The on-again, off-again sale of state government real estate is off again, at least for now, reports the L.A. Times' Maria La Ganga.
"The Schwarzenegger administration had hoped to help
fill the state's yawning budget deficit by selling
the buildings — including the homes of the state Supreme Court and
two appeals courts — to raise $1.2 billion for this year's shortfall and then leasing
them back."
"But two former members of the state building authority
filed suit last month to halt the sale, arguing that
it was a waste of taxpayer money. On Friday, a San
Francisco Superior Court judge ruled that the sale
could go forward as planned."
At UC, the Board of Regents approved cuts in the university's retirement program, including pushing back the effective departure date
by five years. The Chronicle's Nanette Asimov has the
story.
"The regents need to close a vast, $21 billion gap in UC's pension and health obligations
- a gap that is the same size as the university's entire
annual budget, covering everything from classrooms
to emergency rooms."
"It will still take more than a quarter century for
UC to fully fund its retirement obligations, even with
higher contributions from UC and employees approved
in September."
An independent investigator hired by CalPERS says the
giant pension fund needs to crack down on the loose
practices of itself and its investment partners, says the LAT's Marc Lifsher.
"The California Public Employees' Retirement System needs
stricter ethics rules and stronger oversight to avoid
the kinds of conflicts of interest that have plagued
the fund over the last few years, according to recommendations
from an independent examiner."
"In addition, the state Legislature should pass laws
making it easier to take disciplinary action, including
dismissal, against CalPERS executives, according to
the report from Washington attorney Philip Khinda."
From pensions to redistricting: Members of the new redistricting commission are poised
to pick their final six commissioners, and Bee columnist
Dan Walters thinks they may be making a mistake.
"The final choice was for one of four slots reserved
for members who are either decline-to-state independents or minor-party registrants. It came down to a contest between
Michelle DiGuilio-Matz of Stockton, a former training planner for the University of the Pacific, and Paul McKaskle of Berkeley, who was the chief adviser to the state Supreme Court on court-ordered redistricting after the 1970 and 1990 censuses..."
"The commissioners chose DiGuilio-Matz over McKaskle because they believed the San Joaquin Valley needed more representation. Several suggested that
they might instead hire McKaskle and his expertise for their staff...If McKaskle is not chosen, it would leave one appointee, Democrat Maria Blanco, as the only member with hands-on experience with past state redistricting efforts."
As if public education didn't face enough problems,
the number of people who want to be come teachers is
plunging, reports Louis Freedberg of California Watch.
"The number of Californians seeking to become teachers
has plummeted by 45 percent over a seven year period – even as student enrollments are projected to rise
by 230,000 over the next decade and as many as 100,000 teachers are expected to retire."
Teaching is clearly becoming a less and less desirable
profession for Californians. The number of students
enrolled in teacher preparation programs has declined
from 77,705 in 2001-02 to 42,245 in 2008-09, according to the California Commission on Teacher
Credentialing."
And now we turn to our "Scrooge Lives" file to find out why children should be told early
on that there is no Santa Claus. Or Easter Bunny. Or
Tooth Fairy.
"Dr Joanne Faulkner, a Sydney academic, says children
can still enjoy the magic of Christmas and Easter,
even if they know the truth. In her new book, The Importance of Being Innocent, she says parents "should not create a fantasy where
children are not given any basis for knowing what's
real and what's pretend."
"She told the Herald Sun the popularity of such figures as Santa and the Easter
Bunny merely fueled an adult desire to recreate the
past. "It's also because we adults feel vulnerable to all
sorts of things that we can't control," Dr Faulkner
said.
Dr Faulkner has two children aged nine and 17. "The Christmas and Easter stories are nice but I regret
ever having let them believe in that," she said.
Note to the Grinch: Forget Christmas, steal Faulkner.
