"Despite lobbying efforts by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa,
an Assembly committee Tuesday killed a bill that would have cleared the way for the
Los Angeles Police Department to make officers' disciplinary hearings and records open to the public ," reports Joel Rubin in the Times.
"The bill faced stiff opposition from many of the state's powerful police unions, which argued that the measure
would compromise officer safety. LAPD Chief William J. Bratton, normally a Villaraigosa ally, pointedly chose not
to take a position on the bill and Tuesday expressed
concerns about it.
"Three Democrats on the seven-member Public Safety Committee refused to cast a vote.
Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) voted for the measure, and Assemblymen Greg Aghazarian (R-Stockton), Joel Anderson (R-San Diego) and Fiona Ma (D-San Francisco) opposed it.
"The bill's author, state Sen. Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles), lashed out against the members who abstained. They
were Assemblyman Jose Solorio (D-Santa Ana), the committee's chairman, and Assemblymen Hector De La Torre (D-South Gate) and Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge).
"'I was really taken aback by the [bill's] death by silence,' Romero said. 'The fear, you could feel it -- the fear of what will happen if you look out for the
public's interests when they may differ from the interests
of the law enforcement lobby.'"
The committee also killed Joe Simitian's ocean-ranger bill, with only two votes in favor of that measure.
"Escalating a political fight over electronic bingo,
a state senator aligned with California gaming tribes
has proposed stiff new penalties for anyone caught
operating bingo machines off an Indian reservation," reports James Sweeney in the Union-Tribune.
"Legislation quietly introduced late last week by Sen.
Jim Battin, R-Palm Desert, would impose mandatory fines of “not less than $10,000 per machine” on anyone caught with electronic bingo devices.
"In addition, the measure – SB 864 – contains a so-called “bounty hunter provision” that would encourage private parties to bring civil
actions against bingo parlors operating machines."
Hmmm...isn't that like the Section 17200 unfair competition law that Republicans repealed in
Proposition 64?
“'It is an effort to stop these illegal (machines) – they're called bingo machines, they're really slot machines – from proliferating all over the state,' Battin said.
"But Ravi Mehta, a lobbyist for a group of charities that depend on
bingo machine revenues, said the legislation “will effectively put charitable bingo out of business.”
"Charities and nonprofits have turned to legally suspect
bingo machines in recent years to boost profits from
conventional bingo games that have struggled to compete
against the state's flourishing Indian casinos."
The Merc News's Mike Zapler looks at the high costs of a delayed budget.
"If lawmakers can't agree on a budget, it would force the state to take
out a high-risk loan of more than $10 billion - and pay a premium of possibly hundreds of millions
of dollars as security, money that could otherwise
be spent on schools, health care and other needs. Beyond
that, the state's credit rating could be downgraded, raising the interest
costs of future borrowing.
"A quick resolution of the budget - by early to mid-August at the latest - could stave off the need for such a loan, officials
say. But opinions differ whether the specter of a cash
shortfall will be enough to overcome fierce ideological
divisions in the Capitol over how to resolve the deficit.
Last year, partisan wrangling delayed a budget until
late August, and at that time lawmakers were haggling
over less than $1 billion.
"'I think there are a significant number of legislators
who think it's OK for the state to go over the fiscal cliff,' state Treasurer Bill Lockyer, a Democrat, said in
an interview. 'That would be a very reckless thing to do.' He declined to name which lawmakers he had in mind.
"However reckless the scenario might seem, it has happened
before. During the last serious budget crisis, in 2003, the state secured the same type of loan - called a revenue anticipation warrant - of $11 billion. Because California's finances were so shaky, the state had to pay $140 million for "credit enhancement" in addition to interest payments exceeding $120 million, according to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's finance department.
"Experts say the costs could be even higher this year
thanks to the meltdown in the nation's credit market. Wall Street lenders are also likely
to look askance at a budget that includes gimmicks
that push the deficit into future years.
"'The state's financial problems and Wall Street's financial problems are hitting at once,' said Jason Dickerson, a principal fiscal and policy analyst for the non-partisan Legislative Analyst's Office. 'That makes the state's . . . borrowing much more difficult, and potentially
much more costly.'"
Daniel Weintraub looks at the proposal of Republican leaders to establish
a spending cap.
Senate Republican Leader Dave "Cogdill's proposal wouldn't slash spending, but it would tighten a vise around
government that would slowly shrink it as a share of
the state's economy. His proposal, also backed by Assembly Republican
Leader Mike Villines, would limit the growth in government to the combination
of population growth and inflation.
"Any tax revenue greater than that amount would be split
between debt repayment and a rainy day fund that could
only be tapped in years when revenue fell short of
the annual growth allowed by the measure. If the new
reserve reached a certain amount, any additional surplus
would be refunded to taxpayers with a temporary reduction
in the sales tax.
"Cogdill and Villines estimate that their plan would
still allow government to grow by about 5 percent per year. But since the economy tends to grow,
on average, at a faster rate than that, the measure
would eventually shrink government relative to the
private sector.
"The inevitable effect of that trend would be offset
somewhat by the requirement that half the surpluses
be used for repaying debt. As the state's debt load shrunk, more money would be available in
the budget to finance current programs.
"But Democrats, at least so far, want no part of any
new restrictions on state spending or revenue. Assembly
Speaker Karen Bass has called the Republican proposal a "diversion" and says the state does not need another formula in
the budget. 'The issue,' she said last week, 'is raising revenue, and that's what we need to do.'"
Dan Walters wonders if the budget deficit will grow with the sputtering economy.
