June 2008 Archives

The fight isn't over yet. Los Angeles City Controller Laura Chick fired off a letter to City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo today, prodding him to make himself and other senior staffers available so she can audit his workers' compensation program.

This is after she sent him a subpoena last week for a stack of records on the program. Delgadillo initially tried to politely refuse the whole audit. Then he repeated a legal opinion that the city charter prohibits the controller from auditing the office of an elected official, such as himself. The reason being that a controller (who is also elected) could use an audit to dig up dirt on a political enemy.

Legal opinon notwithstanding, Delgadillo did eventually agree to turn over the paperwork on the workers' compensation program because they were public records. But Chick isn't satisified; she wants a full audit.

"As you know, your releasing these documents is only part of what is needed to conduct a perfomance audit," Chick wrote in her letter to Delgadillo. "My staff must meet with you and members of the city attorney's office..."

This is the second time Chick has tried to audit Delgadillo, and the two have had an ongoing fight over her authority to conduct performance audits of elected officials.

Aside from the perverse pleasure of watching two big political personalities butt heads, there is an interesting legal issue here. The writers of the city charter sought greater accountability and transparency in government. That's why they gave the controller the power to get under the hood, so to speak, and analyze which city programs don't work and why. However they also had serious concerns that a controller could misuse this power and so they said the controller could not do performance audits on the offices of elected officials. But what happens when there is a government program in the office of an elected official?

If Chick decides to push the issue, a court may settle the fight.

Councilwoman Wendy Greuel? Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa? Councilman Dennis Zine. All have sought or claimed the title of pothole king or queen, but who actually reigns over the most pot-holey area of the city? We shall soon see.

Dailynews.com asked readers today to map the city's worst potholes and so far the East San Fernando Valley and the 101 corridor communities seem to have the most asphalt aggravation. Ideally, once potholes are mapped and reported to the city we will be able to see which potholes get filled and how quickly. Then we'll really know who is the real king or queen of potholes. Or, perhaps they'll vie for a new title: Pothole Eradicator!

Former Los Angeles Times staffer Kenneth Reich, one of the unique characters of the Los Angeles news scene, has died. He was 70.
Reich was one of those characters who, once you met him, you never forgot.
He was passionate about his stories and his beliefs. He would lecture politicians _ he said privately and for their own good _ and then write stories about how they had reversed course when they followed his advice.
Ken and I both covered the efforts of Los Angeles to get the 1984 Olympic Games. Beginning in about 1970 or 1980, when the Daily News began questioning the costs surrounding the games, Ken called me up to tell me he was going to begin covering for the Times.
"This is going to be a great story," Reich told me. "I don't think you realize how big this is and what it means."
And, Ken rode it for all it was worth, with multiple trips to Europe _ including taking his kids along to witness history _ and a later switch to the Times Sports section, briefly, to cover sports as news.
But Ken was never born to be a sports writer.
After writing a book about the 1984 Games, he returned to news and specialized in earthquake coverage, the most important beat, he would assure me, in the news business.
Ken was also known for getting a bit carried away with himself. Once, the story goes, he was interviewing someone -- that is letting the person know what he thought at the moment. Wearing a headset, Ken was pacing back and forth at his desk when he walked out from the headset, but continued the conversation for several minutes before he realized he was talking to himself.
Ken Reich was one of a kind.

From his break in 1992 playing Bank Nerd No. 2 in the sitcom "Married With Children," to his supporting role on the HBO hit "Six Feet Under," to a part in last year's "Spider-Man 3," Tim Maculan has navigated Hollywood more successfully than most actors.New York Times in the Daily News.

Lately, though, Maculan, 45, says the actor's place in the entertainment industry's economic food chain has changed. And for middle-income working actors like him, it's not for the better. "It's not about networks being cheap or evil," Maculan said. "It's just that the industry is dramatically different than it was even five years ago."

Maculan, a sarcastic character actor with a wicked grin, rattles off a list of industry shifts that have made it harder for middle-income actors to earn a living. Reality shows have crowded out scripted programs, comedies in particular. The studios are making fewer movies, and the ones they are making are less actor-driven. Networks like NBC have virtually stopped filming pilot episodes, meaning they are hiring fewer actors. Voice-over work, once a staple for less-known actors, is outsourced to other countries or given to A-list stars.

Nearly 90 percent of all children in Los Angeles County's foster-care system are minorities, drawing growing concern that hospitals and child welfare agencies are performing the vast majority of drug screening tests on low-income, minority pregnant women who seek public health care. Trooy Anderson in the Daily News.

While only 10 percent of the county's general population is African-American, African-American children make up nearly 36 percent of all children in the county's foster-care system.

The county trend mirrors state and national figures that show children of ethnic minorities in foster care - especially African-Americans, Latinos and American Indians - outpace the number in the general population.

Tipoffs: Mayor raising warchest; Behind the scenes with Barack; Rocky running for AG.

Three years ago amid the pomp and circumstance of his gala inauguration, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa exhorted residents to "Come dream with me" as he vowed his election would mark the dawning of a bright, new day for Los Angeles.Daily News.

With an energetic and inspirational vigor, he outlined sweeping visions for a "subway to the sea," a cleaner and safer city, education reform and a raft of other new plans to fix a broad range of issues.

And for the first two years, he seemed to do no wrong.

Awakened by late-night pounding and his doorbell ringing, Palmdale resident Jesus Bejarano found a social worker and two sheriff's deputies demanding he turn over his 20-month-old daughter, Kelly.
Troy Anderson in the Daily News.
The social worker said Bejarano's 29-year-old wife, Cheila Herrera, had tested positive for amphetamines and PCP at Antelope Valley Hospital after giving birth to the couple's son a week earlier.

Their son, Jesse, who was born prematurely and was still at the hospital, had already been placed in protective custody.

With a wave of foreclosures pounding down home prices, this is the best buyer's market in at least four years. Gregory J. Wilcox in the Daily News.

According to a DataQuick Information Systems report released last week, the median price of a San Fernando Valley home fell last month to $485,000, or 27percent from a year earlier.

And those numbers still have a way to fall as more foreclosures come onto the market at discounted prices.

So here's a primer to help you prepare for buying a home. The tips come from a variety of sources and are applicable even after the market improves.

Secretary of State Debra Bowen assigned the first list of numbers for ballot measures on the Nov. 4 ballot.
Here is the list from her office:

Proposition 1 Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century. SB 1856 (Ch. 697, 2002)

Proposition 2 Treatment of Farm Animals.

Proposition 3 Children's Hospital Bond Act.

Proposition 4 Waiting Period and Parental Notification Before Termination of Minor's Pregnancy.

Proposition 5 Nonviolent Offenders. Sentencing, Parole and Rehabilitation.

Proposition 6 Criminal Penalties and Laws.

Proposition 7 Renewable Energy.

Proposition 8 Limit on Marriage.

Proposition 9 Criminal Justice System. Victims' Rights.

Proposition 10 Bonds. Alternative Fuel Vehicles and Renewable Energy.

Proposition 11 Redistricting.

Los Angeles City Controller Laura Chick served a subpoena Thursday morning on City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo for records on the workers' compensation program managed by his office. Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

The subpoena steps up a fight over whether the city controller has the right to audit the offices of elected officials.

Chick says she can; Delgadillo says she can't.

