 |
|
||||
 |
 |
 |
|||
Bo Derek appointment to Horse Racing Board put on hold by state Senate -- Actress Bo Derek may be a "10," but state lawmakers Wednesday indefinitely put off a decision on whether to confirm her appointment by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to a state board. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Former Bell City Manager Robert Rizzo pleads guilty to drunk driving -- Rizzo Robert Rizzo, the former Bell city manager who resigned last month after The Times disclosed his base salary of nearly $800,000, pleaded guilty Wednesday to driving under the influence of alcohol. Paloma Esquivel in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Rasmussen poll shows shrinking lead for Boxer -- Rasmussen Reports has changed its rating for the California Senate race from"Leans Democratic" to a "Toss-Up" in light of a new poll showing Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer and Republican challenger Carly Fiorina locked in a dead heat. AP Bruce Drake politicsdaily.com -- 8/25/10 Karl Rove-linked group launches new hit against Boxer -- A conservative group with ties to former Bush adviser Karl Rove announced Wednesday they have Barbara Boxer in their sites. Maeve Reston and Anthony York in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Republicans deride ski-helmet bill as 'nanny government' -- Kids who ski or snowboard without a helmet could be hit with a $25 fine under a measure approved Wednesday by state lawmakers, despite opposition from Republican legislators who said it is an unwarranted intrusion into parenting. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Assembly cuts fines for illegal red light turns -- The Assembly voted today to reduce fines for motorists who failed to make complete stops before turning right on red lights. Dan Walters SacBee Capitol Alert -- 8/25/10 More heat for Facebook over Prop. 19 ads -- The national Libertarian Party today joined the chorus of those complaining that Facebook has banned ads advocating for marijuana legalization. Josh Richman Political Blotter weblog -- 8/25/10 Commission confirms Cantil-Sakauye for state's top court -- Tani Cantil-Sakauye moved one step closer to donning the robe of chief justice of the California Supreme Court on Wednesday when the three-member Commission of Judicial Appointments unanimously confirmed her appointment. Gina Kim SacBee Capitol Alert -- 8/25/10 Anthem Blue Cross allowed to move ahead with rate hikes -- California insurance regulators cleared the way Wednesday for Anthem Blue Cross to implement scaled-back rate hikes after a previous rate increase was canceled amid an uproar over its size. Duke Helfand in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Bell residents take first steps to recall council members -- Petitions to recall four Bell council members who were earning six-figure salaries were submitted Tuesday to the city clerk by a local residents group. Corina Knoll in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 La Opinión: A life sentence hanging over hundreds of young people -- For 16 years, Bryant Warth was sentenced to life in prison for participating in a gang-related crime. Araceli Martínez Ortega La Opinión -- 8/25/10 Translated by Google Translate (good, but not perfect). Tax loophole sunshine bill goes to governor -- The Assembly gave final legislative approval today to heavily lobbied legislation that would post corporations' use of tax loopholes on the Internet. Dan Walters SacBee Capitol Alert -- 8/25/10 Business group reveals $1 million cash infusion to bash Brown, push ballot measure -- The Small Business Action Committee PAC has been busy of late, giving $800,000 to fight a ballot measure that would allow state lawmakers to pass a budget by a simple majority vote. The group is also supporting Proposition 26, which would make it harder to raise fees in the Legislature. Anthony York in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Assembly rejects bill to aid juvenile lifers -- A volatile election year was probably the wrong time to propose a bill that would allow prison inmates sentenced to life terms without possibility of parole to petition for sentence modification. Dan Walters SacBee Capitol Alert -- 8/25/10 Plastic vs. paper choice could soon end -- Legislation that would make California the first state in the nation to ban single-use plastic grocery bags is potentially just days from advancing to the desk of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has spoken highly of the bill. JIM MILLER in the Riverside Press -- 8/25/10 Controversy erupts over proposed horse racing changes -- Bo Derek probably didn’t get upstaged much during her heyday in the 1970s and ‘80s, when she was one of the world’s most recognizable sex symbols. But when her name goes before the Senate Rules Committee Wednesday morning, she’ll likely be overshadowed by another appointee to the California Horse Racing Board. Malcolm Maclachlan in Capitol Weekly -- 8/25/10 State audit raps Inland developmentally disabled center -- The San Bernardino-based Inland Regional Center awarded a nearly $1 million transportation contract that contained only a brief description of the scope of work and produced little of substance, according to a state audit released Tuesday. JIM MILLER in the Riverside Press -- 8/25/10 Chelsea's Law clears last major hurdle -- Caution mixed with congratulations following state Senate passage of Chelsea’s Law Tuesday. Michael Gardner in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 8/25/10 Pedicab operators may need a license -- San Diego pedicab operators may soon have to prove they can drive a car before they can tote tourists around the Gaslamp Quarter. Michael Gardner in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 8/25/10 Life after death for ‘cash for clunkers’ cars -- There may well be life after death, for what we’ll call the Frankenstein cars. Teri Sforza in the Orange County Register -- 8/25/10
