CalWatchdog Morning Read – November 4

• Field Poll: Voters poised to pass a bunch of ballot measures 
• October jobs miss mark, wages tick up
• Good drought news 
• Out-of-area spending dominates two of the most important Assembly races 
• SD Congressman to pay back campaign funds used for household expenses

Good morning. TGIF. A new poll out this morning suggests that voters will likely approve many of the 17 measures on the ballot. Of the 10 polled by the Field Poll/UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, voters appear ready to approve at least seven.

Included among those poised to pass is recreational marijuana. CalWatchdog has more.

In other news:

• Important election data point: “The U.S. economy added a less-than-expected 161,000 jobs in October and the unemployment rate stood at 4.9 percent as investors got to digest the final payrolls report before Tuesday’s presidential election.” CNBC has more.

• Drought improving? “A rainy October in Northern California has lifted about a quarter of the state out of drought conditions, the U.S. Drought Monitor reported Thursday. It’s the rosiest picture released by federal officials since the spring of 2013, when about 64% of the state was considered to be in “moderate drought” — or worse.” The Los Angeles Times has more. 

• Two top Assembly races: “Millions of dollars in outside money is pouring into two high-profile Assembly races in San Bernardino County, state records show.” The San Bernardino County Sun has more. 

• Just in time: “Congressman Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, says he will repay $49,000 to his campaign account after months of revelations that he used the fund for personal expenses.” The San Diego Union-Tribune has more. 

Legislature:

• Gone till December. 

Gov. Brown:

• No public events announced. 

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