It has next to no chance of passing, but that didn't
stop Tea Party supporters of California legislation establishing
an Arizona-style immigration law from holding rallies in Capitol Park. Wyatt Buchanan in the Chronicle tells the tale.
"The rally attracted about 100 participants, along with a good number of television
cameras, and the crowd largely consisted of folks wearing
Tea Party T-shirts and other Tea Party garb."
"Donnelly told the crowd that the Arizona law, and
his proposal for California, was in part motivated
by the killing of three members of the Bologna family
in San Francisco in June 2008. Edwin Ramos, an undocumented immigrant and suspected
member of the MS-13 gang, is charged with the killings and is awaiting
trial."
"He said his bill would make it legal for people to
sue sanctuary cities, as was attempted by the family
members of the victims. They lost in state and federal
courts, as judges ruled the city could not be held
liable."
Speaking of new legislation, Joe Simitian's got a bill
that would bar local communities from using red-light cameras -- or any other traffic enforcement device -- simply to raise money. The legislation targets the modern equivalent of
the old-fashioned speed trap.
From Capitol Weekly's Malcolm Maclachlan: "His bill, SB 29, would bar localities from considering “revenue generation” in deciding whether to install automated traffic enforcement
systems — red light cameras, in most cases."
“I don’t think tickets should ever be given to raise revenues,” said Simitian, D-Palo Alto, who represents the 11th Senate District."
"Of course, speed traps have been a staple of small
town budgets for decades — one town in Florida in the 1950s was famed for a highway where the speed limit dropped
suddenly from 55 miles per hour to 17. But, barring such overt profiteering, how does one
bar against considering revenue? The bill states that
a vendor can’t be paid based on how much revenue a camera generates."
Questions in the Capitol surround Brown's latest pension proposal, which the governor
offered last week in the wake of the implosion of state budget negotiations.
From Capitol Weekly's John Howard: "Brown had proposed a litany of changes to the pensions
of
state and local government workers, including some
that public workers
have bitterly fought, others that as recently as two
weeks ago were still in
play and still others that were unclear."
"But Brown gave no warning before his announcement.
And
public employee groups, among Brown’s most ardent supporters, were not pleased."
“He just got through three months of negotiations where
employees agreed to roll back their pensions,” said Dave Low who heads
Californians for Health Care and Retirement Security,
a coalition of public
employee unions representing some 1.5 million government workers."
The governor's pension proposal is more fluff than substance, and the timing of the announcement is suspect, notes
the Bee's Dan Walters.
"The plan was released on Thursday, a couple of days
after his negotiations with Republicans on a state
budget deal collapsed. The latter contended that Brown had balked
at their demands for public pension reforms because
of opposition from unions that helped him win the governorship
last year."
"Thus, the plan's release was aimed at giving Brown
political cover, implicitly demonstrating that he's
tough-minded on pensions and not beholden to the unions.
But while a 12-point plan sounds impressive – especially coming from a politician who historically
has sneered at multipoint policy plans – there's less there than meets the eye."
"The political debate over public pensions has been
conducted on two levels, the largely superficial and
the meaningful."
Bills that were rejected by former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
are getting a new lease on life: Lawmakers have sent to Gov. Brown's desk dozens of
bill that were vetoed earlier in the hopes that the new governor will sign them,
including major bills on renewable energy and union
elections.
From Patrick McGreevy and Anthony York in the Los Angeles
Times: "Others would protect tenants in properties facing
foreclosure, keep pesticides away from schools, close
loopholes in the
workplace smoking ban, crack down on the smuggling
of cell phones into prisons
and regulate body piercing."
"Many of the bills could put the governor in an awkward
position. He's intent on demonstrating to voters that
he is not a machine
Democrat. His effort to project an image of independence
and fiscal prudence
could be undermined by the acceptance of a raft of
liberal legislation."
"I know exactly how Gov. Brown feels," said
former Gov. Gray Davis, who was similarly deluged with Democratic
bills when he took office in 1999 after 16 years of Republican governors.
"There is a great deal of pent-up demand. I'm sure they [legislators] are
licking their chops."
From our "The Lives of State Workers" file comes this tale of a guy in New York who took
every Friday off for 17 years. Not bad, if you can get away with it. He didn't.
"There is never a good time to rip off the taxpayers,” said New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. “But taking every Friday off for 17 years – and getting paid for it – is particularly galling, especially at a time when
so many New Yorkers are out of work. Mr. Dean didn’t show up for work, but he’ll have to show up for jail, and there are no Fridays
off in prison. His sentence should send a message to any public official
with sticky fingers: watch out – we will find you.”
"As part of a plea deal, Dean is expected to be sentenced
to 6 months in jail and five years probation. The probationary period begins at the time of sentencing
and runs concurrent to the jail time. Dean has also agreed to pay $50,000 restitution at arraignment and an additional $50,000 restitution during the 5-year probationary period."
"In view of the fraudulent time and attendance records
Dean filed, DiNapoli’s office is reviewing his retirement credits for potential
recalculation."
"Potential recalculation" means his pension is screwed...