News Corp. a regular donor to California politicians – even Democrats -- Fox Group, a division of News Corp.'s U.S. subsidiary, has donated more than $1.2 million to California candidates and causes since 2001, state campaign finance records show, and unlike the RGA bonanza reported last week, many of those contributions have gone toward Democrats. Chase Davis California Watch -- 8/25/10 Medical pot industry split on Prop. 19 -- The Canna Care medical marijuana dispensary has a truck driving around Sacramento with a sign telling people to vote "no" on the state ballot initiative that would legalize pot for recreational use. Peter Hecht in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/25/10 Lopez: Independent voters haven't yet seen what they're looking for in California governor's race -- With so few specifics from either Jerry Brown or Meg Whitman, there's very little to talk about except how little there is to talk about as election day draws closer. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Bell council members were paid thousands for sitting on boards that rarely met -- Records show that one panel has not met since early 2005, yet members were paid $1,575 per month. Jeff Gottlieb, Richard Winton and Ruben Vives in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Obama assist crashes Jerry Brown's website -- An appeal by President Obama to his supporters seeking help for Jerry Brown’s candidacy would seem like a godsend for the Democratic gubernatorial nominee. But within minutes of Obama’s e-mail, so many people clicked the link that Brown’s website crashed. Seema Mehta in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 CalBuzz: Krusty Krashes, Meg De-Friended, Flash Squished -- Gandalf Discovers Technology, Chapter 23: Reports that Jerry Brown’s web site crashed, moments after Barack Obama e-blasted a political support pitch for him, may have caused some brief embarrassment to Krusty’s bare-bones campaign staff, but it was quickly overcome when Jerry’s Kids started toting up the bottom line impact of the message. Jerry Roberts and Phil Trounstine CalBuzz -- 8/25/10 Chino prison sees some improvements in medical care -- The federal receiver in charge of improving prison medical care brought in better doctors – and added prison staff to make sure inmates get to see those doctors. KPCC toured the California Institution for Men in Chino to see whether those changes improved conditions there. Julie Small KPCC -- 8/25/10 Walters: Fight brews on red-light turn fines -- The Capitol is seeing red over how much motorists should be dinged for making so-called "California stops" before turning right on red lights. Dan Walters in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/25/10 Assembly to start enforcing a stricter dress code -- Big news out of the Assembly Budget? Nope. But the house has decided to begin enforcing a stricter dress code: Men must wear a coat and tie on the Assembly floor. Jim Sanders in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/25/10
Schwarzenegger: Lower the state's sales tax rate and apply it to services now untaxed -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday the state should lower its sales tax rate and apply it to "all services" that now go untaxed. Kevin Yamamura in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/25/10 LA County raises property tax rate to help pay for ER, trauma care -- Property owners will pay a few more dollars in taxes this year to help offset the rising cost of emergency and trauma care in Los Angeles County. Melissa Evans in the Long Beach Press -- 8/25/10
Herdt: Whose pensions should worry us? -- Here’s a little piece of information that will probably surprise you if all you know about public employee pensions is what you’ve picked up from recent political rhetoric: Among the 492,000 retired government workers receiving checks from the state’s Public Employees’ Retirement System, the average monthly benefit is $2,188, and 78 percent receive $3,000 a month or less. Timm Herdt in the Ventura Star -- 8/25/10 One L.A. employee union agrees to pay more for healthcare; others resist -- Six Los Angeles city employee unions have blocked Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa from seeking to impose higher healthcare costs on its members, even as a seventh labor organization agreed to a wide range of concessions. David Zahniser in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 ‘Labor-friendly’ CalPERS rejects labor plea -- Ignoring a plea from the largest state worker union, the CalPERS board adopted a new policy last week allowing the state to get immediate savings from new contracts boosting worker pension payments. Under the old policy it would have been fiscal 2012-13 before the state got the savings. Ed Mendel Calpensions.com -- 8/25/10 Hiltzik: Corporate America, it's time to spread the wealth -- Businesses are sitting on a record hoard of cash, but they're not using it to hire workers or pay existing ones better wages. Broadly distributing the fruits of economic growth is the only way to sustain that growth. Michael Hiltzik in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10
Fensterwald: Good try but no Race to the Top grant -- Sixteenth place California came up six spots and 17.3 points short of getting a big piece of the $3.4 billion second round of Race to the Top. John Fensterwald educatedguess.org -- 8/25/10 We lost again in Race to the Top. Now what? -- Now larger questions loom. What does the twice-abysmal performance say about the current state of California education? Corey G. Johnson California Watch -- 8/25/10 Fensterwald: Oakland, LAUSD to get SIG money after all -- With an hours-old waiver from the federal government in hand, the state Board of Education on Tuesday approved spending $416 million to turn around 92 of the state’s lowest-performing schools. John Fensterwald educatedguess.org -- 8/25/10 U.S. schools chief to push disclosure of education data -- Education secretary Arne Duncan will call on districts across the nation to make information on teachers public. Jason Song in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 CSU officials probe accounting of public, private funds -- California State University officials are concerned that they have erroneously mixed public and private funds in accounting for the foundations that support the system's 23 campuses, according to a report the California Faculty Association is releasing today. Laurel Rosenhall in the Sacramento Bee Carla Rivera in the Los Angeles Times Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/25/10 High-school exam rates rising, especially among minorities -- A greater portion of California students are mastering minimum English and math skills, and the biggest gains are seen among poor, Latino and African-American students, according to results of the high-school exit exam released today by the state. Sharon Noguchi in the San Jose Mercury -- 8/25/10
