Results tagged “california”

Yesterday was yet another Friday on which the state's DMV offices were closed down, thanks to Executive Order S-13-09--a furlough mandate launched in July that sees the department darkened for the first three Fridays of each month. However, do a little figuring with the calendar, and yesterday kicked off a long string of Fridays when the DMV just won't be an option for motorists. "[F]actoring in upcoming holidays on top of those mandated furlough days, Friday marked the start of a 12-week stretch in which DMV offices will be closed for business every Friday," reports the Daily Breeze, which "means that the next Friday employees will be on the job - and that motorists can get their licenses and vehicle registrations renewed - won't come until Jan. 29."

On Halloween, some new tax rules began that will affect your next paycheck and so on. You'll see an additional 10 percent in state income taxes taken out, but not to fear, says the Sacramento Bee. Basically, the state is front-loading the coffers. An excerpt from their in-depth analysis to clarify:

                                   

It wasn't until concertgoers arrived at the gates yesterday that they finally learned what classic album Phish would cover in its entirety during their "musical costume" set at Festival 8. Reviving a tradition that began in 1994 when Phish covered The Beatles' The White Album, last night the quartet staged an ambitious cover of the Rolling Stones' 18-song double LP, Exile on Main St. As in years past, the costume choice was a closely-guarded secret until the day of the show, when thousands of "Phishbill" programs (à la Playbill) were distributed, complete with bios of the "cast," which last night included Sharon Jones on vocals and members of the Dap Kings on horns.

It may be Halloween, but it is also the anniversary of a major environmental bill that affected close to 9.2 million acres of California desert back in 1994. The California Desert Protection Act brought us two national parks, one national preserve, millions of acres of federal wilderness areas, as well as other special areas from Death Valley to the Mexico border.

That's the lowest approval rating of the Legislature from registered voters in the Field Poll's 26-year history. And that's not the only record broken. He may eat adorable breakfasts, but that's not going to save Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's 27 percent rating, the lowest since he entered office (and a number only found back in 1961 with Pat Brown). But still, he isn't the governor with the worst approval rating, that goes to Gray Davis (22%) before he was ousted from office in a recall election that Schwarzenegger won.

Independent business research and analysis organization The Conference Board has released their data for the ratio of job seekers to jobs posted online for the month of September. They found that there "were 5.66 people in the Los Angeles-Orange County metro area looking for jobs in September for every online help-wanted ad," explains the OC Register.

In light of today's tsunami advisory, L.A. County lifeguards will close beaches at 8 p.m., one hour before waves are expected to gain in height. City officials with Parks and Recreation were unsure if the Venice Boardwalk would close, but facilities close at 7 p.m. with most businesses shutting doors around that time. A spokesperson at Councilmember Bill Rosendahl's office said he hoped the new skatepark, scheduled to open this weekend, won't be damaged.

A state report on restructure California's tax system is due today and the Associated Press, which obtained an early copy, has found that bold changes are recommended, prompting a large amount of skepticism. The AP explains some:

Although job losses are less, a 9.7 percent rate is the highest for national unemployment since June 1983 when it was at 10.1 percent. "Nonfarm payrolls declined 216,000 last month compared to a revised 276,000 drop in July, the Labor Department said Friday," according to the Wall Street Journal, which notes the news is not as bad as it sounds. "Even though the loss is huge by historical standards, it's an improvement; monthly job cuts earlier in the year totaled as much as 700,000. The economy has lost 7.4 million jobs since the recession started in December 2007."

At around 10:40 a.m. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger held a press conference at Hansen Dam regarding the Station Fire, and other fires currently affecting the state. Just home to California following yesterday's funeral services for his wife's uncle, Sen. Edward Kennedy, Schwarzenegger spoke immediately of his wish to continue to work to ensure the safety of lives, property, and memories.

Although California Attorney General and former Governor Jerry Brown hasn't officially declared his gubernatorial intentions, he's winning against candidate and San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, according to two polls reported by the San Francisco Chronicle: "On the statewide level, a poll taken last week of 600 likely Democratic voters by the Sacramento firm Moore Methods showed Brown in the lead for the 2010 primary, 49 percent to 20 percent. A second poll by David Binder of 423 likely Democratic voters in San Francisco - where Newsom has enjoyed years of record-high approval ratings - has him trailing even at home." Newsom has been working especially hard holding a good number of town halls across the state. No matter, this looks like it could be a good primary if Brown enters the race, which seems likely.

Ouch. No wonder it's tough to find a job in Los Angeles. July's unemployment numbers for the state are not looking too good. 11.9% is, once again, a record high, according to the LA Times. A few months back in may it was a record breaking 11.5% and then 11.6% in June. California lost 35,800 jobs last month (and 760,000 over the last year), which is more than any other state. That ties us with Oregon at fourth for highest unemployment rate in the country. We're doing just a little better than Michigan, Rhode Island and Nevada.

State Controller John Chiang today said the issuance of IOUs instead of paying bills can stop on September 4th. His suggestion still must be approved by the Pooled Money Investment Board, which controls the state's cash flow, according to the Sacramento Bee. In July, California began issuing IOUs because a revised budget was not in effect. So far, 327,000 totaling $1.95 billion have been sent out. "The State of California owes a debt of gratitude to the thousands of individuals and businesses that were forced to bear the brunt of the State's chronic fiscal mismanagement," Chiang said.

It probably wasn't very hard for former City Controller Laura Chick to leave her Los Angeles post early to join Schwarzenegger as his Inspector General overseeing how stimulus money was being spent in California. In Los Angeles, she was a bulldog over anything wasteful.

