California voters, in an apparent shift in mood, believe tax increases should be in the mix of budget-balancing tools and they want to have a chance to vote on the package, according to a L.A. Times/USC Dornsife poll.
From the Times' Evan Halper: "Sixty percent of those
surveyed, including majorities of both Democrats and Republicans, said they
back such an election. The alternative being pushed by most GOP lawmakers —
forgoing an election and balancing the budget by cutting more from state
services — was supported by just 33%.
Support for the cuts-only approach dropped to 25%
when voters were informed that it would probably require reductions in school
funding, according to the survey conducted for The Times and the USC Dornsife
College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.
The findings reflect a significant shift in
Californians' attitudes about how to approach the deficit. In November, 44%
wanted the budget balanced with spending cuts alone.
"It looks like Jerry Brown has successfully
reframed the discussion," said Dan Schnur, director of the Jesse M. Unruh
Institute of Politics at USC and a former GOP political consultant.
"Spending cuts are OK to people in the abstract, but when you get specific
they start to get scared."
Gov. Brown fired back at his critics who have raised questions about the new union contract between the state and prison officers -- a pact that some contend makes overly generous concessions to Brown's powerful political ally. The Chronicle's Marisa Lagos has the story.
"The governor will need at least four Republican
legislators - two in each house - to win approval for the contract bill, known
as SB151. He argued that the prison guards' contract not only cuts millions out
of the budget, but will give management more flexibility to make changes at
prisons without being challenged by the union - a concession that state
officials had tried to win for years."
"Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the
correctional officers association had a notoriously nasty relationship, and the
prison guards had been working without a contract since 2006."
"Brown noted other victories, including that the contract
would end a state-funded, $42 million-a-year 401(k)-type plan that correctional
officers received in addition to their pensions. He said the guards have also
agreed to support the transfer of thousands of inmates out of state prisons and
into local jails."
Speaking of pay, there is the case of a former head of the California National Guard -- and now a NATO commander -- who collected dual pay from the state and federal governments.
From the Bee's Charles Piller: "As adjutant general of the Guard, Maj. Gen. William H. Wade II earned an annual state salary of more
than $200,000. Wade, now a deputy chief of staff for NATO's Joint Forces Command in Italy, on average claimed $50,000 extra in
federal pay each year. It raised his total earnings above $1 million during his
4 1/2-year California tenure that ended in 2010 – far more
than any elected state official, including the governor's salary."
"For the more than 550 federal workdays during his tenure
as state Guard commander, Wade attended to duties
such as meetings, training and visits to troops. Sometimes he was paid by both
the state and federal governments for the same days of work within legal
dual-pay limits. Over his full term in office, he got nearly $90,000 in state
pay for such permitted federal workdays."
"But a review of pay records found that Wade also received
nearly $155,000 in state pay for federal workdays in excess of dual pay limits
recognized by the California Department
of Personnel Administration and
current Guard leadership. Records show Wade took 210
dual paydays above those limits, on average, nearly one double-dip workweek –
paid by both the state and federal governments – beyond legal limits every
month."
All the talk of renewable energy, especially solar power, has led to a modern gold rush in the deserts of Southern California. The Desert Sun's Keith Matheny tells the tale.
"The California Energy Commission and federal Department
of the Interior have approved eight major solar projects in Southern California
since last year, including seven projects in the deserts north and east of the
Coachella Valley. All but two of the approved plans utilize largely undeveloped
public land managed by the federal Bureau of Land Management. The projects are
expected to generate:
"Nearly 3,600 megawatts of non-carbon-emitting
electricity, enough to power almost 1.8 million homes. Some 5,500 jobs during construction of the projects,
and nearly 1,000 long-term operational jobs. More than $15.2 million in annual property taxes, and
hundreds of millions more in sales taxes as the projects are built."
"Another eight utility-scale solar projects are also in
the permitting pipeline for Riverside and Imperial counties, promising an
additional 2,173 megawatts of renewable energy generation. And long-range plans
are in the works that could open up millions more public acres to solar
development in six western states, with the largest proposed solar energy zone
in Riverside County."
Under state law, the salaries of public officials and those who work for the government are supposed to be public informaiton. But getting that information isn't easy -- public agencies balk at handing it over.
From Thomas Peele and Daniel Willis in the Contra Costa Times: "Prominent among those that have not yet made data public
include the Mt. Diablo Unified School District, where Superintendent Steven
Lawrence has not responded to a request for data sent to him in January."
"In Alameda County, the Berkeley Unified and Oakland Unified school districts have yet to
comply with multiple requests. In San Mateo County, the cities of Daly City,
East Palo Alto and Menlo Park and the towns of Atherton and Woodside didn't
respond to requests for data. In Marin County, the Kentfield and San Rafael school
districts and cities of Sausalito, Fairfax and Corte Madera did not respond."
"Other government entities have released only partial
data, including Oakland, Berkeley, San Francisco, San Ramon, Walnut Creek,
Fairfield and Palo Alto."
"It's insane, absolutely asinine" that some
governments continue to balk at making compensation data readily public, said
Tom Newton, executive director of the California Newspaper Publishers
Association."
In Orange County, protesters gathered at the home of a local Central Committee official who had emailed around an image of President Obama as a chimp. It was the latest in the political fallout from the email, which is causing quite a stir in the O.C.
From Deepa Bharath in the Register: "On Saturday morning, a group of about 25 people
representing a coalition of African American groups, held a prayer vigil
outside Davenport's home and demanded that she resign from the committee."
"Morris Griffin, a community activist, called Davenport's
comments a disgrace to the president and the Republican Party."
"For Marilyn Davenport to depict our president as a
chimpanzee is an insult to all of our intelligence," he said. "She is
in a position of leadership. We ask her to step down, respectfully."
Najee Ali, Director of Project Islamic H.O.P.E., said the
gathering is not a protest, but a prayer…"
"Demonstrators held posters,
one reading: "Step down for the good of your party." Another said:
"Marilyn Davenport, Respect the office of the presidency, step down
now."
Finally, from our "Go Raiders" file, comes the tale of the guy in the Raiders jacket and G-String. That's what we said.
"Officers responded to a call in the area of Beckman Road
just north of Harney Lane where a man later identified as Batie was found
standing in the dirt next to the cemetery with a flashlight, yelling in the
dark."
"Police said that Batie was wearing an Oakland Raiders
jacket, a g-string and a hair scrunchie around his genitals. He was also
wearing socks."
"Officers said that he was very jittery and his pupils
were dilated. They took him into custody on suspicion of being under the
influence, which was later confirmed at the jail where it was discovered that
he was also a parolee at-large, police said."
"While en route to the jail, officers said that Batie
became very uncooperative. When asked why he wasn't wearing pants, police said
that he insisted that "they must have been taken."
Stuck in Lodi again...