Frustrated by the internal struggle, Chick took her complaint public.

"The people of Los Angeles have a right to know how their government spends their hard-earned tax dollars," Chick said during a press conference Thursday.

Seeking billions of dollars to relieve Los Angeles County from constant gridlock, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority moved Thursday toward putting a half-percent sales tax before voters in November.Sue Doyle in the Daily News.

The Metro board agreed to draft an ordinance to implement the sales-tax measure, expected to generate $30 billion to $40 billion over 30 years. If approved by two-thirds of county voters, it will bump the county sales tax to 8.75 percent - tying it with Alameda County for the highest sales tax in California.

Also, Metro officials will draft a list of transportation projects, from subways to highway widening, that could be funded by the measure. The board returns to the table July 24 to discuss the list and to vote whether to put the sales tax on the ballot.

Anti-gang tax
Taking the first official step toward asking Angelenos to approve a parcel tax to fund anti-gang programs, a City Council panel on Thursday asked for a draft of the measure that would raise $30 million a year. Daiily News.

The Ad Hoc Committee on Gang Violence and Youth Development approved the measure, which now must go to the full City Council for consideration before it can be placed on the Nov. 4 ballot. It would need approval by two-thirds of voters.

"I am tired

In a blow to activists against illegal immigration, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge upheld the LAPD's Special Order 40, which limits when officers can ask about immigration status. Rachel Uranga in the Daily News.

In his ruling, Judge Rolf M. Treu found that the conservative Judicial Watch, which brought the suit on behalf of a Los Angeles taxpayer, failed to show that the policy conflicted with federal law that prohibits restrictions on state and local police from communicating with immigration officials.

"This is good news," LAPD Chief William Bratton said. "It is an essential tool and continues to be an essential tool of the Los Angeles Police Department."

California's attorney general sued Countrywide Financial Corp. and its top two executives on Wednesday, claiming that the company used deceptive practices to push borrowers into risky mortgages. Gregory J. Wilcox in the Daily News.

The law suit, filed by Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr., asserts that Countrywide became a mass-production loan factory, churning out ever-increasing streams of debt without regard for borrowers.

"Countrywide exploited the American dream of homeownership and then sold its mortgages for huge profits on the secondary market," Attorney General Brown said. "The company sold ever-increasing numbers of complex and risky home loans, as quickly as possible."

City activists and officials across the county are expected to battle before the Metro board today over billions of dollars worth of transit projects and a proposed half-percent sales tax to help pay for them. Sue Doyle in the Daily News.

As the Metropolitan Transportation Authority shapes the region's latest long-range plan, San Fernando Valley activists hope to snag hundreds of millions of dollars to ease the area's worsening congestion.

They are pushing for an extension of the Red Line subway to Bob Hope Airport, more car-pool lanes on the Ventura Freeway and new funds to run city buses in Burbank, among other projects.

Labor unrest continues to dominate the landscape in Hollywood, and the possibility of a strike by actors has large movie studios planning to shut down production after Monday and has television studios rushing to complete episodes of series scheduled to return in the fall or January. New York Times in the Daily News.

Most major movie studios long ago scheduled their big projects to finish shooting by Monday, the expiration date of the contract between the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and the Screen Actors Guild.

Television studios, meanwhile, plan to continue taping new and returning series as long as possible, banking episodes scheduled for broadcast in the fall or the new year in case an actors strike interrupts production, as the strike by television and film writers did last winter.

Arming police with another weapon in the fight against San Fernando Valley gangs, a judge approved a preliminary injunction Tuesday against the San Fer, a group prosecutors say has terrorized Northeast Valley residents for years.Rachel Uranga in the Daily News.

In a hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court that lasted just a few minutes, Judge David P. Yaffe granted a joint request by City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo and county District Attorney Steve Cooley to create the region's largest gang injunction. The order restricts the movements of hundreds of gang members over 9.5 square miles and gives police broader arrest authority.

Yaffe looked out into a courtroom dotted with city and county lawyers and police awaiting a ruling, and asked for any opposition to the injunction.

Angelenos' growing love affair with public transportation may be headed for trouble as transit agencies increasingly have begun to struggle with the temptation to pass soaring fuel prices onto passengers.Sue Doyle in the Daily News.

In Los Angeles, most agencies have yet to fully pass along the price surge, but some analysts are warning that the affordable prices transit commuters enjoy today could be gone soon.

"It's going to present a problem for any transit agency that does rely on diesel," said Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.

"Most people have focused on the rising costs of gasoline, not realizing the rising costs of diesel. You will feel the rising cost of diesel."

Maria Garcia hardly slept on the bus that left Los Angeles at midnight and brought her and more than 150 LAUSD employees to the state Capitol on Tuesday morning. Justine Agulia in the Daily News.

But once there, the Los Angeles Unified School District security monitor made sure her voice was heard, urging legislators to avoid deep slashes to the district's budget, which could mean the loss of her job.

As a mother of three with a husband who's found very little work in the construction business lately, she doesn't know how she'd survive if her job were cut.

"If I don't work, I can't feed my family," said Garcia, 46, an employee at Richard E. Byrd Middle School in Sun Valley. "I've been on the job for eight years and without my steady job, I really don't know what I'd do."

A Los Angeles City Council committee tentatively approved a new electrical rate restructuring plan Tuesday that sets higher rates for customers who use the most electricity.Kerry Cavanaugh iin the Daily News.

The proposal still has to be approved by the full City Council and would not take effect for residential customers until June 2009.

If approved, the plan would set three rate tiers from June through September. Residents who use more power would be bumped from the first tier into the second and third tiers, with rates increasing in each tier.

The plan would also create so-called "hot zones" - including the San Fernando Valley, the Eastside and South L.A. - in which residents would get to use more power before they would be bumped into a higher rate tier.

A who's who of San Francisco political players will be hobnobbing Wednesday evening at a swanky fundraiser in the Neiman Marcus rotunda to honor a big-city mayor who is considered a superstar in the state Democratic Party.San Francisco Chronicle.

And it's not Gavin Newsom.

The invitation-only, champagne reception in the Union Square department store for Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is expected to raise tens of thousands of dollars for his re-election bid next spring.

If you're looking for Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa this week, just follow the money.

Villaraigosa has 11 fundraisers this week for his 2009 re-election campaign. Tonight, Anschutz Entertainment Group President Tim Leiweke and associates will hold a cocktail reception for Villaraigosa on the stage of the NOKIA Theater. Guests will pay $1,000 to mingle with the mayor in the LA LIVE complex -- a project that is getting to keep $270 million in hotel taxes.

On Wednesday, Villaraigosa has a reception fundraisers at noon and then jets to San Francisco that afternoon for champagne reception hosted by former Mayor Willie Brown.

He has one event on Friday and two on Saturday.

But Villaraigosa really hits his stride on Sunday, with four back-to-back fundraisers. He starts at 11:30 a.m. at the Brentwood home of private equity manager Frank Biondi. Then it's off to a 1:30 p.m. reception at the Beverly Hills home of real estate investor Simon Mani. At 4 p.m., the mayor will schmooze in Westwood with businessman Sim Farar and then he ends the day with a 6 p.m. Beverly Hills reception hosted by the Persian-American community.

Villaraigosa has already held three out-of-state fundraisers. One in Florida, another hosted by Mayor Richard Daley in Chicago and another at the New York City pad of Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Villaraigosa is racing to raise as much money as he can as early as he can to scare off potential challengers for. Political observers are keeping an eye on mall mogul Rick Caruso, who has toyed with the idea of running. But it's unlikely that multi-millionaire Caruso would be intimidated by Villaraigosa's war chest.

As city leaders urge residents to trim energy and water usage amid the sweltering summer months, a home audit of the chief of L.A.'s Department of Water and Power has found that even the champion of conservation is not doing enough to cut back. Beth Barrett in the Daily News.

Auditors last month found that lawn sprinklers at General Manager H. David Nahai's 6,000-square-foot Deep Canyon Drive home had come on every single night for more than a year - summer or winter, rain or shine.

The watering resulted in about a foot of subsurface moisture and boosted the general manager's average water consumption - 36,185 gallons a month, or 1,190 gallons a day - higher than most of his neighbors.

As part of her job as a special-education assistant at Byrd Middle School in Sun Valley, Desiree Young knows what it's like to change diapers every day.Justine Agulia in the Daily News.

But recently her focus has shifted, knowing similar jobs could disappear thanks to massive budget cuts that would cripple the school system she has believed in for nearly two decades.

"I just can't sit back," said Young, 40. "I've been doing this for 18 years, long hard years. This is not good for the kids. They're the ones who'll end up shortchanged in a big way."

Midnight Monday, Young was set to board a bus with several hundred people - 45 she personally rounded up - to Sacramento, where she vowed to give Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger some advice about cutting the Los Angeles Unified School District's budget.

Los Angeles city firefighters are heated up over a new policy that requires them to cover all visible tattoos while on the job, no matter whether they're responding to a call or making dinner in the firehouse. Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

Since the policy took effect May 1, firefighters complain they've had to wear sweat shirts, long sleeves, and even skin patches to hide their body art.

Firefighter David Navarro, 50, developed a rash from the patch he wears over the American eagle imprinted on his forearm.

Playing catch-up in officiating over same-sex marriages, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa wedded his first gay couple Monday in a ceremony that was interrupted by a protester who slipped by security and called him an "adulterer." Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

The wedding crasher, Rosalyn Schultz of the Church of Christ, arrived minutes after Villaraigosa married Academy Award winning film producer Bruce Cohen and art consultant Gabriel Catone in a brief ceremony.

As the couple, friends and family toasted with champagne, Schultz walked calmly to the podium and told the small gathering that she opposed gay marriage. Weraing a white pantsuit and a white and gold hat, she called Villaraigosa an adulterer, in an apparent reference to his affair with a television news anchor.

At one point, S

After announcing last week that he would turn down federal funding, much was made of how Sen. Barack Obama had raised so much money from small donors.
Now, come the heavyweights.
Obama is scheduled to appear at a Music Center fundraiser Tuesday with a stuffed guest list of Hollywood heavyweights, reports Variety.
Those on the guest list include Sugar Ray Leonard, Jennifer Beals, Dennis Quaid, Heidi Klum, Sidney Poitier and a long, long list of big fivers.
Costs for the event are $2,300 per person to appear at the reception and $28,500 per couple at a dinner.

A year ago, Tamir Dayan sank his life savings into building a 21-foot-ceiling dream home in which to raise his two little girls.

Then up to 20 recovering drug addicts and alcoholics moved into the house next door.

"They moved in; it's a nightmare," said Dayan, 45, of Tarzana. "Saturday morning you can't go outside because of the cigarette smoke. And foul language: `F--- you, f--- you, f--- you.' I can't open my bedroom window. I'm afraid to let my 3-year-old daughter go into the backyard." Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

It stands as an empty monument to future generations.

Created with the hopes of providing a place for young people to experience some of the world's treasures, the 57,000-square-foot Children's Museum of Los Angeles is complete.

Now all it needs is the voices of children. Daily News.

"It is frustrating to be here every day and know that all we need are kids to make it whole," said Cecilia Aguilera Glassman, chief executive officer brought in last year to help spur fundraising.

More than 2 million Californians purchase their own medical coverage - a number that's growing as fewer employers offer group coverage. McClatchey News.

Thwarted in their efforts to overhaul the state's health-care system, consumer advocates are now concentrating their efforts instead on tightening regulation of that market.

Unlike the heavily regulated group insurance market, advocates say the individual insurance market is rife with "junk insurance" policies that provide minimum benefits, such as hospital-only coverage, and don't set limits on out-of-pocket expenses.

Back in October 2004, then-Los Angeles city Firefighter Tennie Pierce sprinkled extra Parmesan on his spaghetti to hide a strange taste. It didn't work. Beth Barrett in the Daily News.

When Pierce discovered his meal had been spiked with dog food, he was incensed, but he walked out of the kitchen at Fire Station 5 in Westchester rather than lash out at his colleagues.

The prank Pierce came to believe was racially motivated landed him a nearly $1.5 million cash settlement from the city while setting a new standard among critics for preposterous lawsuits and payouts.

But for Pierce, who talked with the Daily News recently in his lawyer Genie Harrison's downtown office, the case was never about the money. In fact, he says, he took a financial "hit" with all of his expenses, taxes and the truncation of his career.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa missed the opportunity last week to be among the first of California officials to preside over a same sex marriage, but he is stepping up to the task on Monday.
His office announced he will preside over the wedding of Bruce Cohen and Gabriel Catone, who have been partners for five years.
Cohen is an Academy Award-winning producer for American Beauty and has also produced Big Fish, Pushing Daisies and Milk, the upcoming film about slain San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk. Catone is a successful art consultant in New York.
The ceremony will be held in the mayor's conference room in City Hall.
Villaraigosa was in Israel when same sex marriages became legal and, over the weekend was in Miami for the U.S. Converence of Mayors, where he also held a fundraisder for his campaign next year and met with Sen. Barack Obama.

Eight years after Los Angeles leaders killed a multimillion-dollar water-recycling project amid vitriolic debate over politics and safety, the dubiously dubbed "toilet to tap" plan is back. Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has made recycled water the centerpiece of his 20-year water plan, and now the one-time critic has become the leading proponent for purifying sewage and wastewater and returning it to the drinking-water supply.

But as Villaraigosa and the Department of Water and Power prepare to pitch the next generation of recycled water, the question remains whether political, scientific - and perhaps more importantly, public - opinions have changed over the last eight years.

In the Northeast Valley, where a spate of teen homicides has shaken residents, and prosecutors are proposing a gang injunction, Pedro Martinez has looks that can get a young man killed. Rachel Uranga in the Daily News.

Nearly 6 feet tall and stocky, with a shaved head, the 18-year-old has twice in the past month been asked "Where you from?" - often a prelude to a gang shooting.

But on a recent balmy evening at Sylmar Park, Martinez - who has tried hard to avoid gangs - doesn't have to worry about offering the wrong answer.

The office of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Friday it was still
determining the final costs involved in the 33-person delegation to
Israel last week, but that city departments put $240,000 up front to
cover the costs.
Spokesman Mayt Szabo said the Departments of Harbor, Airports and
Water and Power each advanaced $80,000 to cover the costs of the trip,
which involved discussions around homeland security and environmental
issues.
A full accounting will be provided once all the bills are in and some
of the individuals reimburse the city for their costs.
Whatever the final cost, Szabo said it was worth it.
"The cost of the mayor's mission to Israel is a bargain when you consider that he's bringing world-leading expertise in airport security, port security, counter-terrorism and energy independence to Los Angeles," Szabo said
" Enhancing the security of LA residents is a central responsibility of the mayor, and the investment in cutting-edge research will pay dividends for years to come."

