San Diego Mayor Bob Filner, the target of numerous allegations of sexual harrassment, is poised to leave office, following three days of intense negotiations and pending a city council vote this afternoon.
From the U-T's Craig Gustafson and Mark Walker: "Mayor Bob Filner reached a proposed settlement agreement with his legal adversaries Wednesday that likely sets the stage for the end of his brief, scandal-plagued tenure as San Diego’s 35th mayor."
"The tentative agreement centers around a lawsuit filed against the mayor and the city by a former Filner aide who accused him of sexual harassment and unwanted sexual advances. Three days of mediation — overseen by retired federal judge J. Lawrence Irving — ended late Wednesday when a group of lawyers and city leaders led by City Attorney Jan Goldsmith emerged from behind closed doors to announce a deal had been reached."
"The City Council will consider the proposal at 1 p.m. Friday in closed session and Goldsmith said no details would be released until after that hearing."
But it may not be that easy: There may be a fly in the ointment.
From the AP's Julie Watson and Michael Blood: "A deal aimed at resolving the sexual harassment scandal involving Bob Filner hit a snag Thursday when the attorney suing the mayor over such allegations said she was not party to the tentative agreement between city officials and Filner."
"Details of the proposal that ended three days of talks Wednesday haven't been disclosed, but City Council members have said in the past the mayor needed to agree to quit for any deal to be struck."
"A person with knowledge of the settlement talks said the main sticking points involved granting Filner indemnity and covering his legal fees in the sexual harassment lawsuit by his former communications director, Irene McCormack Jackson. The person was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke only on condition of anonymity."
The ghost of Arnold Schwarzenegger is haunting the Brown administration, which is dealing with a legal battle spawned by Schwarzenegger's approval of a $2.3 billion lease-back of state office buildings.
From Capitol Weekly's Alex Matthews: "Just weeks after Jerry Brown was elected governor, the Schwarzenegger administration was smacked with a lawsuit challenging its hotly contested effort to sell and lease back 11 state buildings. To make matters worse, the Legislature’s nonpartisan fiscal adviser reported that the complicated, $2.3 billion deal was bad business for California."
“In our previous analysis, we pointed out that the sale-leaseback was poor fiscal policy and represented one imperfect option among many for balancing the state’s budget,” Michael Cohen, then of the Legislative Analyst’s Office, wrote in a letter to former Sen. Denise Ducheny, a San Diego Democrat and budget committee chairwoman. “We recommended the Legislature strongly consider other alternatives to the sale-leaseback in putting together the 2010-11 budget,” added Cohen, who now serves with the Department of Finance."
"Not much has changed since then. Almost three years later, the Brown administration is still grappling with litigation surrounding the same deal. The difference is that Brown, unlike Schwarzenegger, agreed with the LAO that the deal was foolish and, in February 2011, put a stop to it – only to find his administration embroiled in a new lawsuit with those in favor of the sale."
Lawmakers have approved legislation allowing non-citizens to serve on juries which, if ultimately signed into law, would be a first in the nation.
From the AP's Laura Olson: "It would not change other requirements for jurors, such as being at least 18 years old and having English proficiency. They also must live in the county making the summons."
"Assemblyman Bob Wieckowski, D-Fremont, said AB1401 would help California widen the pool of prospective jurors and help integrate immigrants into their community. Immigrants already can serve in other roles in the courts system, including working as judges, he said."
"Immigrants are our friends, immigrants are our neighbors, immigrants are our co-workers and immigrants are our family members," Wieckowski said. "They are part of the fabric of our community."
The state seeks new standards for hexavalent chromium in drinking water, but the response is a mixed bag.
From the LAT's Bettina Boxall: "State public health officials Thursday proposed the nation's first drinking-water standard for the carcinogen hexavalent chromium, at a level that elicited sighs of relief from municipal water managers and criticism from environmentalists."
"At 10 parts per billion, the standard is 500 times greater than the non-enforceable public health goal set two years ago by the state Environmental Protection Agency."
"The Department of Public Health described the proposed limit as a balance of public health, cost and treatment technology, but the agency acknowledged that economics were a key consideration."
Meanwhile, CalPERS, the nation's largest public pension fund, is weeding out people who aren't elegible for benefits.
From the Bee's Jon Ortiz: "After giving insurance subscribers a chance to step up on their own, CalPERS has launched a series of audits intended to clear out tens of thousands of people receiving government health coverage who don't qualify for benefits."
"The nation's second-largest health insurance purchaser suspects at least 22,000 people covered by state and local agencies' plans shouldn't be on the rolls. Removing people who – by mistake or deception – aren't supposed to be covered by CalPERS will save taxpayers tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars a year, if early indications hold true."
"Starting with state employees, auditors will ask subscribers to confidentially submit proof of their relationship with dependents, such as a copy of a marriage certificate or a joint tax return."