Although Equality California announced putting support a ballot measure to strike down Prop 8, another group, The Courage Campaign, said today they are shooting for 2010 and just raised $135,000 in the last two days--an amazing amount for August fundraising in an off-year during this economy--for research. Chatter among some within the anti-Prop 8 movement has the house divided.

Despite the fact that the state Assembly rejected a proposal allowing new offshore drilling in the budget vote a few weeks ago, the issues is back. Or, as Dan Jacobson of Environment California puts it, "the coast won and the oil companies lost... Or so it would seem."

In a lengthy 185-page opinion released by three federal judges today, they ordered the state to come up with a plan that would deal with 43,000 prisoners over the next two years, reports the LA Times. The order basically sets the pace for releasing prisoners according to media reports but Chief Deputy Atty. Gen. Jim Humes says the state must come up with a plan, not necessarily release prisoners onto the streets. The judges said the overcrowding causes prisoners to commit even more crimes and a few years ago, conditions were so bad, inmates were dying from curable and avoidable diseases, prompting a court-appointed receiver to see reform in the system. The state may appeal the decision.

The murder of 17-year-old Lily Burk captured the city's attention a few weeks ago when she left her Los Feliz home on an errand to Southwestern University for her mother, a professor there. Burk encountered Charles Samuel, a parolee, who abducted her and tried to get money out of her via Burk's credit card at several ATMs. It didn't work and she was left with a slashed throat in a parked car in Skid Row. Samuel was arrested a half hour later, albeit for a different reason. Police only connected him to the murder in the following days.

Although no strike is reportedly on the immediate horizon, the Service Employees International Union "announced that 74 percent of its membership approved [a] strike authorization in votes counted Saturday," according to abc7.com, and "union leaders will meet in the coming week to decide what steps to take."

When compared to New York City and Chicago, Angelenos score a cheaper price when buying organic, finds a study release by IBISWorld. "The study looked at three product categories: Private label or store brands, commercial brands, and organic items," explained Wallet Pop. The cost of groceries depends largely on what part of the country you live in. Chicagoans get a cheaper groceries than the next two bigger cities (but pay among the highest sales taxes), except for organic items. If you want to eat more naturally, you'll pay less in L.A. But organics in general will set you back more, about 18% more than branded products and 37.6 % more than store brands, according to the findings."

California State Parks director Ruth Coleman said that the agency faces a total of about $39 million in cuts after the new budget, which directly states a $14.2 million cut, was signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today. Additionally, $2.4 million was siphoned from a cigarette tax fund because less people are smoking. Furloughs and salary cuts round out the large number (Note: a full budget fact sheet is embedded below).

While it's all high fives in Sacramento, it's stress in the city and county halls of across the state. A big part of the state's budget solution is on the backs of local governments, raiding their funds and only sometimes with a plan of paying them back years later. In the LA Times, the budget proposal from Monday night was likened to a “ponzi scheme that passes off responsibility to future governors, legislators and to our taxpayers" by Judy Mitchell, mayor of Rolling Hills Estates and president of the League of California Cities.

A budget deal was agreed on last night between top legislators and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Part of that deal was cutting $8 million from the state parks system, saving the majority of parks from the original proposal to cut around $70 million forcing the closure of 80% of them.

We still don't have a budget as of this moment, but Governor Arnold Scwharzenegger says there is a "good shot" of the deficit deal being approved today, he told reporters this afternoon. Meanwhile, the California Democratic Party today filed a complaint about Schwazenegger's ad (seen above) about the budget. The ad is officially done under the auspices of a political committee, but Democrats allege it violates law.

The upcoming school year at California's two major public University systems continues to look bleak for students, faculty, and staff alike, as budget shortfalls are forcing school officials to recommend fee increases, furlough days, and enrollment stoppages in order to save costs.

So California is issuing IOUs for the first time since 1992. They carry an interest rate of 3.75%, but that's apparently on an annual basis only earning about ten bucks for every thousand you're owed. But that's not stopping people from trying to buy them on Craigslist! Unlikely it's for profit, it's probably just for the kitsch souvenir factor.

Unemployment increased from May to June, but only by one-tenth of a point, or 467,000 lost jobs, a 26-year high. Here's the breakdown: Professional and business services slashed 118,000 jobs, more than double the 48,000 cut in May. Manufacturers cut 136,000, down from 156,000. Construction companies got rid of 79,000 jobs, up from 48,000 the previous month. Retailers eliminated 21,000, up from 17,600. Financial activities cut 27,000, following 30,000 in May. The government cut 52,000 jobs, up from 10,000 the previous month. Leisure and hospitality cut 18,000 jobs, erasing a gain of the same size in May. One of the few industries adding jobs: education and health services, which added 34,000 positions last month and 47,000 in May." Statewide, unemployment numbers have not been calcuated--in May, it was 11.5%.

Is it already time to start talking about the 2010 election? While there's been quite a bit of gubernatorial talk already, congressional districts have been on the down low. California's 36th District is the exception, however, with one Progressive Democrat nearly two months into her campaign and hosting her first fundraiser tomorrow.

In a late Sunday night Session, the state's Assembly passed a budget with $2 billion in tax and fee increases that included a $15 annual vehicle registration fee that would pay for state parks, among other taxes and fees like a $1.50 tax on cigarettes. The Democratic budget solution is headed to the state Senate for consideration this morning.

A new nutritional information and menu labeling law will take effect next Wednesday, forcing many restaurants in the state to provide facts about the food they serve. Split into two phases, the first one next week states that restaurants with 20 or more locations in California must provide brochures at the point of purchase with number of calories, grams of saturated fat, grams of carbohydrates and milligrams of sodium for all standard menu items.