--30--

The Association of Los Angeles Deputie want you to know that the people they serve love them.
As the group, representing 8,000 deputies, prepares to begin contract talks in the next few months, it has released a survey showing that 83 percent of residents polled in areas served by teh sheriffs rate it as their top priority _ over health care, libraries and parks.
Not surprisingly, it also found that 82 percent believed salaries shoulde be comptetive with other law enforcment agencies.
Deputies are paid comparable to what the LAPD pays its officers.
ALADS President Steve Remige said the survey confirms the notion of public support for deputies.
. "Despite tightening budgets, county residents are not willing to short change public safety and jeopardize their safety or the safety of their families."

Fresh from his trip to Israel, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is headed off to Miami where he will be one of the principal speakers at the meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and also get involved with some presidential politicking.
Villaraigosa is to talk about the economic issues facing cities as well as discuss immigration, the environment and crime as challenges that need to be addressed by mayors across the country.
But, he also is scheduled to meet with presumed Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, according to LAIST.
Villaraigosa was among the most prominent of supporters for Sen. Hillary Clinton and was credited with helping her win the Latino vote. After Clinton's withdrawal from the race, Villaraigosa said he would do all he can to help Obama win the election.

-30--

Click photo to enlarge
A pair of attendees to the American Health Insurance Plans convention... (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

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Nurses, politicians and union leaders stood on the steps of the Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center on Thursday to decry proposed state budget cuts to health programs, which they called the biggest blow to hospitals in a quarter-century.Susan Abram in the Daily News.

Almost immediately, the more than $50 million in proposed cuts to the Los Angeles County health-care system would lead to longer emergency room lines at private hospitals, reduce the number of ambulances and slash services to the county's most needy residents, they warned.

"The prisons get built, the roads get built, the real estate market gets taken care of," an angry county Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said of the cuts. "It's the human services that get the shaft."

Ernesto Alonso came to the United States 20 years ago, alone and looking for work - and a better life.

Over the years, he bounced around from job to job as he tried to make ends meet. But the North Hollywood resident never made becoming a citizen a priority until this presidential election.Justino Aguila in the Daily News.

"I'm becoming a citizen because I want to vote," Alonso said Thursday as his wife, Irene, and 9-year-old son, Miguel, stood by him during a citizenship ceremony at a Montebello banquet hall. "I want to be part of this country."

Department of Water and Power commissioners unanimously approved a $4.7 billion fiscal 2008-09 budget Thursday that would add nearly 1,000 employees to the massive utility. Beth Barrett in the Daily News.

The budget includes $3.6 billion for the DWP's power division and $1.1 billion for the water side, including projects that are part of the utility's five-year power-reliability program and to upgrade the city's water infrastructure.

The DWP expects to spend about $112 million in salaries and benefits in expanding the work force by 10 percent to the highest level in a decade. The anticipated increase to 9,500 employees comes as revenue from water and power rate hikes is expected to total about $100 million next year.

Say hello to his little friend.

And, then let loose with the best barrage of foul language you can think of to match "Scarface" Tony Montana at the L.A. Film Fest, held at the county's Ford Theater. Daily News.

In an event billed as "Swear-A-Long Scarface," adult members of the audience will be invited at 8:30 p.m. today to try to match the 226 "f-bombs" dropped by Al Pacino in his role as Montana in the film.

The fact it is at a cou

Sen. Barack Obama's sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, will be campaigning on his behalf this Saturday
at a lunch saluting his volunteers and begin the effort for the Nov. 3 election.
Soetoro-Ng will be at Hecho en Mexico, 4976 Huntington Drive, Los Angeles, starting at 12:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

Flush with cash from recent taxpayer rate hikes, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is pouring money into expanding its work force by 10 percent -- to the highest level in a decade. Beth Barrett in the Daily News.

The DWP expects to spend about $112 million in salaries and benefits for nearly 1,000 new employees next year to jump-start a five-year, $1 billion power-reliability program and continue a $1.5 billion revamp of the city's water infrastructure.

The hirings would bring the DWP's total work force to about 9,500 as revenue from the water and power rate hikes is expected to total about $100 million in fiscal year 2008-09. The board will consider the budget containing the new staffing today.

Defending the cost of his weeklong trip to Israel, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Wednesday that the city learned invaluable lessons and created new relationships to improve security, environmental technology and economic benefits for Los Angeles. Daily News.

"I am mayor of Los Angeles, a global city and not some little city in the desert," Villaraigosa said at a City Hall news conference only hours after his return. "It is important for us to have and sustain our relationships."

No official cost figures have been released, but most estimates put the cost of the trip at $100,000. It is being financed by the departments of Airports, Harbor and Water and Power.

Councilman Jack Weiss, who was part of the 33-person delegation accompanying Villaraigosa, said the mayor was accorded the same access that would be given a presidential candidate.

After hearing from a parade of witnesses making tearful pleas to protect the lives of their children, a Los Angeles city official said Wednesday that she is more convinced than ever that it is time to ask taxpayers to pay more for anti-gang programs.Daily News.

More than two dozen speakers, many of whom have lost their children to gang violence, pleaded with the City Council to make fighting gangs their top priority.

"We don't want to shed any more tears over this," Councilwoman Janice Hahn said. "What you have done is give us courage to move ahead."

Hahn said that Friday she will formally introduce her proposal to have a $36-a-year parcel tax measure drafted for the November ballot.

Supt. David L. Brewer III was honored this past weekend by the Los Angeles National Association for the Advancement ofColored People (NAACP) Youth Council with a medal of valor.
"Superintendent Brewer is a role model for our youth to stay in school,
get an education and to build a successful career," said NAACP Youth
Council Advisor Meredith Wilson.
"He was chosen, not only because he is an outstanding leader in our society, but because he also served our country and is now in an influential position that is not commonly held by African-American men."
The event was held last Saturday with a crowd of 175 on hand. KABC anchor Marc Brown served as master of ceremonies.
"I am honored to accept the Man of Valor award from the Los Angeles
NAACP Youth Council," said Brewer." Although I do my job for the youth
of Los Angeles, it is important that we all work to mentor and help our
students become college prepared and career ready."

Improbable as it sounds, California won't fall into a recession this year despite the intensifying housing market meltdown, according to UCLA's Anderson Forecast set for release today. Gregory J. Wilcox in the Daily News.

The outlook, similar in tone to one issued in March, calls for a "very weak" economy this year. But to anyone working in real estate, it will feel like a depression.

"The carnage is palpable but contained as California benefits from some very traditional industries and its position in the sun on the edge of the Pacific Rim," Anderson economist Jerry Nickelsburg wrote in his outlook for the state.

While a little more bearish, forecast director Edward Leamer thinks the nation will most likely dodge a recession also.

Faced with several hundred million dollars in potential state cuts and increased employee retirement costs, the county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a $22.3 billion budget, an increase of $346 million over the budget proposed in April. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

The additional funding in the 2008-09 budget will pay for renovations at the county's Museum of Natural History, the Music Center, the Museum of Art and La Plaza de Cultura y Arte, as well as infrastructure improvements. It will also boost funding for public safety and the child-protective system.

