Waste, Fraud, and Abuse

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No sex at Fort Ross

JULY 7, 2010 The problem is that there’s no sex in this story. It’s got just about everything else – crime, international intrigue, a mysterious Russian billionaire who likes to acquire pricey antiquities, craven politicians, a bankrupt historic state park

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State Cover Up in Dugard Case?

Katy Grimes: Kidnapped by a sex offender on parole in 1991, eleven-year-old Jaycee Lee Dugard was held prisoner by Philip Garrido for 18 years. Forced to live most of those years in a shed in the yard, Dugard gave birth

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Fined Russian firm gets Ft. Ross

JULY 1, 2010 By ANTHONY PIGNATARO Last week Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an agreement with the Russian corporation Renova Group to help pay for the upkeep of Fort Ross State Park, on the Sonoma coast, even though the company is

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Inside CalWatchdog!

Anthony Pignataro: The following is a transcipt of an actual conversation that took place this morning at CalWatchdog’s world headquarters in Sacramento, California: ANTHONY PIGNATARO: Oh, this is good! KATY GRIMES: What? PIGNATARO: SB 624 — Gloria Romero’s new bill

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Free Swag!

From the Editor: CalWatchdog recently attracted its 199th follower. Since society likes round numbers, we’re going to give out free — FREE! — Official CalWatchdog Keychain/Flashlights to the next five new followers to our hilarious, brilliant, informative, wonderful Twitter feed.

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CDF Predicts "Drought?"

Katy Grimes: Last night on my local FOX 40 news channel, the California Department  of Fire (CDF) predicted that “the current drought” would increase wild fires in California this summer. Huh? What drought? Didn’t we just have more rain a

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Kudos to Jeff Miller

Steven Greenhut: Maybe there’s some hope that government officials won’t always be above the law. California officials often can violate traffic laws and ignore tolls with impunity. Police officers are particularly bad on this score, as this article makes clear.

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The Great Green Job Mystery

I used to think Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s favorite word was “jobs.” But after reading this press release his office sent out today, I’d have to say it’s actually “green.” “California is already seeing green job growth but we must continue

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Cooley as pension-reform poster boy

MAY 26, 2010 By ANTHONY PIGNATARO Recent news reports have mentioned our state public employee pension liabilities topping half a trillion dollars. This is an astronomical figure, but one that’s pretty hard for most people to understand. One easy way

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CARB fines dealers for DMV mistake

APRIL 26, 2010 By ANTHONY PIGNATARO Where the California Air Resources Board (CARB) is concerned, trying to do the right thing often just isn’t enough to keep a company from paying tens of thousands of dollars in penalties. Just ask

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