As health care reform ramps up in California, Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez offers special-session legislation that would allow some 1 million low-income people to be eligible for coverage through Medi-Cal, the massive state-federal health program for the poor.
From the Bee's Jim Sanders: ""The measure is meant to lay groundwork for President Barack Obama's federal health-care reform, which requires all Americans to obtain insurance by next year or pay a penalty."
"Pérez's proposal, Assembly Bill 1X-1, would provide coverage to single adults whose income is less than $15,400 per year, representing roughly 133 percent of the federal poverty level..."
"If Pérez's bill is signed into law, the federal government would pay the tab for Medi-Cal's expansion for three years."
Lawmakers are launching an investigation to determine whether state agencies are hiding money in off-state accounts in order to keep the funds away from the state budget.
From Jeff Gottlieb in the LA Times: "A joint Assembly and the state Senate committee will conduct a hearing to determine the extent that California agencies are using off-budget accounts to hold money outside the state system."
"Monday’s announcement follows a Times report that the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection hid $3.6 million rather than depositing it in the state’s cash-strapped general fund."
"Cal Fire, as the department is known, placed the money with the nonprofit California District Attorneys Assn. The money came from legal settlements. Cal Fire’s regulations say the money was supposed to go into the state’s general fund."
Speaking of money, the state of California says Orange County is on the hook for $73.5 million each year and is going to court today to get its dough.
From Andrew Galvin in the OC Register: "Judge Robert Moss of Orange County Superior Court will hear the non-jury trial, which could conclude by day’s end."
"The stakes are big for the county, as the amount in dispute is more than 10 percent of its general purpose revenue, most of which funds law enforcement. If the county comes out on the losing end of the case, the Sheriff’s Department and the District Attorney’s Office could face cuts."
"The foundations of the complex dispute can be traced to the county’s 1994 bankruptcy. Afterward, the county needed a way to assure investors that it could make interest and principal payments on bonds it wanted to sell. The solution was a dedicated stream of revenue from vehicle license fee funds, allocated by the state to the county, to back the bonds."
California's voter-aproved stem-cell agency, plagued for years by conflict-of-interest allegations, says it intends to resolve the issue.
From the Mercury-News' Sandy Kleffman: "Under the new policy, tentatively approved last week, the 13 board members of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine who represent institutions eligible for funding from the agency would no longer vote on grants brought before the board."
"The board's final vote is expected March 19."
"The stem cell agency was created in 2005 after California voters approved Proposition 71 to fund cutting-edge scientific research in the hope of finding cures and treatments for a host of debilitating diseases."
First they're up, then they're down, now they're going back up: Gasoline prices are heading upward.
From Gary Richards in the Mercury-News: "Prices are again on an upward march in California -- and could hit $3.80 to $3.95 a gallon by Valentine's Day -- as refineries across the state convert to the more expensive summer blend of fuel while coping with sporadic outages."
"The statewide average stood at $3.68 Monday, and that was up 12 cents from a month ago, according to AAA. By the end of this week, that figure should be several cents higher."
"It looks bleak," said Senior Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan of GasBuddy.com. "Spot prices continue to jump and could rise another 10 to 25 cents a gallon over the next week or two."