery from 2004 to 2006 isn't what the oil company claimed, nor what the county assessor thought, the Contra Costa Assessment Appeals Board found after its two-year review. Katherine Tam in the Contra Costa Times -- 9/5/09

State sales tax hunters target Orange County city -- Retailers in Garden Grove are among 16,000 statewide to be targeted by the state in its search for unpaid sales tax. Jan Norman in the Orange County Register -- 9/5/09

Home buyers race tax credit deadline -- Time is running out for Alex and Melissa Limonte of Santa Rosa in their quest to buy a home and still gain an $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time home buyers. MICHAEL COIT in the Santa Rosa Press -- 9/5/09

Palo Alto business tax foes step up campaign -- For instance, manufacturing firms would pay $34 per employee while professional service businesses would pay $95 per employee. And the city's largest corporations will pay lower rates than medium-sized businesses, it says, because of a cap on the size of the tax. Will Oremus in the San Jose Mercury -- 9/5/09

Los Angeles Charities Rarely on Hollywood’s ‘Must Do’ Lists -- After helping to build some of the city’s most impressive monuments over the last century — including the downtown music center, with its Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and Disney Concert Hall — show business has been stepping back, according to nonprofit organizations in the city and some people in the entertainment industry. MICHAEL CIEPLY and JENNIFER STEINHAUER in the New York Times -- 9/5/09

2 Orange County colleges cut 400 classses, affecting thousands -- About 400 classes have been collectively canceled for the fall semester at Santa Ana College and at Santiago Canyon College in Orange, affecting thousands of people looking to do everything from get job training to earn transfer credits to four year schools to take a degree course in mathematics. Gary Robbins in the Orange County Register -- 9/5/09

Peralta must crack down, report says -- The Peralta Community College District has had trouble following its own rules and must improve, said a former state chancellor appointed to investigate issues raised by the Bay Area News Group. Matt Krupnick in the Contra Costa Times -- 9/5/09

Lawmakers hit block over delta council -- With time running out, legislators are struggling to find consensus on legislation to overhaul the state's water system. The latest sticking point -- and there are many -- is the role and makeup of a proposed council to oversee the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. E.J. Schultz in the Fresno Bee -- 9/5/09

It's Politics: Sacramento leaders hoping for last-minute water rescue -- State legislative leaders are hoping to pass widespread water reform next week in a desperate move to boast a major accomplishment before the Sept. 11 end of the legislative session. The item is in the San Gabriel Tribune -- 9/5/09

Drilling for impact of San Joaquin River restoration -- A research crew drilling holes this week along the dry San Joaquin River found a clue about whether a rejuvenated river might damage a nearby pistachio orchard. Mark Grossi in the Fresno Bee -- 9/5/09

Massive Tejon project headed to first vote -- But this corner of massive, privately owned Tejon Ranch along Interstate 5 near Lebec is nonetheless the site of a raging public battle over commercial and residential development. JAMES BURGER in the Bakersfield Californian -- 9/5/09

Agencies stretched thin on Sacramento-area waterways -- As in past years, Sacramento County Sheriff's Sgt. Scott Maberry plans to have at least two boats patrolling the county's waterways this Labor Day weekend, the last holiday weekend of the summer boating season and one of the busiest for law enforcement. Chelsea Phua in the Sacramento Bee -- 9/5/09

Sacramento drops plan for deck over I-5 -- After spending several million dollars on studies, Sacramento officials have dropped plans to build a deck over Interstate 5 downtown. Tony Bizjak in the Sacramento Bee -- 9/5/09

Santa Clara County residents cut water use -- The drought's not over, but the early grades are in: So far, Santa Clara County residents have done pretty well conserving water this summer, water officials say, but there's still room for improvement. Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury -- 9/5/09

San Onofre to power up -- The San Onofre nuclear power plant is preparing for the complex's largest construction job since the plant went on line in the early 1980s — replacing steam generators inside each of the plant's two mammoth domes. Michael Burge in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 9/5/09

District board devotes $2 million to urge use of recycled water -- he Otay Water District board is allocating $2 million to encourage schools, colleges and owners of apartment and condominium buildings to retrofit their irrigation systems for recycled water. Anne Krueger in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 9/5/09

The Arctic's geological record indicates warming is human-caused -- Close study of the sediment timeline shows that increased ice melt coincides with the birth of the Industrial Age. It's strong evidence that global warming is man's work, researchers say. Thomas H. Maugh II in the Los Angeles Times -- 9/5/09

