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GOP fights Senate maps on a new front -- federal government -- A Republican-backed coalition that failed to persuade the California Supreme Court to kill the state's newly drawn Senate maps is now asking the federal government to reject the lines as a dilution of Latino voting power. Jim Sanders SacBee Capitol Alert -- 10/27/11 Medical marijuana advocates sue prosecutors over crackdown -- A medical marijuana advocacy group has sued the U.S. attorney general and the top federal prosecutor in Northern California, asking a federal court to halt recent raids and threats of prosecution that have significantly stepped up the Obama administration’s assault on the state’s 15-year-old program. John Hoeffel in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 Jerry Brown wants voters to approve his pension overhaul plan -- Gov. Jerry Brown unveiled a 12-point public pension reform plan this morning that would ask voters to increase the age at which future state and local government employees could retire with full benefits and place them in riskier retirement plans than current workers. Jon Ortiz SacBee Capitol Alert -- 10/27/11 Labor balks at Jerry Brown's pension plan -- Less than 24 hours after Gov. Jerry Brown briefed labor leaders on the major pension changes he will propose this morning, labor interests that helped elect the Democratic governor suggested he is in for a fight. David Siders SacBee Capitol Alert -- 10/27/11 California GOP disclosed donors late, Common Cause says -- California Common Cause said today that it has filed a complaint with the state's watchdog agency alleging the state GOP violated disclosure laws in connection with a referendum drive to kill the state's newly drawn Senate districts. Jim Sanders SacBee Capitol Alert -- 10/27/11 Occupy L.A. protesters say they have no plans to leave City Hall -- After Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa commented that the Occupy L.A. encampment outside City Hall "cannot continue indefinitely," protesters issued a statement saying they plan to do just that. Abby Sewell in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 HP to hold onto personal-computer division -- In a major about-face, Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) announced Thursday that it would not spin off its powerful personal-computer division, changing the course the company's former CEO said it would take two months ago and giving new chief Meg Whitman a chance to put her first big mark on the venerable Silicon Valley giant. Patrick May and Jeremy C. Owens in the San Jose Mercury -- 10/27/11 Playworks helps kids make the most of recess -- Elementary school teacher Vanessa Cavelli used to dread recess and the drama that could break out on the playground. “You wonder how many fights you’ll have to break up that day,” Cavelli said. Mary Flynn HealthyCal.org -- 10/27/11
Gov. Jerry Brown to propose pension changes -- Gov. Jerry Brown will unveil a 12-point plan to overhaul the state public retirement system Thursday, proposing a payout for new state workers that combines elements of traditional guaranteed government pensions with a 401(k)-style savings plan, according to people who were briefed on his plan. Anthony York and Michael Mishak in the Los Angeles Times David Siders SacBee Capitol Alert Steven Harmon and John Woolfolk in the San Jose Mercury -- 10/27/11 California lawmakers discuss pensions ahead of Brown's plan -- It took less than 10 minutes of Wednesday's legislative hearing on public pensions to understand the differences between Democrats and Republicans on the issue. Kevin Yamamura SacBee Capitol Alert -- 10/27/11 Senate map fight boosted by $1 million donation to state GOP -- A $1 million contribution from the owner of Mercury General Insurance Corp. to the California Republican Party this month has helped the GOP push a referendum challenge to the state's newly drawn Senate districts. Jim Sanders in the Sacramento Bee -- 10/27/11 Skelton: It's time to raise California's gas tax -- California urgently needs more money to rebuild its public facilities. Increasing the gas tax, last boosted 21 years ago, would let the state pay for much-needed transportation projects without costly borrowing. George Skelton in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 California high court rejects challenges to redistricting -- he California Supreme Court refused Wednesday to intervene in new voting districts drawn by a citizens commission, deciding unanimously to reject two challenges to the boundaries. Maura Dolan and Anthony York in the Los Angeles Times Martin Wisckol in the Orange County Register John Myers Capitol Notes -- 10/27/11 Independent groups pour big bucks into San Francisco mayor's race -- They're behind that creative new viral video in which Giants pitcher Brian Wilson and musician will.i.am manage to make San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee, a longtime bureaucrat with glasses and a mustache, appear cutting-edge. Heather Knight, John Coté in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 10/27/11 Issa attended event hosted by Solyndra lobbyist -- Congressman Darrell Issa may be investigating Solyndra LLC and its federal green-energy aid, but he cooperated with the company’s lead lobbyist Wednesday on one thing — supporting Mitt Romney for president. Jeff McDonald in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 10/27/11 Reform could transfer hundreds of inmates out of isolation units -- Hundreds of California prisoners locked in stark segregation units could be transferred to regular prison cells under new policies being developed by state