"We've added some additional funding for our critical capital programs, especially in the area of our cultural facilities," Chief Executive Officer Bill Fujioka said. "We have also added money for our medical programs in the jails and our electronic monitoring program."

The additional funds will allow the county to hire 246 more employees, including five custody assistants to conduct interviews of jail inmates before they are released to determine if they are undocumented immigrants. Eight officers in the jails conducting the interviews now are identifying an estimated 30 percent of the inmates who are undocumented immigrants.

Lobbying in Sacramento this week, Los Angeles business leaders are calling on state officials to look at a combination of spending cuts and tax increases - including boosting the car tax - to balance the state's projected $15.2 billion budget shortfall. Daily News.

In a survey of its members, the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce said the vehicle license fee - which Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger rode as an issue to the recall of former Gov. Gray Davis - should be reinstated to bring in an estimated $6 billion to help the state balance its $144.3 billion budget.

"What our members recognize is the magnitude of the problem calls for us to support something like this," said board Chairman Tim McCallion, who led a delegation of business leaders on a lobbying trip to the Capitol this week.

It will cost motorists who violate city parking laws an extra $5 soon under an action by the Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday as it searches for new revenue to balance its $7.01 billion budget. Daily News.

The increases in fines are expected to raise an additional $6.6 million next fiscal year, once they take effect in late July. They are part of a package of revenue increases to cover a $406 million shortfall projected in the city's budget.

The council voted 10-0 to approve the increases, and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has said he will sign them into law.

"I think everyone has to understand that this was part of an overall budget package we adopted to keep the city in balance," Councilwoman Wendy Greuel said.

The average parking fine will be increased to $35.

The city has 143 separate vio

Eggshells, carrot peel, coffee grounds - sounds like garbage, right?

Not anymore. Starting in September, more than 8,000 families in Los Angeles will be asked to recycle their food waste instead of trashing it. Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

The city will launch a pilot project in South Los Angeles and North Central neighborhoods to see if Los Angeles can successfully recycle food waste, without creating a smelly mess.

Angelenos could potentially recycle 8 to 20 pounds of food waste per household each week.

The price of a Southern California home plunged a record 27 percent in May from a year ago as foreclosures continued to hammer the market and sales hit a 20-year low, an industry tracker said Monday.Gregor J. Wilcox in the Daily News.

Prices declined by large amounts in all six counties and are now near 2004 levels, said DataQuick Information Systems.

In Los Angeles County, the price fell 23.3 percent, to $422,000, also a record percentage drop.

Over the past 12 months the region's median price lost $135,000, declining to $370,000 from a record $505,000 in May 2007, DataQuick said. The median price in May slipped 3.9 percent from April, it said.

The builder of the 5,553-home Las Lomas development filed a long-anticipated lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles on Monday to jump-start the stalled project and recoup $100 million in alleged damages.

The City Council essentially killed the project in March when members voted to stop processing Las Lomas' environmental review, which is required for the development to annex to the city.Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

Council members at the time said they fully expected a legal challenge from developer Dan S. Palmer Jr.

In the lawsuit, filed Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court, Las Lomas Land Company LLC charged that the city prematurely stopped review of the project for "arbitrary, discriminatory and illegitimate reasons."

Surprise, surprise - Los Angeles is the most congested city in the nation, according to a report set for release today by a traffic-information provider. Sue Doyle in the Daily News.

And Thursday evenings from 5 to 6 is the absolute worst time for Angelenos to hit the roads, according to the first national scorecard report by INRIX, a Washington, D.C.-based traffic-information provider studying America's roadways.

"It's striking the amount of roads and number of places in America that are perpetually congested," said Rick Shuman, INRIX's vice president.

First Council President Eric Garcetti announces he's performing a marriage ceremony Tuesday morning on the front steps of City Hall for two women, who made the love connection while working in his employ. Ah how sweet.

Now Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa wants to make L.A. the nation's top destination for gay weddings.

Said the press release from his office:

"With sunny skies, beautiful beaches and world-class attractions, Los Angeles is the picture perfect place where couples can finally take their vows and enjoy an unforgettable honeymoon," Mayor Villaraigosa said.

"From Hollywood Boulevard and Universal Studios to the Venice Boardwalk and L.A. Live, the wedding bells will be ringing all summer long in the City of Angels."

Not a bad idea for the cash-strapped city. LA Inc. estimates same-sex couples and their families could spend $57 million a year in Los Angeles on nuptials.

The California Democratic Party's Resolutions Committee unanimously rejected a resolution from the Sonoma County Democrats to censure U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein today. California Majority Report.

Executive Board Resolutions Committee member Luke Breitt led the opposition, with several other members of the committee scolding the Sonoma Democrats to "move on." Several other members of the committee lashed out at the proposal, and one suggested a resolution be drafted to praise Senator Feinstein for her work advancing Democratic causes. Just last year, the Progressive Caucus led a similar effort to censure Feinstein, only to be thwarted by the strong intervention of CDP Chair Art Torres.

TIPOFFS: Jewish supporters of Obama meet to deal with misconceptions

Antonio Lopez held a placard with a picture of his grandson and murdered son at the first annual Father's Day Walk For Peace in Pacoima on Saturday.Jerry Berrios in the Daily News.

Lopez's son, Kevin Lopez, was shot and killed in October outside the home he shared with his wife and 1-year-old son.

"It is the first Father's Day without him," said Lopez, who turns 57 today. "It is going to be really sad."

Lopez and his wife, Ericka, said they plan to go to church today, pray for Kevin and dedicate the day to him.

On Saturday, the couple joined hundreds of friends and family members to march in memory of loved ones killed in gang-related incidents and in an effort to stop the violence.

Sometimes perception and reality never intersect.

The former, emboldened by an increasing volume of buzz, begins to carry the weight of fact, pushing the latter into the shadows.

Perusing the Mortgage Bankers Association Web site on Friday, I discovered that has been happening as the residential real estate market continues to sag. Gregory J. Wilcox in the Daily News.

At least, that's the MBA's take.

For Robin Tyler and Diane Olson, the next Valentine's Day will come early - Monday evening when they become one of the first two same-sex couples to legally marry in California.Tony Castro in the Daily News.

"We've waited a long time for this, and it really won't matter if we're the first or just one of the first," Olson said. "We're just on cloud nine that we can marry."

The two North Hills women, who have been partners for 15 years, were original plaintiffs in the historic lawsuit that revolutionized California's nuptial laws when the state Supreme Court ruled last month that the ban on same-sex marriages was unconstitutional.

Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, as he looks ahead to the 2010 governor's race, asks in this Youtube video (as well as his website) if Americans are content.
If the answer is no, as he suggests, it is time for people to take action.
"Polling tells us that more than three-quarters of us believe our nation and state are moving in the wrong direction," Garamendi says "Frustration is mounting: sky-high gas prices, rampant home foreclosures, new limits on healthcare, teachers being pink-slipped and a war that just won't end."

A report from Ynet News on the visit by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on his trip:

" Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa paid a visit to Sderot on Friday to launch the "Gateway to Education" project, aimed at providing the Qassam-battered town's children with a higher level of education.
Accompanied by Sderot Mayor Eli Moyal, Villaraigosa opened his visit at a local religious school, where he spoke of the courage being displayed by the residents of the Gaza-vicinity communities amid the incessant attacks emanating from the Strip, adding that he believed the region had a bright future.

