"Hoping to resurrect an idea voters rejected in last year's special election, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
plans to offer lawmakers a deal: He'll
support an easing of term limits if they'll agree to change the way California draws voting districts," reports Peter Nicholas in the Times.
"Schwarzenegger said in an interview Thursday he does not believe term limits have improved Sacramento's political culture. Allowing legislators to stay in office longer would be worthwhile, he said, if it induced them to put a proposal on the ballot that would strip them of the power to carve political boundaries."
"'I would like for them to really push forward with this whole idea,' Schwarzenegger said in an interview Thursday. '
It's very clear that people would like to see redistricting and to have a different system than the way it is now, with the gerrymandering, and to perfect the democracy.'"
"One proponent of longer terms is the Democratic speaker of the Assembly, Fabian Nuñez of Los Angeles. Existing law requires Nuñez, 39, to leave the Assembly in 2008, forcing him to run for another office if he wants to continue his career in elective politics."
"
Before I leave the Legislature I'm going to make it happen,' Nuñez said in an interview this week."
Meanwhile,
Abel Maldonado "
apologized to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday for questioning his loyalty to Latinos," report
"'
The governor and I have worked together for the past three years on important issues beneficial to California's Latinos,' state Sen. Abel Maldonado of Santa Maria said in a statement released by his office. '
I will continue to support the governor in his efforts to strengthen California.'"
"In remarks published Wednesday in The Times, Maldonado accused the Republican governor of showing 'a lack of respect' to Latinos by spending too little time in Mexico. He also said: 'Our governor cares about one thing only, and that's Arnold Schwarzenegger.'"
Meanwhile Green Party gubernatorial candidate
Peter Camejo "
filed a Fair Political Practices Commission complaint this week over his exclusion from a recent poll, which he calls discriminatory. And he's holding a Sacramento news conference today about his struggle for a podium at this fall's League of Women Voters gubernatorial debates," writes Josh Richman in the Oakland Tribune.
"His FPPC complaint notes the Survey and Policy Research Institute at San Jose State University conducted a June 26-30 poll asking, 'If the election were held today, would you vote for Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Republican, or State Treasurer
Phil Angelides, the Democrat?'"
"Camejo's complaint says this is 'a clear promotion of two partisan candidates' discriminating against four others: himself, American Independent
Edward Noonan, Libertarian
Art Olivier, and Peace & Freedom candidate
Janice Jordan."
In related news, Little Jimmy filed a complaint with the playground police after being picked last for kickball.
The Chron's Tom Chorneau takes a look at
the power of the oil lobby in the California Legislature.
"With time running out on the current two-year session, oil company lobbyists have helped tie up or kill almost a dozen bills considered hostile to the industry, including a plan to tax windfall profits and a proposal to regulate refineries as public utilities.So far, supporters said, no bill that would have significantly changed the status quo has passed out to the governor's desk."
"Several Salinas Valley farmers
voiced outrage Thursday at gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides' proposal to slash a 'tractor tax' exemption they say saves them thousands of dollars each year," reports Dania Akkad in the Monterey Herald.
"The 5 percent sales tax exemption on liquid petroleum gas, farm equipment and diesel fuel, approved by passage of an Assembly bill in 2001, might sound like small change, said a small group of farmers who gathered at The Farm off Monterey-Salinas Highway for a morning news conference."
"But the money they would lose annually -- a minimum of $10,000 each, they estimated -- is a lot of money to them, so Angelides' proposal to close what his office calls a corporate loophole has them up in arms."
"'
Farming is good. Tax relief is good. Taxes are bad. Phil Angelides is disrespectful,' said farmer
Benny Jefferson of Jefferson Farms, summing up the situation at the event organized by the Monterey County Farm Bureau and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's re-election campaign."
Sounds like a bumper sticker to us.
"The federal receiver in charge of California's inmate health care system said Thursday that the two prisons Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to build
should be used instead as hospitals for inmates."
"The proposal was among a wide range of initiatives outlined by
Robert Sillen in his first in-depth interview since he was given broad authority to reform the inmate health care system, which has been plagued for years by poor treatment and neglect."
"'Why spend that money twice?' Sillen said. 'It would seem to me the smart way to go about this is to get the double benefit for the dollar, because it has the same bottom-line impact on the overpopulation problem.'"
"An Alameda County judge on Thursday
blocked implementation of a new law allowing judges to issue short-term jail sentences to drug offenders who fail to complete court-ordered treatment programs," reports the Bee's Laura Mecoy.
"Superior Court Judge
Winifred Smith said opponents of the new law had a "substantial likelihood of success" in the lawsuit they filed to overturn the law enacted with the governor's signature on
Senate Bill 1137."
"'Plaintiffs have demonstrated that serious irreparable harm will occur' without a temporary restraining order, the judge ruled."
In another case, irreperable harm was not found. "A Sacramento Superior Court judge on Thursday
rejected a last-ditch attempt by pistol-seller SigArms Inc. to stop the California Highway Patrol from taking delivery of new Smith & Wesson guns later this month," writes Andrew McIntosh in the Bee.
"Judge
Gail D. Ohanesian denied a SigArms bid for a temporary restraining order, saying the New Hampshire company didn't show it would suffer irreparable harm if the deliveries started."
"'I want to emphasize that I am not ruling on the merits of this case,' Judge Ohanesian said."
"Speaking of the CHP, the Bee is out with an investigative report today finding that "
the California Highway Patrol sped up its use of budgeted overtime pay in May and June, with at least one CHP division urging its workers to rack up extra hours," reports John Hill.
"The Valley Division's officers 'did an excellent job of using up overtime, spending nearly $943,000 since May 14,' according to a June 14 e-mail obtained by The Bee. 'Now we are counting on non-uniformed employees to make a dent.'"
"The division's commander,
Stan Pérez, 'has granted approval for every non-uniformed employee under Valley Division to use as much overtime as they want between now and June 30th," a staff services analyst wrote in the e-mail. "Requests to use the overtime are not required. …'"
Meanwhile, members of the union representing LA Unified teachers tepidly
endorsed Antonio Villaraigosa's attempt to exert greater control over district governance.
"In a special meeting that ran late into the evening, many in the union's 300-member House of Representatives vented frustration that union leaders had not consulted the House before striking a deal with Mayor
Antonio Villaraigosa over the contents of the bill."
"
In the end, the House voted to support the bill 101 to 89. A motion to oppose the bill failed by a similar margin."
"Out-of-state callers
may not surreptitiously tape record telephone conversations with people in California, the state Supreme Court decided unanimously Thursday," reports Maura Dolan for the Times.
"The high court said that California privacy law forbids such taping without permission even if the calls were recorded in a state that allowed it. California is one of 11 states that prohibit such recordings without the consent of all parties."
"
Kevin Eng, a lawyer for a class of people whose calls were taped, said he suspects a large number of companies outside California have been recording calls with residents.
"The ruling 'puts companies on notice that they are not free to ignore California laws,' Eng said."
"But
Donald M. Falk, who represented the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, complained the ruling extended 'state regulation beyond state borders.' He called the decision 'highly unusual.'"
And a Happy Bastille Day to all of the Roundup's French readers! For those not in the know, today is the day that Frenchmen everywhere walk up to Italians
and headbutt them in the chest. Here's hoping you and yours have a great one.