corrections officials. Michael Montgomery and Sarah Terry-Cobo California Watch -- 10/27/11 Upstart Ricky Gill makes move in 9th CD -- The 24-year-old Gill – the term young Republican is apt here – is running in the newly crafted 9th Congressional District that stretches from Antioch on the west, across the Delta past Stockton toward the foothills in the east. It’s a mix of cities, farms and open spaces, with Democrats enjoying a 9-point registration edge. John Howard Capitol Weekly -- 10/27/11 Fighting Caltrans over seizure of elderly parents’ home -- it were up to the state, Rebecca Blake figures her parents would be living in a dump by now. For seven months, Blake has been fighting Caltrans on behalf of her elderly parents, who are in danger of losing their Norwalk home of 57 years to eminent domain. BRIAN JOSEPH in the Orange County Register -- 10/27/11
Occupy Oakland: Iraq vet critically injured by police projectile -- A 24-year old former Marine Corps corporal and Iraqi war veteran remained in critical condition at Highland Hospital on Wednesday night after friends said he was hit in the head with a police projectile in Tuesday's Occupy Oakland confrontation. Scott Johnson, Matt Krupnick and Thomas Peele in the Oakland Tribune -- 10/27/11 Occupy Oakland protesters festive despite rumors of police presence -- Rumors were spreading at Oakland's Frank Ogawa Plaza on Wednesday night that police were staging nearby. Lee Romney in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 Occupy San Francisco: Embarcadero BART station closed -- Transit officials Wednesday night closed the Embarcadero BART station because of Occupy San Francisco supporters who had converged on the area. Maria L. La Ganga, Lee Romney and Robert J. Lopez in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 More than 1,000 Occupy SF protesters await clash with police -- More than 1,000 protesters awaited busloads of police at the Occupy San Francisco camps early Thursday morning, expecting a confrontation that had been brewing for several hours. Mike Rosenberg and Sean Maher in the San Jose Mercury -- 10/27/11 Jean Quan says she has little input on Occupy raid -- Oakland Mayor Jean Quan, who is being criticized from all sides for a police sweep of the Occupy Oakland encampment, said Wednesday she was not involved in the planning and did not even know when the action was going to take place. Matthai Kuruvila in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 10/27/11 Putting the move in Occupy movement -- How will it end? More than a month into the Occupy movement, officials are beginning to talk openly of moving protesters out of their encampments in parks and public squares around the country. Kate Linthicum, Lee Romney and Christopher Goffard in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 Some Cities Begin Cracking Down on ‘Occupy’ Protests -- After weeks of cautiously accepting the teeming round-the-clock protests spawned by Occupy Wall Street, several cities have come to the end of their patience and others appear to be not far behind. JESSE McKINLEY and ABBY GOODNOUGH in the New York Times -- 10/27/11 San Diego police hope to avoid confrontations with occupiers -- Several dozen Occupy San Diego protesters remained Wednesday in the civic plaza area behind City Hall, but police said they have no plans for a sweep and hope to avoid any confrontations. Tony Perry in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 Occupy Sacramento curfew violators appear in court -- The first wave of Occupy Sacramento protesters arrested for refusing to leave Cesar Chavez Plaza at night appeared in court Wednesday. Ed Fletcher in the Sacramento Bee -- 10/27/11
The rich are getting richer, U.S. study says -- The top 1% of households earned 275% more in 2007 than they did in 1979, while the poor saw just an 18% increase, according to a study by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Jim Puzzanghera in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 California's cleantech leadership faces competition -- States like Mississippi and Oregon are aggressively courting Silicon Valley cleantech startups to locate their manufacturing outside of California with tax incentives and low-interest loans, and California has to fight back and encourage companies to manufacture in-state, according to cleantech executives and investors who attended a meeting Wednesday in Fremont. Dana Hull in the San Jose Mercury -- 10/27/11 State prison jobs face downsizing -- A California prison system that has grown over the past several decades to be the nation's largest and has been criticized and sued for severe inmate crowding is heading for an historic downsizing. Don Thompson AP -- 10/27/11 Lopez: Hollywood businessman criticizes redevelopment grants -- Hollywood Boulevard business owners can get up to $200,000 from the L.A. Community Redevelopment Agency and may not have to repay it. Aaron Epstein says the money should be used to rehire teachers and public safety workers. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 San Jose releases details on sale of downtown land to Oakland A's -- After years of gobbling up land for a downtown ballpark, the city of San Jose is ready to sell about five acres of prime downtown real estate to the Oakland A's for $6.9 million -- almost a quarter of what the city originally paid for the land and $7 million less than it's worth on the open market. Tracy Seipel in the San Jose Mercury -- 10/27/11 Navigating the rocky world of state service -- The long tail of former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration, the state's iffy economy and Gov. Jerry Brown's famous unpredictability continue to keep state workers off balance. Jon Ortiz in the Sacramento Bee -- 10/27/11
