December 2013 | Page 5 of 12

Archive

ALRB taking months to resolve UFW decertification vote

It took more than one year of doing battle with the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board and the United Farm Workers. But in November, workers with Gerawan Farming finally won the battle to vote on whether to allow the UFW

$California’s fracking opportunity$

California’s fracking opportunity

Adam O'Neal December 19, 2013

In 1973, President Richard Nixon launched Project Independence, an effort to make the United States energy independent by 1980. The actual project proved unsuccessful, but the concept stuck. Many politicians, especially presidential candidates, have since embraced the idea. After all,

Michal Bloomberg’s candor beats Jerry Brown’s candor — by a mile

Chris Reed December 19, 2013

Jack Dean of the invaluable pensiontsunami.com website sent me a Politicker story about departing New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s exit speech that Bloomberg plainly intended to be a historic demarcation of sorts. Bloomberg hammered home the theme that what

Is 2014 the best year for pension reform?

John Seiler December 19, 2013

I politics, timing is everything. In 1973, Gov. Ronald Reagan pushed Proposition 1 to cut state income taxes 7.5 percent. It lost, 54 percent to 46 percent. Even the Great Communicator couldn’t push it over the top. November that year

Controller Chiang’s payroll website earning praise for openness, transparency

John December 18, 2013

Federal officials continue to reshuffle the management of Healthcare.gov, with Kurt DelBene, a former president of the Microsoft Office Division, tapped as the new point person for the troubled Obamacare website. If DelBene fails to deliver, President Obama should call California State Controller

Actually, Jim Jones cult was Bay Area Democrats

John Seiler December 18, 2013

John Podesta, President Obama’s new guru, just apologized for saying of Republicans, “They need to focus on executive action given that they are facing a second term against a cult worthy of Jonestown in charge of one of the houses

Bullet-train coverage: All the happy talk that fits

Chris Reed December 18, 2013

The Fresno Bee’s editorial page has cheered longer and harder for the bullet-train project than just about any newspaper in the state. But has this enthusiasm affected news coverage? A story in Wednesday’s paper should make Fresno Bee readers wonder.

EDD employees nap, watch TV, surf net, while claims stack up

Katy Grimes December 17, 2013

My three-part series about the Employment Development Department computer system upgrade has some in the agency wanting to unload. Apparently EDD officials’ explanation of the newly updated $100 million computer system “glitches,” and claims of understaffing, aren’t the whole story,

Is bringing back redevelopment a good idea?

Wayne Lusvardi December 17, 2013

The Urban Land Institute seeks to rebuild redevelopment in California. The essence of the proposal is that redevelopment should be good to go again if just some technical tweaks are made. But we’ve been there before. California’s redevelopment law was

Nothing can change the shape of President Jerry Brown

John Seiler December 17, 2013

Gov. Jerry Brown isn’t ruling out a 2016 presidential run. I well remember his first presidential bid, way back in 1976 when he was a young governor of 38 and I was a younger political writer of 21 on my