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Is state’s biggest new reservoir project already in trouble?

The California Water Commission’s recent approval of nearly $2.7 billion in funding for new water conservation projects was the most dramatic move to promote storage of rainfall and melting snow in the state in decades. Such projects have been opposed

Steve Poizner’s independent bid for state office finds traction

Chris Reed May 14, 2018

Is California now a deep blue state in which moderate conservatives no longer have a chance of victory in statewide elections? Or do such candidates still have hopes if they pass on the two-party system and run as independents apart

Realtors’ initiative could boost home sales, limit property taxes

Steven Greenhut December 2, 2017

SACRAMENTO – Property-tax-limiting Proposition 13 has long been viewed as the “third rail” of California politics given its continued popularity among the home-owning electorate. Public-sector unions occasionally talk about sponsoring an initiative to eliminate its tax limits for commercial properties,

High-speed rail agency lacks leader at crucial juncture

Chris Reed June 20, 2017

Four months after then-California High Speed Rail Authority Chief Executive Jeff Morales told authority board members he was moving on and two months after Morales made his decision public, the agency overseeing the state’s $64 billion bullet train project hasn’t

Watchdog: Costly veterans’ homes not serving broad population

Steven Greenhut March 28, 2017

SACRAMENTO – The U.S. Veterans Administration has been a font of scandal in recent years, with various reports showcasing the way the agency charged with caring for our nation’s veterans has fallen down on the job. A new report from

CA GOP cheers federal support for new water bills

James Poulos March 9, 2017

Central California residents, long hoping for federal water reform, have begun to see some movement from Washington. Rep. David Valadao, R-Calif., has rolled out language designed to “build on last year’s legislation that was loved by farmers and loathed by

Federal uncertainty, local opposition hang over Proposition 64

Chris Reed February 22, 2017

Proposition 64’s easy passage Nov. 8 was assured in part by promises to voters that the state government was up to the challenge of regulating and overseeing marijuana’s legalization in California. But three months since Prop. 64’s landslide victory, critics

Court ruling opens avenue for pension reform

Steven Greenhut August 30, 2016

SACRAMENTO – An Aug. 17 California appeals court ruling rejected a public employee union’s claim that its members had a right to “pension spiking,” which the court described as “various stratagems and ploys to inflate their income and retirement benefits.”

Dislike of Clinton, Trump creates third-party moment

Matt Fleming June 27, 2016

If there was ever an opportunity for a third-party run, now would be it. Unfavorable opinions among voters of both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton — the presumptive presidential candidates of the Republican and Democratic parties, respectively — create a

CalPERS board accused of bullying, deceit, flouting laws

Chris Reed December 9, 2015

A member of the CalPERS board has gone rogue, using public records laws to get documents from the agency while facing warnings that it is unacceptable for him to criticize staff at board meetings. Ed Mendel has details at Calpensions.com: