"Democratic lawmakers made an opening pitch Thursday for closing the state's $15.2 billion deficit, using lottery borrowing as well as unspecified proposals
to close tax loopholes," reports Judy Lin in the Bee.
"Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, D-Los Angeles, said during an appearance Thursday at
the Sacramento Press Club that she wants $6.4 billion in new revenue because her party intends to
protect education and maintain the state's safety net for the poor.
"'At the end of the day, from our point of view, we need
to balance the budget with revenue,' Bass said. 'We said from the beginning we were not going to agree
to balance the budget with cuts only."
"She set a goal to complete the budget by the start
of the new fiscal year – July 1, though she admitted it was unlikely.
"With no plans to meet the June 15 constitutional deadline for passing a balanced budget,
lawmakers will begin next week reconciling similar
spending plans crafted by Democrats in each house before
starting serious negotiations with Republicans.
"Bass said she wanted to suspend tax breaks approved
when the state's revenue was rosier. But GOP members immediately criticized
the proposal, saying Californians should not pay for
the Legislature's overspending.
"'At a time when the price of gas and food is up and
home values are down, it is pretty clear that people
cannot afford to pay higher taxes,' said Assembly Republican leader Mike Villines of Clovis."
Might as well get comfortable, folks...
The Merc News's Mike Zapler reports:
"What may trigger a deal,
Bass and Republican Assemblyman Roger Niello, R-Sacramento, agreed, is
the looming threat that the state will run out of money
to pay its
bills. Without a budget in place, Niello said, that
could happen in
August or September.
"'The cash flow challenge,' he said, 'will be driving us.'"
Good to know that the constitution alone is so ineffective
as a motivator.
The Chron's Matthew Yi offers up a side-by-side comparison of the governor's budget and the Democratic plan .
Dan Walters writes that August is looking like a critical deadline,
but there's a RAW way out.
"After [July 1], the target date would be somewhere around
Sept. 1 for two reasons – the state could face a cash crunch in August, unable
to pay its bills without borrowing more money from
Wall Street bankers, and the first part of September
probably is the drop-dead date for placing something before voters on the
November ballot. It's generally agreed that any fundamental change in the
state lottery to make it attractive to would-be lenders would have to be approved by voters.
"There is a third reason as well: The Legislature is supposed to end its 2008 session on Aug. 31.
"Whether a budget can be hammered out by then is very
problematic, given the rigid ideological positions
of both parties on the interrelated issues of spending
and taxes as well as the declining public standing
of Schwarzenegger, who has almost no power to pressure
even fellow Republicans into voting his way on any
issue.
"Chances are pretty strong, therefore, that the state
will be pleading with bankers in August to issue short-term loans called "revenue anticipation warrants" that would provide liquidity to a depleted state treasury
and allow California to continue to pay its employees
and send aid to school districts and local governments
that are dependent on injections of cash from Sacramento.
"Issuing "RAWs," as they are called, would buy some time but also would
reduce pressure on Schwarzenegger and lawmakers to
make a deal."
Too bad Laura Richardson couldn't get one of those for all the homes she had in default.
If you thought our budget problems were bad, a new
study suggests the world needs a $45 trillion investment to stop global warming.
AP's Joseph Coleman reports, "The world needs to invest $45 trillion in energy in coming decades, build some 1,400 nuclear power plants and vastly expand wind power
in order to halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, according to an energy study released Friday.
"The
report by the Paris-based International Energy Agency envisions a
"energy revolution" that would greatly reduce the world's dependence on
fossil fuels while maintaining steady economic growth.
"Meeting this target of 50 percent cut in emissions represents a
formidable challenge, and we would require immediate
policy action and
technological transition on an unprecedented scale," IEA Executive
Director Nobuo Tanaka said.
Meanwhile, the nation's economic situation doesn't seem to be getting any better. The Washington Post
reports that unemployemnt is up to it's highest level in more than 20 years.
"The jobless rate for the month was 5.5 percent, up from 5 percent in
April, the Labor Department said. That was the largest
swing in a
single month since 1986. The result stunned economists, who had
expected the rate to rise only to 5.1 percent. The report also said
that the number of jobs on employers' payrolls fell by 49,000.
"The data are new evidence that despite recent signs
of stability in
financial markets, the U.S. economy is still troubled.
For most of the
past two months, the stock market has been rising and
some measure of
normality has returned to world markets. Economic data
has been weak
but not horrible. Today's report, however, undermines a budding
consensus that the economy is holding up.
"According to the newest figures, 861,000 more people were unemployed,
and the jobless level rose among almost all groups: men, women,
teenagers, whites and blacks. Unemployment among Hispanics
was
unchanged, and it dropped slightly among Asians."
Meanwhile, The LAT's Jason Song reports that L.A. teachers were given the okay by a judge yesterday to stage a
budget-protesting walkout this morning .
"The demonstration, organized by United Teachers Los
Angeles, is intended to draw attention to Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger's latest budget, which provides a $193-million increase over last year's $56.6 billion in education funding. But L.A. Unified estimates
that it will face a $353-million shortfall because the budget does not include
a cost-of-living increase and cuts support to certain programs
that will have to be paid with unrestricted general
funds.
"Teachers will lose an hour of pay for protesting, which
union leaders said is the best way to draw legislators' attention.
"Along with [Superintendent David] Brewer, state Supt. of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell asked all teachers to report to work on time and discuss
the state's budget process with their students instead of picketing.
He said he was concerned about safety and warned that
the district could lose revenue if students don't come to school.