L.A. officials launch campaign to roll back state environmental rule -- A bill in the Legislature would delay new regulations that require the DWP to overhaul three coastal power plants to reduce the amount of seawater used for cooling. Patrick McGreevy and David Zahniser in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 How influential are the Koch brothers? New Yorker magazine investigates -- The Koch brothers are leaving their mark everywhere. On Aug. 19, Progressive Media reported that the Kansas-based Koch Industries is the lead funder of a “grassroots” group organizing support for Proposition 23, the ballot initiative that would kill California’s energy climate change law. Susanne Rust California Watch -- 8/25/10
Insurance exchange advances in Legislature -- California’s Legislature is moving closer to implementing a major piece of the federal health reform, the creation of an insurance exchange that would allow individuals and small business to join a giant pool that would give them market power in bargaining for a better deal with insurance companies. Daniel Weintraub HealthyCal.org -- 8/25/10 Restaurant chains, vending machines will have to post calories -- In an effort to tackle national obesity, the FDA's draft guidelines require any businesses with more than 20 locations to post the calorie information in the same size type as the menu item or price. Andrew Zajac in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 DOJ will appeal stem-cell ruling -- The Justice Department said Tuesday it will appeal an injunction that temporarily halts federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, a ruling that dealt an unexpected blow to one of President Barack Obama’s first initiatives and sent shock waves throughout the scientific community. GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO Politico -- 8/25/10 Plaintiffs in stem cell lawsuit made news for other issues -- Dr. James L. Sherley and Theresa Deisher, the plaintiffs in the civil lawsuit that threatens to end federal funding for research on human embryonic stem cells, are perhaps better known for their extracurricular activities than for their scientific feats. Thomas H. Maugh II in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 State can't exclude felons from in-home care -- An Alameda County judge blocked Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday from excluding convicted felons and shoplifters from providing in-home care in a program that serves 430,000 low-income elderly and disabled Californians. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/25/10
Michael Steele to Hispanics: Don't blame Republicans for Arizona immigration law -- Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele is putting some political distance between the national Republican Party and Arizona Republicans who enacted a tough immigration-enforcement law earlier this year. Richard Dunham Chronicle Politics Weblog -- 8/25/10
Audit of $4 billion agency finds nepotism in contracting, fear of retaliation -- A nonprofit executive awarded state funds to her sister even though the service was available at a lower cost. A chief executive breached a confidential police tip line to document employee efforts to solve a crime. Christina Jewett California Watch -- 8/25/10 State Senate approves life sentences for some molesters -- California state senators unanimously approved tough legislation Tuesday that calls for locking up some convicted child molesters for life. Don Thompson AP -- 8/25/10 Commissioner slaps more fines on UC Davis housing subcontractors -- The state labor commissioner has ordered two subcontractors working on the UC Davis Tercero student housing project to pay nearly $1.5 million in back wages and penalties for labor violations – just a few months after two other subcontractors on the same project were accused of similar misdeeds. Erica Perez California Watch -- 8/25/10 Law enforcement agencies, community members convene to solve Oakland gang problems -- The city of 400,000 consistently averages over 100 murders annually. And the Oakland Police Department claims most of the city’s violent crimes come from street gangs. Ali Winston KALW -- 8/25/10 Kevin Johnson, fiancee make abrupt change in wedding plans -- Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and his fiancee, Washington, D.C., school superintendent Michelle Rhee, informed wedding guests today they are changing the date and location of their nuptials -- and only close friends and family now are invited. Gina Kim in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/25/10 California Senate OKs sex offender bills -- The state Senate approved a package of bills Tuesday in response to the rapes and murders of San Diego County teenagers Chelsea King and Amber Dubois, including a measure that would keep violent sexual offenders behind bars longer and require closer supervision for those paroled. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 Countrywide's Angelo Mozilo made exceptions for VIP mortgages, exec testifies -- According to testimony in an SEC lawsuit, the Calabasas firm's co-founder fostered the practice of making exceptions to its lending standards. E. Scott Reckard in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/25/10 |
Follow on Twitter
