The state's huge, decade-long high-tech revamp faces delays -- and there's a lot of money at stake.
From the Sacramento Bee's ADAM ASHTON: "The biggest technology project in California state government will miss a key deadline in July, postponing the full implementation of a $900 million statewide budget program that has been in development since 2005."
"Much of the Financial Information System for California, known as FI$Cal, is moving forward, and 33 state departments are scheduled to begin using it this summer."
"But, an important phase linking the new program to the Treasurer’s Office and the State Controller’s Office will not occur as scheduled. It was to be an important milestone because the controller reports on the overall scope of state spending and the treasurer manages the state’s investments."
A recent report by the Commission on the Future of California's Court System is calling for the elimination of 'excessive and disproportionate' court fines, stating that the courts employ additional fees that can hugely boost penalties -- money that the court uses to support itself.
Capitol Weekly's JOHN HOWARD: "California’s courts impose hundreds of millions of dollars of “excessive and disproportionate” fines each year for common infractions, then use much of the money to support their own operations. A blue-ribbon panel examining the system said the fines should be collected by the executive branch — not the courts themselves — to avoid conflicts."
"The 306-page report by the Commission on the Future of California’s Court System said the state should “restructure the funding and finances of the judicial branch,” and urged “eliminating all add-ons (i.e., surcharges, penalties and assessments).” The add-ons are fees and charges that are attached to a base fine and help finance myriad services, including court construction and administration. They can boost a base penalty by 10-fold, or more."
"The commission’s April 26 study — which was sent to state Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye — recommended changes throughout California’s court system, including civil operations, traffic and criminal procedures, family law, court administration and technology, among others."
An autistic man with cerebral palsy is coming forward to share his brutal sexual assault with the public in an effort to to raise awareness of the criminals involved to see them swiftly brought to justice.
Sacramento Bee's ED FLETCHER: "The Sacramento Police Department is investigating the alleged gang rape of a Tahoe Park man with developmental disabilities."
"The alleged victim, Steven Greyeyes-Clouse, said he was filling in an adult coloring book at Tahoe Park on Friday afternoon when four men approached and exposed themselves to him. Greyeyes-Clouse said he tried to get away by fleeing into the bathroom, but an older man followed him in and threatened him with a knife. All five men then joined in and forced themselves on him, choking and beating him until he blacked out, Greyeyes-Clouse said. He said his alleged assailants also mocked him for being disabled while attacking him."
"The Bee generally does not name victims of sexual assault. In this case, the alleged victim said he wants to speak out to ensure his assailants are caught. Greyeyes-Clouse, 29, told his story on Facebook and the social media platform Nextdoor, where his account has generated more than 100 responses since it was posted a day ago. He said the online support helps strengthen his resolve to speak out."
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The American River was nearly deserted this weekend for beachgoers due to 'dangerous conditions.'
Sacramento Bee's DEBBIE ARRINGTON/WALTER KO: "Where was everybody? During Memorial Day, usually jampacked holiday conditions on Sacramento rivers gave way to a much more relaxing vibe. That was better for beachgoers as well as rescue units."
"Usually, it’s really busy, especially on a weekend like this,” said Renee Perfecto at the Watt Avenue access area along the American River. “Normally, the parking lot would be totally full and there would be nowhere to set up your tent. I don’t know what’s going on."
"Last year, there were 500 people down here; it was packed,” added Mike Ginlen of Sacramento. “But last year, it was a lot hotter."
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The Emerald Bay Bridge was an embattled project planned for Lake Tahoe that ultimately never came to fruition; in retrospect, some believe it would have drastically altered the history and future of the area entirely.
Sacramento Bee's TONY BIZJAK: "Lake Tahoe’s Emerald Bay is perhaps the most spectacular nook in one of the world’s beautiful alpine basins. But it can be an elusive nook. This winter, avalanches closed the highway above the bay for weeks, severing the loop road around the lake."
"What if the highway didn’t have to make that tightrope walk across the steep mountainside behind the bay? What if it simply ran straight and low along the lakeshore instead, like it does elsewhere in the basin? Of course, that would mean a bridge across the mouth of Emerald Bay."
"The idea seems heresy, like putting braces on the Mona Lisa."
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A large portion of undeveloped real estate near the Sacramento International Airport is up for city approvals this week, with development of 3,000 new homes slated for a possible building start-date of 2018.
Sacramento Bee's TONY BIZJAK: "More than a decade in the making, a massive community of lakeside homes and apartments on farmland near Sacramento International Airport is up for key city approvals this week, with possible home construction next year."
"The nearly 600-acre Greenbriar development is planned for a square of land on the city’s northwestern edge, wedged in the “Y” created by the split of Interstate 5 and Highway 99. Despite its location next to suburban North Natomas, the city’s guidelines for Greenbriar say it will be designed in the pedestrian-oriented style of old city neighborhoods like Land Park and Curtis Park, targeting a variety of resident types, including first-time buyers, young professionals, young families and older renters."
"Eventually, a light-rail line planned to connect Sacramento to the airport would run through the community. That $1 billion transit project, however, is unfunded."
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A chemical spill at Sac State last year stimulated a dialogue about the university's safety procedures when dealing with hazardous materials.
Sacramento Bee's DIANA LAMBERT: "A chemical spill at Sacramento State last year has led to questions about whether the university is putting its lab workers at risk from exposure to hazardous substances."
"Some lab employees say they work in areas so poorly ventilated that acidic fumes corrode metal and rubber, and two workers claim that exposure to these substances and others may have led to their inability to have children."
“Our whole stockroom is rusting and rubber bands last only about two weeks before they pulverize, and that is the norm for us,” said lab manager Barbara Coulombe, 49. “If something needs to be protected, like our respirators, we keep them in plastic bags and put them in Tupperware."
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Can one be fired for using legal recreational cannabis? Sacramento Bee's Peter Hecht tries to answer some of your more difficult marijuana questions in light of legalization.
Sacramento Bee's PETER HECHT: "Six months have passed since California voted in favor of Proposition 64, the recreational marijuana initiative that allows adults 21 and over to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and cultivate up to six plants indoors. And in another six months, state-licensed marijuana stores will begin selling pot purely for adult fun."
"What will this mean for weed and the workplace? Can you gather with employee pals for a Friday night toke – instead of the regular beers – and not worry about any consequences on Monday morning? Can you spark up a joint or savor a vape pen on your lunch hour? What about drug testing?"
"The simple answer: It all depends on where you work."
Lawmakers continue to disagree on prescription drug pricing, but reaching a middle ground on pill costs may be in the future.
Sacramento Bee's ALEXEI KOSEFF: "From presidential campaign promises to congressional hearings on the price of EpiPens, 2016 was the year that public anger over the rising cost of prescription drugs boiled into a national outrage."
"California lawmakers responded this session with a half-dozen measures targeting players across the complex supply chain that brings medications to patients and determines what they pay. To tackle what those legislators say is a problem of drug affordability, however, they’ll first have to agree on who is to blame."
"Insurers complain that drug companies are jacking up prices without explanation. Manufacturers counter that health plans are not passing on the savings from rebates to consumers. And there is increasing scrutiny of pharmacy benefit managers, a largely overlooked segment of the industry that negotiates discounts for prescriptions on behalf of insurance companies."
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