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Back to homepageGreen-job future a fraud
JUNE 1, 2010 By JOHN SEILER California’s unemployment rate remains stubbornly high, at 12.6 percent. That’s 2.7 percentage points above the national average. The persistence of unemployment also is something Californians haven’t seen since the Great Depression. The May 30
Read MoreRead Skelton's lips: More new taxes!
I’ll give L.A. Times columnist George Skelton marks for consistency: He always favors tax increases. Here he is back in 2007, even before the economy crashed, calling for “a temporary tax increase to balance the books.” And I’m consistent, too:
Read MoreFast-tracking personal info
MAY 28, 2010 By KATY GRIMES Are transportation agencies selling California drivers’ personal information? Commuters on California toll roads and highways subscribe to a device kept in the car, allowing electronic toll collection as they pass through a toll booth. Payment
Read MoreState is always hiring
MAY 28, 2010 “The California Government is Always Hiring,” boasts an advertisement in Capitol Weekly newspaper. “Even during recent hiring freezes, the state hired 3-4000 new employees EVERY MONTH and accepting applications for over 1000 job titles at any one
Read MoreState to foist inmates on counties
MAY 27, 2010 By LAURA SUCHESKI Although state legislators say that state-to-county unfunded mandates are illegal, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to use an exemption in sentencing laws to force counties to take title to state law offenders. On Wednesday, the
Read MoreCA budget tops sensible limits
MAY 27, 2010 By JOHN SEILER Budget time. So I thought I would revisit an analytical tool I devised a few years ago to help better understand the California state budget. Back in the early 2000s, I was pouring over
Read MoreResponse To Steinberg Staffer’s Response
After a CalWatchdog story last week about Democrat Senate Pro Tem President Darrell Steinberg’s response to a constituent’s letter expressing her dismay that he would encourage a boycott of Arizona’s businesses because of the recent immigration law passed, (Senator Steinberg
Read MoreCooley as pension-reform poster boy
MAY 26, 2010 By ANTHONY PIGNATARO Recent news reports have mentioned our state public employee pension liabilities topping half a trillion dollars. This is an astronomical figure, but one that’s pretty hard for most people to understand. One easy way
Read MoreYet higher taxes?
USA Today reports: A record-low 41.9% of the nation’s personal income came from private wages and salaries in the first quarter, down from 44.6% when the recession began in December 2007. So, government is bigger than ever, assuming North Korean
Read MoreWill initiative spur sewage spill?
MAY 25, 2010 By KATY GRIMES Cities all over California are attempting to “increase revenue” to make up massive budget deficits. “Revenue increase” is government code language for tax increases. But residents in some cities are doing something to prevent
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