Chris Reed, Author at CalWatchdog.com

Posts From Chris Reed

Chris Reed

Chris Reed is a regular contributor to Cal Watchdog. Reed is an editorial writer for U-T San Diego. Before joining the U-T in July 2005, he was the opinion-page columns editor and wrote the featured weekly Unspin column for The Orange County Register. Reed was on the national board of the Association of Opinion Page Editors from 2003-2005. From 2000 to 2005, Reed made more than 100 appearances as a featured news analyst on Los Angeles-area National Public Radio affiliate KPCC-FM. From 1990 to 1998, Reed was an editor, metro columnist and film critic at the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin in Ontario. Reed has a political science degree from the University of Hawaii (Hilo campus), where he edited the student newspaper, the Vulcan News, his senior year. He is on Twitter: @chrisreed99.

Local officials race to stymie Gov. Brown’s housing push

Gov. Jerry Brown appears to have made some progress in securing crucial building trade unions’ support for his push to streamline housing construction in California by dropping his objection to the requirement that construction workers be paid “prevailing” — i.e.,

Why CTA is spending millions to pass Prop. 55

Chris Reed July 25, 2016

California voters face a daunting challenge in November in that they’ll be asked to become familiar with a stunning 17 ballot measures. Some consultants fear that this will overwhelm many voters, who will choose either to vote no on everything

Former Marine giving high-profile CA congressman a close race

Chris Reed July 21, 2016

Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, isn’t the only high-profile House Republican in an unexpectedly difficult re-election fight. A case can be made that former House government oversight committee chairman Darrell Issa, the eight-term Vista Republican and wealthy tech tycoon, may even

CA property tax revenue surges despite Prop. 13

Chris Reed July 18, 2016

Proposition 13 — the 1978 ballot measure setting property taxes at 1 percent of assessed value and limiting annual increases in property taxes to 2 percent for homes and businesses which don’t change owners — is perhaps the most controversial

Environmentalists’ clout may be waning in CA Legislature

Chris Reed July 15, 2016

California environmentalists have long been one of the most powerful forces in the Legislature. But in 2015, the centerpiece of the green agenda — a provision in a broader measure that would have mandated a 50 percent reduction in gasoline

Police reform measures struggling in Sacramento

Chris Reed July 12, 2016

Against a national backdrop of discord over police killings of black men and deadly anti-police violence, state lawmakers who back law enforcement conduct and transparency reforms are making little progress in Sacramento. Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, introduced Senate Bill

Court: Police can’t charge public for cost of redacting videos

Chris Reed July 7, 2016

While California has strong government openness laws, some public agencies still seek to place obstacles to obtaining public information. A common tactic is to agree to provide records but only if those requesting the information pay heavy fees to cover

Why Stanford rape uproar may buffet Gov. Brown, AG Harris

Chris Reed July 6, 2016

Proposition 57 — the newly numbered November “parole reform” ballot measure championed by Gov. Jerry Brown — has already proven controversial. The measure was revised and expanded dramatically late in the authorization process. The California Supreme Court gave its blessing to

UC mounted PR blitz to counter harsh state audit

Chris Reed June 30, 2016

UC Davis Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi was suspended by UC President Janet Napolitano in April soon after the Sacramento Bee discovered that UC Davis had paid at least $175,000 to consultants to try to remove online references to a 2011 incident in

Tension builds in San Francisco over police conduct

Chris Reed June 27, 2016

Recent attention has focused on the Oakland Police Department scandal, in which evidence shows several officers took advantage of a young prostitute. But across the bay, the tension between police and community leaders keeps building in San Francisco one month after