In an overture to Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, who put his presidential campaign on hold, teh Libertarian Party praised the Republican for his campaign themes.
The Libertarians, who nominated former Rep. Bob Barr as their presidential nominee, issued a rellease thanking Paul "for all that he had done for liberty in his presidential bid.
"Paul fought an uphill battle for liberty every day in his presidential campaign against all of the big-government juggernauts of the Republican Party," says Libertarian Party spokesperson Andrew Davis.
"Paul opened many doors for liberty in this nation through his presidential campaign," Davis continued. "By that standard--of which all politicians should be judged--he won a bigger victory than John McCain or Barack Obama ever will. Ron Paul worked to empower the people, not the government. That is a rare trait in today's political world."
Paul was the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate in 1988, and remains a lifetime member of the Libertarian Party.

This week's $46 billion bid by a Belgian brewer to take over Anheuser-Busch could be a boon for the San Fernando Valley and its 800-worker plant in Van Nuys, local business leaders said Thursday.Beth Barrett in the Daily News.

Despite fears that InBev SA would move to slash Anheuser-Busch operations, InBev officials made it clear Thursday that there is no plan to close any U.S. plants and that, in fact, expansion is more likely.

"We're working to grow the business and the company," said Marianne Amssoms, spokeswoman for the 89,000-employee company whose brands include Beck's and Stella Artois.

Federal Judge Alex Kozinski, under scrutiny for a web site he maintained with sexually oriented pictures, is no shrinking violet, judged by a letter he submitted to a judicial blog.
The blog, Underneath Their Robes, had a survey a couple of years ago on the hottest judges. Kozinski took exception to being left off and nominated himself in a hilarious letter to the site. A snippet:
"I must say that I'm severely disappointed in the slate of candidates you have fielded for your Judicial Hottie contest. While I think the list of female candidates is excellent, the list of male candidates is, frankly, lacking. And what it's lacking is me.
"Sure, John Roberts and Jeff Sutton are young and extremely handsome, but so what? I have it on very good authority that discerning females and gay men find graying, pudgy, middle-aged men with an accent close to Gov. Schwarzenegger's almost totally irresistible.
"So I nominate myself."

Over the last two months, Sen. Alex Padilla, D Los Angeles, guided a controversial bill through the Senate committee process, with some help from Republicans and moderate Democrats. But Senate leader Don Perata intervened, citing a breech in senatorial decorum, and exiled the bill to legislative purgatory. Capitol Weekly.

The story of SB 1389 ultimately shows the power the Pro Tem has over the Senate. It is also a story about Padilla, a former president of the Los Angeles City Council and Sacramento freshman, who was tagged as a rising star even before he took office. The bill's Senate journey also raises issues of what some Senate observers say is an evolving set of rules of etiquette in the post term-limits era.

Senate sources say Perata killed the bill because its passage violated a fundamental rule of the Senate - defer to the committee chairmen. Padilla says he was in constant communication with the heads of both committees that heard the bill - Senate Energy Chairwoman Christine Kehoe, D-San Diego, and Appropriations Chairman Tom Torlakson, D-Antioch - and that any breach of etiquette was accidental.

Marking a win for taxpayer advocates, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power lost a key court battle Wednesday over its multimillion-dollar transfer of ratepayer funds to city coffers each year. Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kenneth R. Freeman issued the tentative ruling Wednesday in which he refused to validate the annual cash transfer on procedural grounds.

But Freeman did not rule on the crucial question of whether the DWP has been illegally overcharging water ratepayers in order to transfer millions of dollars a year to the city's general fund to pay for police, fire and other city services.

A nationally acclaimed alternative high school with a tough-love reputation for righting troubled teens will close this month because of dwindling enrollment. Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

The West Valley Leadership Academy, a one-room schoolhouse that has turned around scores of gang members, drug addicts and truants, will close June 30.

While the Los Angeles County Office of Education says it must shutter 18 alternative high schools because of decreasing student enrollment and funds, academy founder Paul White says he's been targeted for his no-nonsense approach to teaching.

A $4.5 million project to rebuild a wild bird habitat is under way at Balboa Park's Bull Creek, but many residents are complaining that the effort has left them fenced out of their favorite spot. Susan Abram in the Daily News.

The Bull Creek Ecosystem Restoration Project includes reviving 28 acres within the Sepulveda Dam Flood Control basin to encourage 200 species of wild birds, including the American goldfinch, the Ash-throated flycatcher and the Bullock's oriole, to nest and thrive within the area.

Plans include building a C-shape side channel to allow reclaimed water from Lake Balboa to flow around an island, as well as pedestrian bridges over key parts of the channel.

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton was gracious in her full-throated endorsement of Senator Barack Obama. But that does not mean all is forgiven by others in the Clinton universe. New York Times.
For proof, look no further than Doug Band, chief gatekeeper to former President Bill Clinton.
Mr. Band keeps close track of the past allies and beneficiaries of the Clintons who supported Mr. Obama's campaign, three Clinton associates and campaign officials said. Indeed, he is widely known as a member of the Clinton inner circle whose memory is particularly acute on the matter of who has been there for the couple -- and who has no

The leader of the California State Assembly has warned legislators that they may not cast "ghost votes" on bills when they are not in the chamber. S.F. Chronicle.

Speaker Karen Bass, D-Baldwin Vista (Los Angeles County), told Democratic lawmakers at a caucus Tuesday that they may cast electronic votes for other members only when they are present on the Assembly chamber's green carpet but simply away from their desks.

"We are going to enforce the existing policy, which means that there will be no voting when a member is off the floor," Bass said in an interview later Tuesday.

Leaders from cities around the San Fernando Valley have begun meeting to form a Council of Governments that would work together on regional issues important to the Valley. Kerry
Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

The group would include representatives of the city and county of Los Angeles, Burbank, Glendale, Calabasas, Hidden Hills and San Fernando.

Issues of transportation, housing and economic development cross city lines but there is currently no established forum for Valley cities to regularly meet, build consensus and apply for funding for regional concerns.

The commission that sets state elected officials' salaries imposed a pay freeze Tuesday, but rejected an attempt to cut most legislators' wages 10 percent to help balance the state budget. AP in the Daily News.

Some commissioners, however, suggested that lawmakers and other elected officials should voluntarily give up some of their pay to help erase the state's red ink.

"We should send a message to our elected (officials) that we are concerned and that we do strongly recommend that they take a pay decrease so they can voluntarily share in this deficit like everyone else," said commissioner Kathy Sands, a former mayor of Auburn.

As Los Angeles County officials look for ways to trim expenses, an audit released Tuesday found lax oversight of employees' use of county credit cards, including workers who racked up $68,700 in unallowable charges. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

The audit said about 600 credit cards are used by employees in 12 departments, with annual purchases of about $3.4 million.

But auditors found that employees split purchases with other cardholders to circumvent purchase limits, some departments allowed unauthorized employees to use the cards, and some managers did not cancel credit cards after cardholders left the department.

Charter schools in the San Fernando Valley, already among the highest-performing schools in LAUSD, are outperforming their traditional counterparts, a study released Tuesday by the California Charter Schools Association said.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Comparing state and federal test results in the Los Angeles Unified School District, the study found that nearly two out of three Valley charter schools performed better academically than their traditional counterparts, in line with schools district-wide.

