Regulations

CSU ‘student success fees’ an obnoxious surcharge

California lawmakers of both parties have long been upset that UC and CSU leaders look to raise tuition as option number one during budget headaches instead of scrutinizing their operating budgets for fat. But for poor students, at least tuition

Gov. Brown ‘saves’ sriracha

James Poulos June 3, 2014

From the looks of it, the sriracha scandal is over, thanks to Gov. Jerry Brown. Dig deeper, however, and the sudden resolution to the nine-month-old ordeal becomes more mysterious. First, the simple part of the story. On Wednesday, the Irwindale City Council

Study: Green power worst way to cut CO2

Wayne Lusvardi June 2, 2014

This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Most people probably know more about Cap’n Crunch cereal than about California’s complicated cap-and-trade air emissions regulation program. But according to a new study, perhaps Cap’n Crunch would be a better

Phil Mickelson: Our libertarian martyr

Chris Reed May 31, 2014

Rancho Santa Fe resident Phil Mickelson was, as they say, trending Friday night for once again behaving in libertarian fashion. The San Diego native has made news for years with his gambling, showing his contempt for societal norms attempting to

Tesla latest CA company to diss Golden State

Joseph Perkins May 29, 2014

Tesla Motors, the Palo Alto maker of luxury electric cars, is holding its annual stockholder meeting next Tuesday. It will be interesting to see whether CEO Elon Musk announces the two states that will compete in a “bakeoff” to

CA sex offender laws suddenly shaken up

James Poulos May 28, 2014

Life is about to get a little easier for Californians on the state’s sex offender registry. Substantial changes to the law are underway at both the legislative and judicial levels. In Sacramento, lawmakers are seriously considering a plan that would pare

CEQA shakedowns and the mansion that Wal-Mart built

Chris Reed May 28, 2014

Liam Dillon in the Voice of San Diego has a sharp profile of San Diego lawyer Cory Briggs, an unapologetic user of the California Environmental Quality Act as a self-enrichment tool: “No attorney sues under the state’s main environmental quality

Feinstein drought bill heads for House merger

Wayne Lusvardi May 27, 2014

In the novel “A River Runs Through It,” later made into a movie, Norman Maclean wrote, “Eventually all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. … I am haunted by waters.” Driven by the haunting reality of lack

Texas shale history provides key context on downbeat CA report

Chris Reed May 25, 2014

The new federal report sharply reducing the amount of oil believed to be “technically recoverable” in California’s Monterey Shale triggered glee among the greens who hate fossil fuels. But as the Bakersfield Californian reported, oil companies hardly saw the report

Typical Sacramento: Weak CalSTRS fix made even weaker

Chris Reed May 24, 2014

So Gov. Jerry Brown is finally forced by events to come up with a CalSTRS pension rescue plan. And as Dan Borenstein points out, it’s so cautious that it doesn’t prevent CalSTRS’ underfunding from getting worse for some time to