February 2015 | Page 10 of 11

Archive

CA jobs growth continues — with caution signal

California continues to enjoy fairly strong jobs growth — but new data released today (not yet online) by the A. Gary Anderson Center for Economic Research at Chapman University suggest caution may be warranted moving forward. The report’s headline: “California unemployment

CA prison population drops below court-ordered level

James Poulos February 4, 2015

After an improvised scramble to reduce populations in accordance with federal court orders, Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration has succeeded in lowering the number of state prison inmates to the judicially prescribed level. He largely accomplished that through his Public Safety

Ex-Brown adviser: ‘powerful interests’ run state

John Seiler February 4, 2015

Most Californians sense that special interests, not voters, run the state. That’s why voter turnout hit record lows last November. And it’s why the Legislature scores so low on opinion polls. A PPIC survey last year found only 36 percent

Obamacare takes turn for the worse in CA

James Poulos February 4, 2015

As the Affordable Care Act and the Covered California health exchange enter their second year, Californians have begun to encounter fresh challenges and disappointments — a development that has pushed enrollment numbers below official targets. This year, signups are trailing

CA bag ban initiative heading toward 2016 vote

Steve Miller February 4, 2015

The effort to repeal the state’s looming prohibition on plastic grocery bags is projected to have enough valid signatures to move the initiative forward, according to a random sample of the signees compiled by the California secretary of state’s elections office. The sample

Kit fox endangers high-speed rail construction

Kathy Hamilton February 3, 2015

The California High-Speed Rail Authority faces a new obstacle on its railroad track to construction: the endangered San Joaquin kit fox. The environmentalist group Defenders of Wildlife labels it “one of the most endangered animals in California.” On Jan.

CA Supreme Court bars judges from Boy Scouts

James Poulos February 3, 2015

In an unexpected exercise of judicial activism, the California Supreme Court has ruled judges must not participate in organizations that practice so-called “invidious” discrimination. It’s a judicial standard interpreted by the court to include the Boy Scouts of America because, although

Veteran lawmakers embrace new committee assignments

John February 3, 2015

As the new class of state lawmakers settles in to their jobs, Sacramento’s old hands are getting a jump start on the 2015-16 legislative session. Each session brings a biennial reshuffling of committee assignments. But some lawmakers aren’t waiting to get acquainted with their new perches. New

School bond problems go far beyond LAUSD purchase of iPads

Chris Reed February 3, 2015

Gov. Jerry Brown’s skepticism about state assistance for local school districts’ construction projects appears to be primarily based on an intense disdain for adding more billions to what he likes to call the state’s “wall of debt.” But a counter

Powerball grabs just $1 for each kid

John Seiler February 3, 2015

Back when the California Lottery was introduced in 1985, it was advertised as a way to bring a lot more funding to schools, almost effortlessly. No tax increases or budget manipulations were needed. In that, it’s only been partly successful.