It's make-or-break day in the California state budget neogtiations, as the five legislative leaders prepare to talk about education funding in a round of meetings set for today. School funding is the largest portion of the state budget, and the decisions over whether to pay back schools billions in lost funds over the next several years, and whether to suspend the Proposition 98 guarantee, are two of the central questions in the ongoing budget talks and debate.
The Chron's Matthew Yi reports, "Schwarzenegger wants to suspend Proposition 98 , a 1988 voter-approved law that guarantees funding levels for K-12 schools and community colleges. Suspension of those rules would allow the state to make deep cuts to education spending.
"But the Republican governor's proposal has provoked sharp criticism from Democrats and the California Teachers Association.
The politically powerful teachers union began a statewide TV ad campaign last week criticizing the governor, and Schwarzenegger is firing back with a TV spot that will begin airing today arguing he will not sign any budget deal that includes taxes or does not eliminate fraud, waste and abuse in government."
Meanwhile, as the tone seems to have been changed around the budget talks, yesterday saw a strange upping of the ante, as the governor took to the airwaves with commercials of his own promoting no new taxes and a quick budget solution . John Myers reports,
"Sacramento is asking me to sign a budget that raises
your taxes and spends money we do not have," says the governor in an ad that's reminiscent of the old days. Also known as 2003.
Yes, the ad (a throwback as much as the ad against him) comes across as Schwarzenegger the candidate promising
to "clean house"
at the state Capitol. "I'm asking you to stand firm with me," implores
the governor in a 60 second ad that's full-screen Arnold with an almost
eery crescendo of music at the end.
"The timing of the ad seems somewhat at odds with the warm and fuzzy vibes oozing out of this weekend's eponymous Big Five meetings, a sense that all sides were finally getting close to reaching accord. Granted, even the most well financed political operation has a lag time of a few days to get a statewide TV ad on the air, but it's definitely got to make one wonder: what did some of the legislative leaders think when they first saw it?
Mike Zapler reports that despite the ad, the mood remains optimistic . "When it comes to California's perpetually dismal state budget, good news is relative. So the fact that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders spent much of the weekend huddled in Schwarzenegger's office talking about how to fix the gaping budget shortfall may well pass for cause for encouragement.
But as the governor and party leaders resume talks today, some of the thorniest issues surrounding how to balance a $26.3 billion deficit remain unresolved. Meanwhile, IOUs from the cash-strapped state continue to pile up in mailboxes across the state: As of Monday, California had issued 129,786 IOUs this month, totaling $435,706,583.33, to vendors, taxpayers awaiting refunds, local governments and others, according to Controller John Chiang.
Still,
after weeks of finger pointing, the governor and legislative
leaders
are meeting. And beyond that, some of them report real
momentum —
perhaps even enough to reach a deal by week's end.
"I'm very optimistic," Assembly Speaker Karen Bass,
D-Los Angeles, said in an interview. "I think all five leaders are
working together very well." Her tone was a marked shift from last
week, when Bass was so discouraged that she sat out
a number of
negotiating sessions.
Days after a ProPublica investigation into the state
nursing board, the governor has decided to clean house. The LAT's Tracy Weber and Chalres Ornstein report, "Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger replaced most members of the state Board
of Registered
Nursing on Monday, citing the unacceptable time it
takes to discipline
nurses accused of egregious misconduct.
"The shake-up came a day after The Times and the nonprofit news
organization ProPublica published an investigation
finding that it
takes the board, which oversees 350,000 licensees, an average of three
years and five months to investigate and close complaints
against
nurses.
And sure, we take grief for trying to regulate pomergranate
juice here in California, but we're not the only ones. "Anyone in Florida who tries to pass off honey as 100 percent pure
when it has additives or other ingredients could find
themselves in a
sticky situation.
"He fired three of six
sitting board members -- including President Susanne Phillips -- in
two-paragraph letters curtly thanking them for their service.
Another
member resigned Sunday. Late Monday, the governor's administration
released a list of replacements.
"During that time, nurses accused of wrongdoing are
free to practice -- often with spotless records -- and move from
hospital to hospital. Potential employers are unaware
of the risks, and
patients have been harmed as a result.
Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles Bronson announced Monday that honey that has additives and chemicals in it must be clearly labeled as a blended product. Consumers must be told what else is in the honey."
"Bronson says says that in the past, honey has sometimes been cut with water or sugar, or been contaminated with insecticides and antibiotics. The regulation takes effect Tuesday and prohibits honey labeled as pure cannot contain anything other than the "natural food product resulting from the harvest of nectar by honeybees."
And if the job market has you down, you could always be a witch . Reuters reports, "Fancy 80,000 dollars a year on a stress-free job with flexible working hours and no need to wear a suit? Well, grab your black pointy hat, take out that rusty black hessian drape from the back of the wardrobe and refresh your memory on how to turn your grumpy neighbor into a mouse. Somerset tourist attraction Wookey Hole caves is advertising for a "witch" and has already received 100 applicants since the beginning of the week.
"Legend has it that the caves, near Wells, were home to the Wookey Witch who was turned to stone by the medieval Abbott of Glastonbury to rid villagers of her curse.
"The vacancy has arisen because the previous incumbent has retired.