Fensterwald: No Oscars for legislators this year -- The California School Boards Assn. will be giving no Tip of the Hat, only a collective Wag of the Finger, to the Legislature. John Fensterwald educatedguess -- 10/27/11 Progressives Find Religion on LAUSD Reform -- There was a time not too long ago when the voices of serious school reform in California were more often found among moderate Republicans like Richard Riordan and Arnold Schwarzenegger and a few fiercely independent Democrats like Marion Joseph and Gloria Romero. Hillel Aron LA Weekly -- 10/27/11 Spanos pledge could be costly for Sac State -- In 2004, billionaire Alex Spanos pledged $10 million to athletic facilities at Sacramento State University. To date, the Spanos family has only delivered $1 million. Malcolm Maclachlan Capitol Weekly -- 10/27/11 Schools moving breakfast programs into classrooms -- Every morning in Sarah McKerr's third-grade class at Foster Elementary School in Compton, students turn in their homework and file back to their seats with something in hand: a free breakfast. Joanna Lin California Watch -- 10/27/11
Report: Industry decides food ingredient safety -- Thousands of ingredients that go into food have been classified as safe by private industry alone, without any government oversight, according to a new report published Wednesday. Garance Burke AP -- 10/27/11
Huge solar power plants are blooming in California's southern deserts -- But the huge desert, which spans an area larger than West Virginia, is becoming speckled with gigantic solar power plants that are creating hundreds of construction jobs and, when complete, will generate electricity for millions of homes. Dana Hull in the San Jose Mercury -- 10/27/11 State sues over bottles' 'biodegradable' labeling -- A plastic bottling company and two bottled-water companies are selling their products in California in containers labeled "biodegradable," a designation that is both false and illegal, Attorney General Kamala Harris said Wednesday in a lawsuit. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 10/27/11 Hermosa Beach moves closer to banning polystyrene food containers -- With more than a dozen speakers in attendance, the council voted, 3-2, on Tuesday night to direct city staff to create a ordinance that would ban takeout packaging made of the plastic material. Matt Stevens in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11
Rep. Janice Hahn criticizes TSA after firearm incident at LAX -- The San Pedro congresswoman says the agency should check luggage for loaded guns as well as explosives. A loaded firearm fell out of luggage being put on a plane last weekend. Abby Sewell in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 FTC accuses debt collection agency of abusive practices -- The Federal Trade Commission claims that Rincon Management Services LLC of Corona called consumers’ family and workplaces, falsely claiming that a lawsuit was being filed against them. Tia Ghose California Watch -- 10/27/11 Filner is top ‘private bill’ sponsor in House -- Shigeru Yamada knows he’s lucky. Of millions of illegal immigrants, he got a green card through a rare legislative feat known as a private bill. Roxana Popescu in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 10/27/11 Crystal Cathedral picks Chapman University as its buyer -- Under the plan, Chapman would purchase the campus for $50 million and allow the church ministry to lease and eventually repurchase its core buildings. Nicole Santa Cruz in the Los Angeles Times -- 10/27/11 Newsom calls for 'pattern interrupt' on jobs, higher education -- Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom railed against tuition increases and said this afternoon that the state's master plan for higher education is outdated, promising "a different narrative" for higher education by the end of the year. David Siders SacBee Capitol Alert -- 10/27/11
In Denver, Obama Asks Students for Support -- President Obama on Wednesday ended a three-day Western trip that was heavier on politics than policy, rallying thousands of college students whose enthusiasm belied the struggle he will have to win this state again in 2012. JACKIE CALMES in the New York Times -- 10/27/11
Congressional Democrats offer $3 trillion debt deal -- Congressional Democrats are urging the debt-reduction supercommittee to pursue a far-reaching agreement to slice $3 trillion from the federal budget over the next decade through significant cuts to federal health programs, including Medicare, and as much as $1.3 trillion in new taxes. Lori Montgomery and Rosalind S. Helderman in the Washington Post -- 10/27/11 Romney Appears to Waver on Ohio Anti-Union Rules -- Mitt Romney’s critics are quick to accuse him of being a flip-flopper on important issues, part of an effort by Democrats and his Republican rivals to establish him as a politician without a core. MICHAEL D. SHEAR in the New York Times -- 10/27/11 Flat tax renews fight on 'trickle-down economics' -- The flat tax is making a comeback among Republican presidential candidates. But it faces tough opposition in Congress because it tends to favor the rich at the expense of other taxpayers, renewing an old debate about "trickle-down economics." Stephen Ohlemacher AP -- 10/27/11 Marco Rubio faces Hispanic critics -- In Miami’s Little Havana, the Cuban exile community has rallied to the defense of its favorite son, Sen. Marco Rubio, as he fights off allegations he embellished his family history to boost his meteoric political career. SCOTT WONG Politico -- 10/27/11 |
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