Caprice Young, chief executive officer of the California Charter Schools Association, said she hoped the study would help legitimize charter schools in the eyes of parents.

"Parents have to make a choice of where to send their children," Young said.

Wading into what has become a politically sensitive issue across the country, a Los Angeles school board member will join with the City Attorney's Office today to explore whether students should be required to wear uniforms. Daily News.

"I look at this as the opening dialogue to see what works and what doesn't," Tamar Galatzan said of her hearing today with City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo.

"There has been a lot of debate over this, and we want to see if we can come up with a district policy.

Most importantly, we want to look at schools where it has had problems and look at why it didn't work."

Bill Clinton on Tuesday canceled a commencement speech at the University of California, Los Angeles, because of a lingering labor dispute. Associated Press.

The former president was scheduled to address 4,000 graduating seniors on Friday, but his office said he would not appear because of the long-running rift between the university and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

The 20,000 workers involved in the wage dispute range from technicians at UC medical facilities to janitors and landscapers. Contract talks have sputtered for months.

"Due to the ongoing labor dispute, he regrets that he will be unable to participate in commencement this year and he wishes the UCLA graduates the best of luck," a statement from Clinton's office said.

Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes pulled controversial proposed land-use legislation Monday amid criticism from fellow elected officials and constituents for introducing the bill at the request of a developer who would benefit from it.Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

Fuentes pulled AB 212 off the June 18 committee agenda and said he will let the bill die before its first hearing.

"We're going to take a real good look into this process and see if there is a need for state legislation," Fuentes said.

The parent company of the developer of the 21,000-home Newhall Ranch project has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, adding another hurdle in the decade-long quest to build California's largest residential community. Karen Maeshiro in the Daily News.

Hammered by plummeting property values and tight credit, LandSource Communities Development LLC - which owns The Newhall Land and Farming Company - said late Sunday that it was unable to reach a loan restructuring agreement with lenders.

"LandSource tried for several months to reach agreement with its lenders on how to modify and restructure its debt in order to bring it more in line with the realities of today's real estate market," Tamara Taylorreal, a spokeswoman for the real estate partnership, said Monday.

The Grand Avenue Authority on Monday granted a 60-day extension to the developer of the project as the firm struggles to obtain a loan to begin construction this month on the $1 billion first phase. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

Los Angeles city and county officials said they plan to work with The Related Cos. over the next two months to negotiate schedule changes and determine whether it will be necessary to delay the start of construction until February.

"I think we need further discussions and assurances of where we're at," authority chairwoman and county Supervisor Gloria Molina said. "They are not ready with their construction documents and it's very tough to get a loan right now.

As it tried to explain a spate of killings over the weekend, the LAPD received some good news Monday - violent crime in the city fell almost 9percent last year, mirroring a national trend, according to figures released by the FBI. Aron Miller in the Daily News.

During 2007, there were 27,801 violent crimes - homicides, rapes, robberies and aggravated assaults - in L.A., compared with 30,526 the previous year, the preliminary FBI statistics show.

Homicides in the city dropped 19 percent - from 480 to 390, L.A.'s lowest number since 1970 - while robberies were down 6percent and aggravated assaults fell 11.7percent.

"We hope it continues," said Jeff Godown, who head the Los Angeles Police Department's Compstat Unit, which tracks crime statistics. "We are working on homicide numbers of historic proportions, but you

As he prepares for his trip to Israel, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is stumping for his re-election bid with some fundraisers in New York City.
The big one is expected tonight with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg _ who offered several months ago to host the event, Other smaller events are planned for Tuesday while the mayor is schedyuled to depart on Wednesday.
Villaraigosa has used his trips out of the city in recent months to raise money for his cxampaign even though no serious opponents have emerged.

City Council President Eric Garcetti is being promoted by an independent web site, Garcetti for Mayor, to challenge Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa next year.
Garcetti, who is up for re-election to his Hollywood-area seat, has given no indication he has any plans to run against the mayor.
A couple of blogs, LAist and MayorSam, have taken note of the site.
In its initial entry, the site notes:
"Now that City Council President Eric Garcetti successfully campaigned (as one of California's 65 democratic super-delegates) for Barack Obama and has witnessed his rise to the nomination thanks to a groundswell of encouragement from supporters, can the community come out to convince Garcetti to throw in his hat for the 2009 Los Angeles Mayoral Election?"
The backers of the site, who are anonymous, say the site is "is independently operated and is not for profit. It was started by volunteers without the knowledge of Mr. Garcetti and is in no way affiliated with his office, the LA City Council, the Mayor's Office, the Democratic Party, or otherwise."

Facing massive proposed state budget cuts, Los Angeles Unified schools chief David BrewerIII is weighing a mandatory, unpaid furlough program for all district workers - including teachers. Beth Barrett in the Daily News.

Brewer told the Daily News last week that he is continuing to lobby the state to restore $353 million for LAUSD, but he said that if legislators don't relent he's also looking at possible layoffs of more than 400 nonschool staff.

Although he said he will not seek any layoffs of teachers, Brewer said other reductions could include deferring workers' compensation payments and cutting back on book purchases.

TIPOFFS: Officials can't wait to perfrom weddings; looking ahead to November.

Leaders of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists approved a new contract with Hollywood studios that grants actors more money for Internet work - an issue that sparked a crippling writers' strike earlier this year.

AFTRA's board approved the three-year deal late Friday and it will go to the union's 70,000 members for ratification later this month, the union announced Saturday. The current contract was set to end June 30.AP in the Daily News.

The agreement "makes sense for all performers," AFTRA's national president, Roberta Reardon, said in the written statement. "AFTRA members now have the opportunity to vote `yes' for higher pay, improved working conditions and continued right of consent for use of excerpts in New Media."

The deal covers only a handful of prime-time TV shows, including HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm," the CBS drama "Rules of Engagement" and ABC's "Cashmere Mafia."

Weekends at the beach and outings to the desert are over for Angel Weber, who is now struggling to stay on top of a skimpy budget slowly being drained by teeth-gritting prices at the pump.Sue Doyle in the Daily News

To stay afloat, the 60-year-old receptionist shops for groceries at Wal-Mart, shares an apartment and never buys new clothes.

She hasn't been on a vacation in years.

Life was not always so meager for the mother of two who once owned a three-bedroom house in Temecula, belonged to a country club and had a comfortable job in the subprime mortgage industry.

San Fernando Valley supporters of Sen. Barack Obama are wasting little time on congratulatory celebrations and instead have begun firing up a voter-registration drive aimed at increasing the already record numbers backing the presumptive Democratic nominee's historic campaign for the presidency.Tony Castro in the Daily News.

And the major weekend voter-registration drive in the San Fernando Valley is a microcosm of what the campaign is doing nationally, according to Obama delegates to the Democratic National Convention in Denver this August and other supporters.

"I think almost every Democrat is elated over the concept of all the new people that have been brought into the political process," said Erikson Albrecht of North Hollywood, an Obama delegate from the 28th Congressional District.

Pink slips piled up and jobs disappeared into thin air in May as the nation's unemployment rate zoomed to 5.5 percent in the biggest one-month jump in decades. Wall Street swooned, and President Bush was considering new proposals to revive the economy.AP in the Daily News.

