Gov. Brown's State of the State address next week is being eagerly awaited by education officials, amid reports that the governor is poised to unveil a major shift in education funding.
From Barbara Jones and Beau Yarbrough in the LA Daily News: "Public school districts receive the bulk of their funding from the state, mostly in the form of a flat fee based on student attendance. Brown's proposed budget for the 2013-14 budget year, which begins July 1, is expected to include a weighted formula that would pay more for students in districts with high numbers of poor students or students who don't speak English at home."
"Brown has also indicated a desire to loosen restrictions on dozens of special programs - everything from adult education to class-size reduction grants - potentially freeing up billions of dollars to be spent by local districts."
"This is one of the most significant policy and fiscal changes we've seen in education in recent memory," said Edgar Zazueta, the chief of government relations for Los Angeles Unified."
The feisty urses' union and the healthcare workers' union are joining together, a move that carries nationwide implications for labor and politics.
From Sandy Kleffman in the Mercury News: "In a move expected to shake up health care labor battles statewide, the powerful California Nurses Association announced Thursday that it will affiliate with the National Union of Healthcare Workers in fights with major health systems over wages, benefits and patient care issues."
"CNA also agreed to use its 85,000 members and considerable resources to help NUHW in its campaign to defeat a large rival, the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, in an upcoming election for the right to represent 43,500 Kaiser Permanente service and technical workers."
"That election, which may happen this spring, will be a repeat of a 2010 election, which was the largest union election in the private sector in nearly 70 years. At that time, Kaiser workers voted to remain in SEIU."
Al Jazeera, a top-flight TV network that carries sinister baggage for many U.S. viewers, purchased Current TV in an effort to gain a foothold into the American market.
From the Chronicle's Joe Garofoli and Carla Marinucci: "Despite what perceptions remain about its political bias, analysts say Al Jazeera has developed a strong journalistic reputation with international audiences as it reports from places that U.S. outlets, with their scaled-down overseas reporting staffs, barely touch."
"Aside from the media implications, some analysts wonder how Gore, a part-time San Francisco resident who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his leadership on climate change, could sell to a network that is funded by the government of Qatar, a country whose wealth is rooted in its vast oil riches. Gore is expected to make $100 million from the reported $500 million sale."
"But while Gore and other Current TV investors count their proceeds from the sale, Al Jazeera will have to figure out how to get more folks to watch. Only 14 percent of the respondents to a Pew Research survey last year said they "closely followed" international news, down from 24 percent in 2004. International news ranked 10th out of 11 possible categories that respondents said they closely tracked - only "entertainment news" was considered less desirable."
The former high command of the city of Bell in L.A. County is heading to trial on the corruption charges that brought them down, charges that include vastly padding their pay in a city that was struggling financially.
From the LAT's Jeff Gottlieb: "Six former Bell City Council members accused in a widespread corruption case that left the L.A. County town on the cusp of bankruptcy are expected to go on trial later this month, a Superior Court judge said Thursday."
"Judge Kathleen Kennedy said during a hearing Thursday that she thought the trial would start Jan. 24, according to Stanley L. Friedman, attorney for defendant Oscar Hernandez, the city's former mayor. Estimates are that the trial will last a month, possibly two."
"The other defendants are George Cole, Luis Artiga, George Mirabal, Victor Bello and Teresa Jacobo. The six are accused of being paid for attending meetings of city boards, such as the Surplus Property Authority and the Public Finance Authority, that met seldom if ever, and then only for a minute or two."
Yet more fallout from the "fiscal cliff" deal: California stands to lose money from the estate tax.
From the Bee's Kevin Yamamura: "Because Congress permanently killed an estate tax transfer to states this week, California stands to lose $45 million in inheritance tax revenue that Gov. Jerry Brown and lawmakers anticipated in their June budget, according to the Department of Finance."
"As part of the "fiscal cliff" agreement, Congress permanently eliminated the state estate tax credit, a device once used to return a share of federal inheritance taxes to states. The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office says that likely means California won't receive estate tax revenues again without a vote of the people."
"In 1982, voters passed Proposition 6, which eliminated the state estate tax but allowed California to recoup a share of inheritance taxes paid to the federal government. For taxpayers, that ensured California estates would not have to pay more than the federal tax."
