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Assemblywoman Grove raises union power issue

Did a Democratic legislator take labor union money in exchange for a union-sponsored bill? That possibility was raised on the Assembly floor Aug. 28 by Assemblywoman Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, in connection with a bill authored by Assemblyman Roger Hernandez,

Unions bank on CA for new gains

James Poulos September 11, 2014

Across the country, union membership has long been in fairly steep decline. After a series of recent reverses, including a failed attempt to pass national minimum wage legislation in Washington, D.C., union leaders shifted to a state-by-state, city-by-city approach to advancing their

Labor-backed bill may force union on farm workers

Dave Roberts September 10, 2014

Democratic state legislators passed a bill that could result in thousands of Fresno farm workers paying dues to a union that they may not support and abiding by a labor contract that they might not want. Senate Bill 25, authored

Wins and losses in latest CA gun control battles

James Poulos September 10, 2014

Gun control laws in the state of California have entered into a period of flux. Despite a reputation for exceptionally strict gun measures, the regulatory landscape has become a mixed bag. Advocates of tighter restrictions and advocates of looser ones have

Sacramento unplugs Brown battery plan

Wayne Lusvardi September 9, 2014

At its Sept. 4 meeting, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District deferred deploying batteries along its electric grid in compliance with Assembly Bill 2514 of 2010. The reason: energy storage was not economically feasible. (See p. 93 and p. 143 of the Board

Despite incentives, Tesla stiffs CA

James Poulos September 9, 2014

Ensnared by deep contradictions between its regulations and priorities, California officials failed to close a massive deal with automaker Tesla, allowing Nevada to ink a landmark agreement. California and Nevada were just two of the states vying for Tesla’s $5 billion “gigafactory,”

Water deal turnoff helped parch L.A.

Wayne Lusvardi September 9, 2014

Los Angeles sure could use extra water right now. But in 2002 the water-locked city forfeited a Golden State opportunity to buy drought-relief water from the Cadiz Inc. water company, mainly due to political pressure from environmental organizations. Other more nimble public water agencies and

Bill rectifies 9/11 scholarship program

James Poulos September 8, 2014

It took California legislators until this year’s session to restore a scholarship program created in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attack in 2001. The embarrassing delay came in the wake of years of funding abuses, according to a report finally filed

In fighting drought, San Antonio leaves L.A. in the dust

Wayne Lusvardi September 5, 2014

Could cities such as drought-vulnerable Los Angeles come to regret that a “privatization” provision in the old $11.1 billion state water bond was removed? Back in 2009, there was an outcry against language in the original version of a

CA high court asked to review bullet-train ruling

Kathy Hamilton September 4, 2014

Arguing that an appellate court ruling endangers the public’s faith in future bond initiatives, the attorneys for the Tos/Fukuda/Kings County group challenging the state’s bullet-train plans on Tuesday asked the California Supreme Court to review the recent decision reversing trial-court