"Lurking in the shadows, however, is fear that California's troubled economy could become even worse than current
forecasts indicate and thus add billions more dollars
to the budget gap.
"The sharp spike in unemployment to 6.8 percent reported last week, coupled with dark numbers
on other economic indicators, intensifies that fear.
But leading economists disagree on whether California
is seeing a bottom to its economic woes, whose proximate
cause is the residential real estate collapse, or the
worst is yet to come.
"The housing meltdown is having both direct negative
impacts – fewer construction jobs, declining purchases of building
materials, furniture, and so on – and indirect ones. Even Californians whose incomes
have remained steady must face rising prices and, if
they're homeowners, are seeing personal wealth in the form
of home equity decline, so are cutting consumer purchases.
"The economic malaise affects income, sales and property
taxes – the latter because of construction slowdowns and declines
in taxable values due to market declines – and thus exacerbates the budget deficit.
"Roughly speaking, the state has a "structural deficit" – a semipermanent imbalance between income and outgo
– of around $8 billion a year. The economic downturn has doubled
it. The official estimate is that the 2008-09 fiscal year budget has a $15.2 billion gap to be closed. But if the economy continues
to slide, it will grow larger."
"Coachella Valley officials won a round Tuesday in their bid to regain $13 million to offset increased traffic, law enforcement
and other effects of tribal casinos," reports Jake Henshaw in the Desert Sun.
"Before Tuesday, there was no legislation to provide
the money. But because of a Senate committee, communities
near casinos now have a shot. Local leaders also met
with representatives of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
"'They are absolutely interested in helping the localities
get the funding,' Palm Springs City Manager David Ready said after several valley representatives met with
one of the governor's staff members.
"Others were more cautious.
"'I don't think we lost anything, but I don't think we gained anything,' said Coachella City Manager Tim Brown.
"At issue is $30 million, including the $13 million for Riverside County, that Schwarzenegger
stripped out of the current budget because the state
auditor raised concerns that local governments weren't necessarily using the funds to offset the impact
of casinos."
"The Laguna Beach artist who created California's iconic whale-tail license plate is making a splash with state coastal
officials, revoking the state's right to use his art after they snubbed his request
to share profits from the image with his environmental
group," writes Susannah Rosenblatt in the Times.
"Wyland, the marine muralist whose paintings of ocean life
envelop buildings around the world, let the state use
his hazy blue image of a whale's flukes for environmentally themed license plates
14 years ago in what state officials describe as a "handshake deal."
"The artist approached the Coastal Commission several
months ago asking for 20% of the state's annual profits from the plates to fund his nonprofit
ocean conservation foundation. California earns about
$3.77 million a year from the plates, but the Coastal Commission
receives only a third of the funds: about $15 for each new plate sold; roughly $1.4 million a year. The rest goes to other state environmental
programs.
"'At the end of the day, the whale tail is my art and
my idea, and I own the rights to my intellectual property,' Wyland said in an interview Tuesday from his Laguna
Beach studio. 'I won't be stepped on: I'm sticking up for artists' rights, for the common person. I'm sticking up for the oceans and the coast big-time. We're not going away.'
"In recent weeks, the two sides attempted to negotiate
terms to preserve the use of the painting on license
plates. According to Coastal Commission Executive Director
Peter Douglas, Wyland the agency offered to give a $100,000 grant to Wyland’s foundation each year for a decade in exchange for
rights to the image, but talks fell through. Wyland,
who goes by his last name only, says such an offer
was never communicated.
"Douglas termed Wyland's demand for 20% of the plate's sales "outrageous," adding that the state legislature, not the commission,
distributes the license plate funds among agencies.
According to Douglas, Wyland gave his image to the
state unconditionally."
The Chron's Cecilia Vega reports on a San Francisco fundraiser for Antonio Villaraigosa
that is raising eyebrows.
"The invitation-only champagne reception in the Union Square department
store for Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is
expected to raise tens of thousands of dollars for
his re-election bid next spring.
"But the list of high-profile local politicos who have signed on as co-chairs of the event - namely former Mayor Willie Brown and District Attorney Kamala Harris - is raising eyebrows.
"With Newsom considering a run for governor in 2010 and Villaraigosa also seen as a possible contender,
observers say tonight's fundraiser could be an indication of the powerful
political alliances that will form if the two mayors
face off against each other, with some big Northern
California names supporting someone other than the
hometown candidate.
"'Whether they want to admit it or not, it's saying these are people who are declaring their support
for him (Villaraigosa) over Newsom,' said Barbara O'Connor, professor of political communication at Cal
State Sacramento.
Newsom's name isn't mentioned on the invitation, which has added fuel
to long-standing rumors about a rivalry between the two camps.
Though Newsom was invited, it's not certain he will attend.
"'Schedule permitting, I'm sure he will,' said Newsom political consultant Eric Jaye. 'Mayor Newsom and Mayor Villaraigosa have a very cordial
relationship, and Mayor Newsom is always happy to welcome
Mayor Villaraigosa to San Francisco.'"
And from our Legal Affairs Desk, we bring you the case of the Naked Cowboy vs. the Blue M&M.
"The $6 million lawsuit filed by the
New York City street performer known as The Naked Cowboy
against M&Ms candy maker Mars Inc can go forward on grounds of
trademark infringement, a judge ruled on Monday.
"Robert Burck -- for 10 years a fixture in Times Square, who
strums a white guitar while dressed only in white cowboy boots
and hat and skimpy white underwear -- filed the suit in
February over video billboards depicting a blue M&M dressed in
his signature outfit.
The judge "ordered attorneys for both sides to appear for a
pretrial conference on July 11."
We wonder what Burck will be wearing...
