The state budget was dealt another blow Thursday, as a judge ruled the furloughs of state prison guards was illegal.
John Howard reports, "The Schwarzenegger administration plans an immediate appeal of a court decision blocking the forced furloughs of prison correctional officers, a ruling that could have an impact on the strapped state budget.
"The decision, if it stands, would affect about 25,000 state correctional employees, according to an analysis of the state Department of Finance, which writes the governor's budgets.
"Alameda Court Judge Frank Roesch ruled Thursday that the administration's furloughs violated state law by, in effect, forcing employees to work unpaid hours. Prisons are required to be staffed 24-7 and unlike many state departments, there is little flexibility to participate in "self-directed" furlloughs. The correctional officers were working ther hours and banking the time off."
Shane Goldmacher and Eric Bailey profile new speaker John Perez.
"Pérez got tossed toward politics early because of threats during the 1980s to cut government funds for his mother's clinic and his father's disability check. The impact of political decision-making "came right home," Pérez recalled.
"Despite his 15 years working for unions, Pérez these days is
broadcasting a desire to find common ground between
labor and business.
"I'm a trade unionist, and I don't apologize for that,"
Pérez said.
"But there is a sweet spot. There is this balance between
what you get
for working folks, and what you need to expand business."
Bill Dombrowski, president of the California Retailers Assn., said
business leaders would make a mistake if they dismiss
Pérez.
"If people view him just as a union guy they are going
to be sorely
wrong," said Dombrowski, who considers Pérez -- despite his liberal
credentials -- an old-school "pragmatist."
The squabbling between the Assembly and Senate over Race to the Top education legislation was put to bed yesterday. The
Chron's Marisa Lagos reports, "Parents would be able
to yank their children
out of failing schools and ask any other school in
the state to admit
them under a compromise bill approved Thursday by the
state Senate.You have to string
together a series of seemingly unrelated events to
see it, but this
week painted a powerful picture of California's chronic
inability to
govern itself.
"Both the Senate and Assembly already approved separate
pieces of
legislation aimed at making the state competitive,
but it wasn't until
this week that leaders from both houses, as well as
the governor's
office, sat down to hammer out a compromise. "That compromise attempted to strike a balance by leaving
out
controversial regulations for charter schools favored
by Assembly
Democrats, and including the so-called "parent empowerment" provisions
pushed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Gloria Romero." Dan Walters says the events of the week show California is ungovernable. "You have to string
together a series of seemingly unrelated events to
see it, but this
week painted a powerful picture of California's chronic
inability to
govern itself. "We're squandering our limited debt capacity on nonessential
things
such as stem cell research and bullet trains while
our existing
infrastructure is crumbling, demand from an increasing
population
grows, politicians' credibility is almost nil, and
bankers deservedly
treat us like a Third World country.
Way to go, California."
"Voters are likely to confront the issue next
year. Marijuana advocates say they have collected more
than enough
signatures, over 680,000, to qualify for November's ballot with a
proposal to make California the first U.S. state to
legalize possession
and cultivation of pot for recreational use. "Passage remains far from certain, even in socially
permissive California. "Fifteen years after Californians led the nation in
approving the use
of cannabis for medical purposes, fierce political
debate is raging
over a recent mushrooming of medicinal pot dispensaries
in Los Angeles
and other cities." "That change and other proposals are part of the state's
plan to
compete for President Obama's Race to the Top grants
- up to $4.3
billion for all states and as much as $700 million for California alone." Finally, Capitol Weekly printed the text of outgoing
EDD director Pat Henning's farewell email to colleagues. "Resigned.
Quit.
Gone.
Freed.
Vacated.
Left.
Stopped.
Ceased. Nowhere.
Somewhere.
Happy. Not Here.
No more.
Don't guess." Amen.
Reuters reports activists hoping to legalize marijuana
are banking on the state's dire fiscal straits.