Results tagged “sacramento”

As UC Regents meet for a vote on increasing University of California tuition by 32%, Attorney General Jerrry Brown said today that a state panel has the authority to cut the pay of state Senators and Assemblymembers by 18 percent, which would cut pay from $116,208 to $95,291 in December 2010, according to the Sacramento Bee. At issue was if Senate salaries could be cut mid-term, which Brown said was within the law. But still undetermined is if benefits can be cut.

Billions taken healthcare and education, a 32 percent hike under consideration in the University system, the list could go on. The big question is, after this year, what more is there to cut?

On Tuesday, the State Assembly passed Senate Bill 679, meant to protect the state park system and ensure that lands used as state parks cannot be used for non-park purposes without providing substitute lands. "The least we can do is not dismantle the system," explained Traci Verardo-Torres with the California State Parks Foundation, a sponsor of the bill.

As of yesterday, the State Senate had not moved on items except denying a budget package of three bills passed by the Assembly (before a bill can go to Schwarzenegger, it must pass both houses). That package would temporarily halt the use of IOUs in lieu of bill payments from the state. In regards to the threat of state parks, no action has been taken yet. The Democrats proposal goes like this: AB 180, the big budget revision bill (remember, the budget was already passed earlier this year), contains a one year cut of state parks (Schwarzenegger called for two years). Once that passes, effectively eliminating state parks, then another bill would be introduced to save state parks via a $15 annual fee on vehicle registrations. That's a risky move considering Schwarzenegger and Republicans vow to veto any taxes or fee increases. The Senate reconvened at 12:30 today and the Assembly will on Saturday.

The gardening trend is, without a doubt (and pardon the pun) growing.

Rural California is seceding from the urban coast? Well, if industrial pig farmers have anything to do with it, cities like Visalia, Tulare, and Fresno will soon be working to separate themselves from the heathen-vegan coast! The reason? It's all because we took their chicken coops away from them -- or, at least, because we fought against current agro-industrial standards for livestock health and welfare.

It was a rough Valentine's night for California's lawmakers, as they worked until the wee hours trying to resolve our budget. But in the early morning hours today it became apparent that the budget was not going to get the one last Republican vote it needed, and it has stalled.

After deferring a $150 million payment to Los Angeles County, the Board of Supervisors has voted to take California's controller, John Chiang, to court. The payment was withheld because of the ongoing budget crisis; the Board, however, calls the deferment unconstitutional and says the revenue the state owes the county is badly needed," abc7.com is reporting. Los Angeles is not the first, or only county in California to sue the state and the controller. San Bernardino County's Board of Supervisors also voted to sue when a $204 million payment needed for welfare and other programs was deferred this month. Other lawsuits are coming from San Diego, Sacramento, and San Joaquin Valley, too.

Four of the seven state offices in Southern California will be closed some Fridays due to the furloughs.

George Francis was born on June 6, 1896. That made him 112 and 204 days before he died of heart failure at a Sacramento nursing home on Saturday. Francis lived through various wars, the birth of the mass produced automobile, the moon landing and the election of the first Black President, who he voted for. He leaves behind his son, Anthony Francis, who is 81. Who is the oldest person in the world? UCLA gerontologist Dr. Stephen Coles maintains a list of the world's oldest people and says that Maria de Jesus of Portugal is the oldest person. She's 115 and 109 days old.

Budget, schmudget. According to the Daily News, despite our state's whopping "$42 billion budget hole" that is spawning "severe cuts to state programs and possibly layoffs" the folks hammering out the budget still get $173 a day "on top of their $116,208 annual salaries" for, you know, incidentals like parking and lunch and hotel laundry services.

First, we have the Sacramento County Republican Party, who recently had to remove certain images from their site, like the one at left, because they were all offensive and stuff.

Pastor Robert Jones of a Sacramento-area church visited a state environmental hearing last Wednesday about California's plan to cut global warming emissions. He asked the politicians to keep poorer communities in mind when drafting laws.

Answer: Not ones owned and operated by the city of Los Angeles (LAX, Ontario, Palmdale, Van Nuys), with the exception of the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge inside LAX (Go Canada!) The Travel Doctor published a list yesterday that compiles all the airports in the country that have free Wi-Fi, listed by state. According to the list, the closest airport to Los Angeles that serves up free wireless is Long Beach Airport. Across the state, airports include San Diego Int'l, Lindberg Field and Sacramento Int'l. And speaking of wireless, the LADOT released a report about the feasibility of installing it on Commuter Express buses. The outcome? Too expensive for such a little audience that had little zeal regarding the perk.