Obama’s Kenyan birth certificate alleged in Orange County lawsuit -- A document purported to be a copy of President Barack Obama’s Kenyan birth certificate was filed with the federal court in Santa Ana on Friday by Orly Taitz, the Mission Viejo attorney suing to have Obama removed from office. She allegedes he wasn’t born in the United States. Martin Wisckol in the Orange County Register -- 9/5/09

Sacramento-area students can ditch Obama TV talk -- President Barack Obama wants to tell the nation's school kids next Tuesday about the importance of a good education – but not everyone wants them to hear it. Steve Wiegand in the Sacramento Bee -- 9/5/09

Gibbs: Squabble over Obama's speech 'silly season' -- The White House on Friday dismissed as pointless the furor over President Barack Obama's plan to deliver a televised back-to-school speech to the nation's students. BEN FELLER AP -- 9/5/09

Money made by California's pot dispensaries remains hazy -- State law bars medical marijuana from being a money-making industry. But is it? It's impossible to tell. Gina Kim in the Sacramento Bee -- 9/5/09

Sebastopol weighing medical pot nurseries -- Sebastopol officials are considering regulation of "medical cannabis nurseries," a proposal that one advocate says would bring marijuana cultivation for ill people "out of the shadows." ROBERT DIGITALE in the Santa Rosa Press -- 9/5/09

Fresno tries to stamp out pot dispensaries -- All of a sudden, medical marijuana has become a thriving business in Fresno -- in storefronts around town and in Superior Court. Russell Clemings in the Fresno Bee -- 9/5/00

Court rejects request to temporarily close down ValleyCare Medical Center -- An Alameda County Superior Court has denied a patient rights group's request for a temporary restraining order that would have required ValleyCare Medical Foundation to cease operations. Robert Jordan in the Contra Costa Times -- 9/5/09

Doctors, nurses making house calls -- A medical company has found a way to make health care convenient, by sending nurses and doctor's to the patient's home or office for routine tests. ELYSSE JAMES in the Orange County Register -- 9/5/09

Medical mix-up has Kaiser in trouble -- The Kaiser Foundation Rehabilitation Center in Vallejo has been fined $25,000 after staff members last year left a sponge inside a surgical patient. Shauntel Lowe in the Contra Costa Times -- 9/5/09

Orange County. ranks 15th for spending on federal lobbyists -- Orange County has spent more this year lobbying the federal government than the state of California or the city of New York, ranking it 15th for highest spending among government entities so far this year. Jennifer Muir in the Orange County Register -- 9/5/09

Fremont native strives to put new face on local GOP -- Adnan Shahab is always up for a political challenge. Eleven years ago, the Fremont native ran for City Council as college student, but finished last. Now he has higher aspirations — and faces even longer odds. Matthew Artz in the Contra Costa Times -- 9/5/09

Mutual aid by firefighting agencies can be tough call -- Hundreds of firefighters from San Diego County have been sent north to cut lines and extinguish hot spots in the latest raging wildfires, but fire officials say decisions to send crews out of the county aren't made lightly. Angelica Martinez in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 9/5/09

Foreign food at Valley giveaway protested -- The governor's food giveaway to struggling families on Fresno County's west side -- widely known as America's breadbasket -- has included imported products such as Chinese carrots and Mexican macaroni, embarrassed officials admitted Friday. Chris Collins in the Fresno Bee -- 9/5/09

Matier & Ross: Boy, 11, stabbed on first solo Muni ride -- Laila Elfazouzi says she'll never let her son ride Muni again - not after the 11-year-old was stabbed and critically wounded by an apparently homeless man in an unprovoked attack while riding home from school. It was the boy's first time riding the bus alone. Phillip Matier, Andrew Ross in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 9/5/09

Mentally ill and elderly people held in squalid chicken coops, authorities say -- San Bernardino authorities arrested a woman Friday who they say boarded 22 mentally ill, elderly and other people in prison-like conditions, housing some in converted chicken coops behind razor wire fences. Patrick McDonnell in the Los Angeles Times -- 9/5/09

McClatchy says it's back in good standing with NYSE -- No longer threatened with delisting, The McClatchy Co. of Sacramento said Friday it is back in the good graces of the New York Stock Exchange. Dale Kasler in the Sacramento Bee -- 9/5/09