Susan Kennedy, Gov. Schwarzenegger's chief of staff
and former Gov. Gray Davis' cabinet secretary, is being appointed to the new health insurance exchange
board, a powerful panel and a critical piece of health care
reform in California. The LA Times' Anthony York has
the story.
"Schwarzenegger's chief of
staff, Susan Kennedy, and outgoing Health and Human
Services Secretary Kim
Belshe will be named to the new Health Benefit Exchange
Board Friday. Jerry
Brown's Health and Human Services secretary, Diana
Dooley will also be on the board.
Appointees from the Assembly speaker and Senate Rules
Committee will round out
the new five-member panel..."
"Schwarzenegger's appointments are not subject to
Senate confirmation, but future gubernatorial appointees
will have to go
through the confirmation process. The law was drafted
that way to ensure
Schwarzenegger was able to fill two spots on the commission."
The demand by some executives of the University of
California for more benefits has drawn an acid response from many -- including Gov.-elect Jerry Brown.
"These executives seem very out of touch at a time
when the state is contemplating billions of dollars
in reductions that will affect people who are far less
advantaged," Brown said...."
"In a Dec. 9 letter to the regents, 36 executives from UC headquarters, UCSF, UC Berkeley and other campuses warned that they
will sue unless the regents lift a $245,000 cap on how much salary can be considered when calculating
pensions."
"Lifting the cap would cost $5.5 million a year, with another $51 million to make it retroactive to 2007, as the executives want. The change would add tens
of thousands a year to the pensions of the most highly
paid executives."
There's been a lot of attention paid to the independent
redistricting of legislative and congressional political
boundaries, but what about the local districts? There, the local
politicians are still in charge.
From the Riverside Press-Enterprise's Duane W. Gang: "But a political tug-of-war among elected officials could still play out at
the local level next year as counties, cities and school
boards redraw their own district lines."
"With rare exceptions, the elected incumbents remain
in charge locally, meaning politics can still play
a role, said Douglas Johnson, a fellow at Claremont
McKenna College's Rose Institute for State and Local
Government. Local redistricting is just as important as what will
take place at the state level, Johnson said."
Speaking of the locals, the so-called "crash tax" is gaining popularity in California
as cities and counties hunt for new revenue. The LAT's
Marc Lifsher tells the story.
"At least 50 cities in the
state have adopted so-called crash-tax laws allowing local governments to seek
reimbursement from insurance companies for the costs
of sending public
emergency crews to accident scenes. The fees can amount
to hundreds or even
thousands of dollars. If insurers don't pay, cities
can hire collection agents
to seek payment from the motorists involved."
"Billing crash victims might seem heartless. But
public officials said that budget woes are compelling
them to find new ways to
raise revenue. Over the last six years, Costa Mesa,
Fullerton, Garden Grove,
Santa Ana, Hemet and other cities have started charging
fees for
accident-related public services."
For fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, there's some good news and some bad news.
The Contra Costa Times' Mike Taugher has the tale: "A key annual survey performed each fall showed the
Delta smelt population continues to hover at a level
some biologists believe is near extinction, while year-old striped bass, a popular sport fish, dropped to
a record low."
"Not all the news for Delta fish is bad, though. Salmon
returns this year have been the strongest in a couple
of years, leading to optimism that anglers may get
more than the paltry eight-day fishing season commercial fishermen got in off
California in 2010 -- a season that followed two years of unprecedented
closures."
And finally, we turn to our "Water, Water Everywhere" file to learn the plight of Northern Ireland which,
believe it or not, is going through a drought in the
midst of a historically cold winter. 'Tis the truth
we're telling ya.
"Thousands of homes and businesses in Northern Ireland
are
still without water, some since before Christmas. Northern Ireland Water said it was alternating supplies
from reservoirs in a bid to give every area a limited
supply, causing more
interruptions."
"It has warned that the drought could last for several
more days."
"Belfast City Council has opened three leisure centres
to
distribute drinking water, while free showers will
be available on Wednesday. NI Water said an unprecedented number of leaks caused
by
the thaw have been putting "big pressure" on its systems."
The whiskey and Guinness are flowing fine, however...