More than 100 students from UC Irvine, UCSB, UC Riverside and UCLA attended to protest Wednesday at UCLA. After a meeting of the UC Regents, a group of them were arrested by campus police. When they were released later that night, they sent out this statement regarding their position:

Her first job? The state's budget crisis. The state is "a giant in crisis," she said. "Bass announced that she had asked former governors Pete Wilson and Gray Davis to help set up a bipartisan commission to study overhauling the state's tax structure. The panel will be asked to come up with recommendations 'to identify more consistent sources of revenue,' Bass said" in the LA Times. On Wednesday, Gov. Schwarzenegger will release a plan to combat the budget shortfall that could be up to $20 billion.

• 45-year-old murder suspect Hovik "John" Mankyan, who engaged police in a lengthy standoff on Good Friday in Palmdale, is reportedly "clinging to life" in the hospital. Mankyan, who is wanted for a 2004 North Hollywood homicide "ingested poison and severed arteries" prior to surrendering.
• Honors on Ice: The Anaheim Ducks will honor SWAT officer Randal Simmons, who died in the line of duty, with a moment of silence before tonight's matchup with the Kings. James Veenstra, the officer who survived the violent standoff, will throw out the first puck.
• Design, engineering, aesthetics...oh, and bulletproofing. Today's Times looks at the need for buildings in some parts of LA to be built "drive-by proof."
• So punk rock: 52-year-old Rocco Bannich (aka Rocco Roll of 70s band The Absentees) was sentenced 55-to-life yesterday for shooting at three Long Beach SWAT officers. The maximum sentence was imposed because of his "complete lack of remorse."
• Who's to blame: Cab companies? Car rental agencies? MTA officials? The Daily Breeze looks into the gap between the Green Line and LAX, and why over the past decade those trains haven't gotten any closer to the airport.
• Hey yooooouuuuuu guuuuyyyyysss! A rally was held today in Sacramento by environmentalists and activists demanding that "the California Air Resources Board (ARB) to be more aggressive about requiring automakers to produce a larger number of electric vehicles." Paging Ed Begley Jr...
• And to make a textbook case of the adage "from the sublime to the ridiculous," an Aliso Viejo woman is getting attention for being the first Mary Kay rep in the OC to earn herself a pink Cadillac Escalade for her makeup schilling skills. Now how much mascara does she have to sell to get a tank of gas for that thing?

• Sacramento to California's teachers: I love you, but I just can't pay you. Thousands of teachers across the state this week could receive pink slips in the wake of the $14.5 billion budget gap. Teachers to Sacramento: I'd like to see you try and force us out.
• The Air Quality Management District loves clean air so much they decided to impose fines on those who burn wood in fire places when the pollution is especially evident outside. "It's a fair trade off," they say. "Hands off my chimney," some homeowners responded.
• In political news, Wyoming professed their love for Obama by handing him a caucus win and Bush continues to be enamored of torture.
• On Tuesday, a Veterans Thrift Store owner returned a box with $30,000 that was left inside some clothes she was sifting through. She received a cash reward because the family loved that there are still some honest people out there. The thrift worker said she will send some of the reward to Mexico so her mother can have an eye operation and will use the rest to buy a digital camera.
• No love lost: A whistle blower claims that the state's Planned Parenthood overcharged the government close to $180 million for birth control pills. Planned Parenthood hasn't issued an opinion because they haven't seen the lawsuit yet.
• Birds and water lovers said, Where's the love as they looked on to the dry vestiges of the empty Silverlake reservoir. Now that the reservoir is free of the carcinogenic bromate-tainted water that was discovered a few months back, the LADWP can commence patching and other necessary repairs, Metroblogging said.
• How much do you love sunlight? At 2 a.m., it's officially time to set your clocks ahead one hour.

Clippers 116, Kings 109, 2OT - Down by 17 points, it looked like Los Angeles was about to give Sacramento their first win this year against a Pacific rival. Anybody seen Sam Cassell. Two overtimes later, the Clips pulled off a wild victory and send the Kings to 0-9 in the division. LA led the entire second overtime. Al Thornton led the game with 27, Chris Kaman had 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Dan Dickau scored a season high 20.

For the last ten years, state representatives from Los Angeles have dominated the role of Speaker of the Assembly, including Mayor Villaraigosa, LA City Council Herb Wesson and Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle. Today, Karen Bass, the assemblywoman who represents neighborhoods from West LA to Culver City to Baldwin Hills, had enough votes to become Speaker of the Assembly up in Sacramento.

We love when politicians and government officials chime in on LAist's comment section. The latest political celebrity, Senator Jim Battin (R- La Quinta), caught wind of an article this morning about SB 1374, a bill he submitted last week that would allow car pool lane access for any car owner who off-sets their emissions with carbon credits, ultimately letting solo drivers of all sorts, including SUVs and Hummers, onto California freeways.

If you thought Sacramento politics was like watching paint dry on a wall, then it's time to revaluate that thought... at least for the moment. On Friday, the Sacramento Bee's Capitol Alert blog picked their Press Release of the Week and if the proposed bill is passed, it could effect the roadways here in Los Angeles by letting solo drivers, including Hummers and other SUVs, gain access to car pool lanes if they purchase carbon off-sets annually. According to Senator Jim Battin (R- La Quinta), who submitted the bill, a "flashy, fuel-sucking car" (like his Lincon Aviator) only costs $45 a year while a Prius' carbon footprint can be neutralized for $15 (otherwise, the green bean car becomes "a worse foe to the environment than an SUV").

• A steady stream of Koreans moving into the northwest San Fernando Valley suburbs is giving the traditional K-Town in LA City a run for its money. Now you Valley-ists might not have to travel over the hill for karaoke bars.
• Japanese and Los Angeles police detectives solved a 26-year-old case of a Japanese business man who allegedly shot his wife while the two were on vacation here. Apparently, the long arm of the law uses chopsticks.
• Following Steven Spielberg's diss to the Chinese government when he refused to work with them in the run up to the Beijing Olympics, the state-run media there is returning the favor.
• So much pork was secured by California state legislators last year you would be remiss if you thought Sacramento was a meat packing town. More than $1 billion in pork barrel spending was set aside for pet projects by California lawmakers last year who funneled money to their district. Thirty-five Democrats collectively secured about twice as much money as California's 19 Republicans, but many of the state's individual GOP lawmakers received more money than their counterparts in the majority.
• A man fired a gun into his neighbors home in North Hollywood today, killing him. While the gunman was subdued, a witness stabbed him. How's that for poetic justice?
• Is Hillary Clinton losing it? At a rally today in Ohio, a "visibly angry" Clinton chided Obama for putting out materials she said he knows are "blatantly false." She also derided Obama for having "speeches and the big rallies." "Hillary knows it's over," LA Daily Blog said. The polls are very close in Texas while Clinton maintains a larger lead in Ohio, where both states will vote March 4, which Bill Schneider of CNN called "an end-game" for Clinton.
• Tonight SNL's newest cast member, Casey Wilson, who honed her skills at the Los Angeles Upright Citizen's Brigade, will make her debut, and just in time to play Hillary Clinton. Good Luck Casey!

OK so the PBS examination of the Haditha massacre is going to be pretty heavy duty tonight, there's a couple options for lighter fare, and of course the season finale of Nip/Tuck will be the pornographic prime time finish.

The AMGEN Tour of California has returned and it started a couple days ago with a time trial in Palo Alto. The tour makes its way to Sacramento today and then starts heading south towards Los Angeles. The race concludes on Sunday, February 24th with Stage 7 which starts in Santa Clarita and finishes in Pasadena.

It's National Almond Day today, along with "Do a Grouch a Favor Day," and the day that Nylon was patented by DuPont.

Since Proposition 93 was rejected by voters yesterday, termed-out assemblymembers are out of a job come next year -- that includes Los Angeles Democrat Fabian Nunez who represents downtown (and south of it) and has been Speaker of the Assembly since 2003. Now, assemblymembers from up and down the state are looking to fill the speaker's shoes.

Red Wings 3, Kings 0 - The best hockey team in the NHL was in Staples Center on Tuesday night. Unfortunately for local fans, the worst team in the NHL calls it home. The Kings lost to Detroit for the 17th time in 18 games. Next up, LA hosts Anaheim, then gets some time off for the all star break. That means plenty of rest, since it's not like the Kings will have many players going.

When the UC Board of Regents held a meeting this past Thursday, students and staff were on hand to express dismay with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's recently announced proposal for increased fees, enrollment limits, and salary freezes.