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CA GOP eyes special state Senate election
Aside from preventing Democrats from again nabbing two-thirds supermajorities in the California Legislature, the Nov. 4 national GOP electoral wave did little to change the political dynamic here. With two years to go before the 2016 elections, Golden State Republicans have gained
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Federal drought bill dead in water until 2015
Better and wetter luck next year, California. On Thursday, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., put the kibosh on passing a federal water bill dealing with California’s drought during the lame-duck session. She wrote in a statement: “Over the past several
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Pension crisis divides CA Dems on UC tuition hikes
A 14-7 vote Thursday by the full University of California Board of Regents made it official: Golden State Democrats are deeply divided on tuition increases, thanks to the intractable politics of underfunded pensions. On one side are Democrats who favored the increases, including UC President Janet Napolitano,
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CA budget worse despite $2 billion new revenue
California’s budget picture is sort of like that old Sandy Dennis high-school movie, “Up the Down Staircase.” Going up: Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor just reported tax receipts jumped $2 billion over projections in the fiscal 2014-15 budget the Legislature passed, and Gov.
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UC Regents approve tuition increase despite Gov. Brown objecting
A University of California Board of Regents committee voted to increase tuition at least 5 percent every year for five years despite widespread objection from students and Governor Jerry Brown. The vote was 7-2, with Brown, who serves as a
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Obama poised to accelerate CA’s rolling amnesty
Many Americans across the country have expressed uncertainty or alarm about president Obama’s executive action on immigration, which he will announce tomorrow. However, in California, where millions of illegal immigrants live, a semi-formal version of state-level amnesty has been gathering steam
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Does Chiang top field of Dem hopefuls?
Going by the metrics, John Chiang may be the strongest candidate to succeed Gov. Jerry Brown in 2018 or U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer in 2016. You’d never know it by the way the media have zeroed in on Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney
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Is local tax measure success a sign of things to come?
As usual, Michael Coleman’s California City Finance website has an excellent recap of local tax measures and how they fared in the recent election. Local ballots contained 268 revenue measures — tax increases, tax extensions or bonds — of which 189
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Public pension struggles roil CA
The public pensions crisis has not subsided in California — nor has the conflict that surrounds it. A waves of political, legal and policy developments have kept the issue at the center of the state’s attention. In addition to a key election and
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Video: The Millennial mind: Political parties aren’t trusted with privacy
The Reason Foundation’s Emily Ekins talks to James Poulos about who Millennials support politically when they don’t trust either party to protect their privacy.
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