"'I understand the level of frustration . . . but we
also know our teachers need to be in class, on track,' he said."
Don't expect the budget to be solved through changes to
Prop. 13...
The Bee's Andy Furillo writes:
"Three decades after California voters passed Proposition
13, they still like the idea of the tax revolt they ignited."
"In a new Field Poll, a survey of more than 1,000 registered voters found they support the iconic property
tax reduction initiative by a ratio of more than 2-to-1.
"'Proposition 13 has a gold-plated name brand,' said Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
"Asked if they'd still vote for Proposition 13 today, 57 percent of respondents said yes, compared to 23 percent who would vote no, according to the Field
Poll.
"The rest weren't sure.
"Poll Director Mark DiCamillo described Proposition 13 as "the third rail of California politics."
"'The surprise, if there is a surprise, is that there
has been no erosion of support of Proposition 13 over all these years,' DiCamillo said."
And gay couples who want to get married can start lining
up now.
The Chron's Wyatt Buchanan reports, "Wedding bells will begin ringing for California's same-sex couples at 5 p.m. June 16, state officials said Thursday.
"And San Francisco city officials are planning to marry
large numbers
of couples, possibly up to 500 a day, late into the evening and for
days on end.
"The state Office of Vital Records notified county clerks
across the
state late Thursday that they could begin issuing marriage
licenses as
soon as the Supreme Court's decision granting marriage rights to
same-sex couples takes effect.
"Its decision on same-sex marriage will be final at 5 p.m. June 16,
2008, (and) the California Department of Public Health's Office of
Vital Records directs county clerks to begin using
the new state
marriage license forms at that time," said Suanne Buggy, spokeswoman
for the records office.
"San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom said this week he
wanted the city
to begin issuing licenses "the minute" the Supreme Court decision takes
effect. City officials are coordinating volunteers
to help issue
licenses and perform ceremonies, City Administrator
Ed Lee said.
Meanwhile, "State Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown says he will challenge a recent appellate court decision that
struck down California's guidelines on medical marijuana possession and cultivation, leaving patients and police wondering how much weed
is too much," report Tim Reiterman and Eric Bailey in the Times.
"Brown said in an interview this week that he would
ask the California Supreme Court to overturn last month's decision by the state Court of Appeal in Los Angeles
because it inhibits authorities' ability to control abuses while protecting legitimate
access to cannabis.
"The court ruled that the Legislature in 2003 made an unconstitutional amendment to the 1996 voter-approved Compassionate Use Act by specifying the amount
of marijuana that patients could possess for medicinal
purposes.
"The decision, hailed by some medical marijuana advocates,
has not only cast doubt on the legislation’s standard of 8 ounces of dried pot and six mature or 12 immature plants. It has also created a cloud of uncertainty
over more liberal guidelines adopted by some counties,
particularly those in the marijuana belt of the North
Coast.
"Brown, who supports medical marijuana, said the legislation
was a reasonable approach to implementing a vaguely
written ballot measure."
And it's good to know that in this era of environmental conservation
and protection, at least one porn star turned psuedo
politician keeps recycling her quotes to get some attention.
This time, it's Defamer who bites on the idea of a Mary Carey run
for Assembly.
"The North Hollywood resident, who last ran for state
office during the
2003 gubernatorial recall, is gathering signatures as we speak to run
against District 43 incumbent Paul Krekorian.
Gathering signatures? Um, didn't we just have the friggen legislative primaries? We
think that ship has sailed, my dear. But we digress...
"I have always loved
politics and know that the State Assembly would be
a better position to
begin my career in politics," Carey said in a statement released a few
hours ago. "I want to energise people into caring about local politics
again - much like we've seen in the national primaries. But unlike one
of the presidential primary contenders, I'm actually a politician you'd
want to get screwed by!"
Maybe that was cute the first million times we heard
that. And frankly, Carey's not even at the top of that list...
Despite earlier rumors that he might challenge Mayor
Antonio Villaraigosa next year, former Assembly Speaker
Robert Hertzberg says he won't be a candidate for mayor, or anything else, in 2009.
The LAT's David Zahniser reports,
"Attorney and former state Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg
invited 35 of
his closest friends Wednesday to the Palm Restaurant,
the steakhouse in
downtown Los Angeles. Then he lowered the boom, saying
he's not running
for anything, this year or next.
"Only last week, Hertzberg told The Times that he had
not ruled out a
run for city attorney or even mayor in 2009. But at lunch, he told the
assembled group -- a crowd that included City Controller Laura Chick,
political consultant John Shallman, attorney Mickey Kantor and lobbyist
Tim McOsker -- that he will instead continue to work professionally
on
"green technologies," such as wind turbines and lightweight solar
panels."
And making money. Money's green too.
And from our Indictment of the Day Files, we turn to the case against Broadcom founder Henry Nicholas III,
via LA Observed.
"Beginning in 1999, and continuing through 2005, Nicholas and other
co-conspirators conspired to distribute MDMA (ecstasy), cocaine and
methamphetamine; and, to maintain places, namely, the Rodeo Residence,
the Warehouse, the Telescope House, and the Turnberry
Condo, for the
purpose of distributing and using controlled substances.
Nicholas
directed co-conspirators and associates to invoice him for controlled
substances using various code words, including “supplies,” “party
favors,” “refreshments” and “E” (ecstasy).
"Nicholas spiked the drinks
of others with MDMA (ecstasy) without their knowledge, including the
drinks of technology executives and representatives
who worked for
Broadcom’s customers. Nicholas hired prostitutes and escorts for
himself and customers, representatives, and associates
of Broadcom."
