More woes at the Bay Bridge -- as if the multibillion-dollar span needed any more grief.
From the Chronicle's Matier & Ross: "At least 30 of the giant bolts that hold together the new, $6.4 billion eastern span of the Bay Bridge have snapped."
"As a result, Caltrans is considering replacing all 288 of the bolts on the new bridge before it opens, The Chronicle has learned. Caltrans insists the new span is safe and that plans to open it the day after Labor Day are still on track."
"However, officials say it's too early to determine how long it will take to fix the problem - or the cost."
California officials' failure to defend a state law before the U.S. Supreme Court raised questions -- and eyebrows -- as justices debated Proposition 8, the initiative that banned gay marriage. Prop. 8 is a state law, approved by voters, and yet Attorney General Kamala Harris, Gov. Jerry Brown and former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger all refused to defend it in court.
From John Myers at News10: "If the nine justices of the United States Supreme Court choose to effectively not weigh in on the merits of California's gay marriage ban, it will likely be because the state's top elected officials all decided to take a pass on its defense."
"And that raises an interesting question of its own: do voter-approved initiatives become legal orphans without an official seal of approval?"
"Have we ever granted standing to proponents of ballot initiatives?" asked Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the opening moments of Tuesday's oral arguments on Proposition 8.
"No, your honor, the Court has not done that," said Charles Cooper, the attorney representing Proposition 8 backers."
Round 2 of the high court's examination of gay marriage gets under way today, this time as justices hear oral arguments on the fedeal Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, to decide whether federal benefits can be withheld from legally wed gay couples.
From the Washington Post's Robert Barnes: "The Obama administration has said that it will not defend the law, known as DOMA, and lower courts have said it is unconstitutional to deny federal benefits to same-sex couples who are legally married in the states where they live while offering the same benefits to opposite-sex married couples.
"There are more than 1,000 references to marital status in federal law and regulations covering important federal benefits such as tax savings, Social Security payments and medical and family leave."
"Although Tuesday’s arguments on California’s Proposition 8 focused on those who want to marry, the DOMA case concerns those who are already married."
PG&E says its examination of its vast newtwork of natural gas pipelines is nearly completed, tests that putting the pipes under pressure to check their integrity.
From George Avalos in the Mercury-News: "The utility said that when it concludes its safety check by the end of April, it will have completed seven of the 12 safety recommendations issued by the National Transportation Safety Board in the wake of the September 2010 lethal explosion of natural gas in San Bruno that killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes."
"PG&E and its critics agree that much work remains to transform its pipelines into a truly safe network. And it remains unclear who will pay for the improvements, which by some estimates could reach $5.3 billion in the coming few years."
"The nearly completed pressure tests on some sections of pipeline and record reviews of other sections were undertaken on more than 6,000 miles of gas pipelines, said Brittany Chord, a spokeswoman for PG&E."
The Sierra snowpack, which offers an indication of spring runoff and the summer's water supply, is not looking good.
From the Fresno Bee's Mark Grossi: "Snow-surveying crews across the Sierra are seeing bad news up close this week. California has about half a snowpack."
"Skiing, snowshoeing or riding helicopters, the crews are making their way to high-elevation meadows for the most important snow measurement of the year."
"April 1 is the unofficial end of the snowfall season -- this year, following a miserably dry January, February and March. City officials, industry leaders and farmers will get a good idea of how much water to expect when the snow melts."