Help-wanted signs are vanishing along with jobs. The unemployment rate is likely to keep climbing, a government report indicated.

Adding to the pain, oil prices soared to a new record high, while the value of the dollar fell.

Thousands of Los Angeles teachers wearing red T-shirts left their classrooms Friday and marched in front of their campuses in a one-hour protest against state budget cuts. Daily News.

The walkouts triggered none of the campus disruptions feared by Los Angeles Unified School District administrators, who had sought a court order to block the protests on grounds they would put students in harm's way.

At schools across the city, teachers, parents and students waved signs and chanted opposition to a budget that could cut as much as $353 million this year from the district's $13.9 billion budget.

For one last time, she watched them walk by in single file, sporting smiles and decked out in celebratory garb. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

It was a cool, sunny day for Tyree Wieder's last graduation ceremony after 14 years as president of Valley College.

As she took pictures of her graduating students, Wieder reflected on her long education career and what she will leave behind when she retires this summer.

"I will miss the students, the people I work with and the challenges," she said.

To prevent Southern California from drawing down emergency water supplies amid a drought, cities throughout the area are under pressure to hike rates for water hogs and enact tough new rules that limit everything from lawn irrigation to hosing down sidewalks. Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

Earlier this week, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a statewide drought. Now the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California - the wholesaler that sells water to cities and water agencies throughout the region - is expected to declare a water supply alert next week.

If passed by the MWD board, all 26 cities and agencies served by the MWD would be urged to enact drought ordinances that require conservation and set higher rates for water wasters.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Cal., who became America's best known hostess this week with the sitdown at her home between Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton, will talk about the presidential campaign on the Sunday talk shows.
Feinstein is scheduled to appear on "This Week with George Stephanapoulos" on ABC and follow that with an appearance on "Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer" on CNN.

Senator Dianne Feinstein of California got the call from Hillary Rodham Clinton Thursday afternoon: Could she, would she let Mrs. Clinton use her home in Northwest Washington for a little sit-down with a certain senator from Illinois, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president of the United States? New York Times.

Mrs. Feinstein had made the offer before and it was still good. And so a few hours later, at just about 9 p.m., Mrs. Clinton and Senator Barack Obama arrived for a face to face chat. No staff. No spouses. Just the two of them in Mrs. Feinstein's living room.

The California senator had set up two chairs facing each other. She served them water. Nothing else. Two aides were sent to Mrs. Feinstein's study. And Secret Service agents stayed outside.

Holding up signs and sporting matching T-shirts, thousands of parents, students and teachers from charter schools across Los Angeles marched downtown Thursday to ask for more charter funds, protest potential cuts and announce formation of the first statewide charter advocacy group. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Although charter schools have begun to work with Los Angeles Unified School District officials, families and teachers still complained about the district's treatment of charters.

"Charter schools are still not getting their fair share. They get $3,000 less per kid, and they don't get any facilities," said Jacqueline Elliot, who chairs and co-founded the new advocacy group, Families That Can, which organized the protest.

As he prepares to shift his campaign help to Sen. Barack Obama, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa told reporters on Thursday that he felt inspired by Obama. Rachel Uranga reporting for the Daily News.
"He is inspiring," Villaraigosa said at a news conference. "I think he clearly touched a chord with the American people when he talked about a need for change. I look forward to doing what I can."
Villaraigosa said he has had private conversations with Obama, but would not disclose the details.
"I have made it very clear that as the presumptive nominee of our party, I will be campaigning for Sen. Obama," said Villaraigosa, who endorsed Clinton early in the campaign and served as one of her national co-chairs.
"I was proud to have supported Sen. Clinton in her effort. I have never been involved in a presidential campaign where I have seen anyone with the passion and persistence and intestinal fortitude of Hillary Clinton and I was proud to be associated with that campaign.
"But now that Sen. Obama is the presumptive nominee, I have said for a long time that I am prepared to work as hard for him as I have for Sen. Clinton."
The mayor said it is unclear what role he will play at the national convention in August.
"I have spoken at two conventions now and I am not focused on that, I am focused on winning back the White House and changing the course of our foreign policy and domestic policy."

The Los Angeles City Council is canceling its Friday meeting in Van Nuys so its members can attend the celebration of Assembly Speaker Karen Bass, being sworn in to her new post at a Los Angeles ceremony.
Bass, the first African-American woman speaker, is hosting the event at Los Angeles Trade Tech to allow her constituents to be part of the celebration.

California voters appear to have set a record Tuesday: the lowest turnout in state history. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

Overall, just 22 percent of registered voters across the Golden State cast ballots in the statewide primary election.

And Los Angeles County voters even had their own distinction: Just 16.48 percent of them, the lowest turnout among all counties statewide, showed up at the polls.

After two years of little rainfall, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a statewide drought today that will trigger water efficiency and conservation programs throughout California. Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

The governor's announcement came hours before the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power approved new water conservation rules that limit lawn watering, car washing and other water uses.

The board also ok'd penalties starting at $100 for people who ignore water conservation laws.

While analysts say gerrymandering means the state's November general election was virtually decided by Tuesday's primary, underdog candidates hoped to defy the odds as they hit the campaign trail Wednesday.Jerry Berrios in the Daily News.

Armineh Chelebian, who won the GOP nod in the heavily Democratic 40th Assembly District in Van Nuys, knows she faces an uphill battle against Democratic nominee Bob Blumenfield.

But she has faced long odds before in unsuccessful bids for Assembly and the Los Angeles City Council, and she is not deterred.

She described Blumenfield as a "Washington insider" and said the public is looking for political change this year.

He was one of Sen, Hillary Clinton's highest profile endorsers, but with Sen. Barack Obana securing the nomination on Tuesday, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is preparing to switch his allegience.
Villaraigosa endorsed Clinton last May and served as one of her national campaign chairs, campaigning for her in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, Texas and throughout California.
"I spoke with Sen. Clinton yesterday and I said to her, `I've never been prouder to support a presidential candidate,'" Villaraigosa said.
But with Obama winning the nomination, he said he is prepared to switch his support. "I also believe that Barack Obama is going to be a great standard-bearer for our party," the mayor said. "Yesterday, we crossed a threshold. Americans said it's time for change. They're looking for a leader who can inspire us, and the message is clear -- we all have a lot of work to do to make sure that that change comes to fruition."

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power will pay Cindy Montanez $12,500 a month to serve as special advisor to the utility's general manager.

DWP General Manager H. David Nahai announced yesterday that he is hiring Montanez, the former assemblywoman and one-time candidate for City Council, to report to him on state policy issues.

She is on contract for three months and will work full time.

"Cindy will provide expert advisory services, advocacy, strategic analysis, and stakeholder development relative to California state policy and legislation," Nahai wrote in a bulletin to DWP employees.

While the DWP already has paid lobbyists in Sacramento and a public relations staff in Los Angeles, Nahai said Montanez will help the DWP's efforts to influence policy and legislation.

The job is the latest for Montanez since she left office and dropped her council campaign in a nod to Councilman Richard Alarcon, who ultimately won the seat for the Northeast San Fernando Valley.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa appointed Montanez to the Los Angeles Planning Commission, an unpaid post. Former Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez appointed her to the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board, which pays nearly $130,000 a year.

June Melody was already hot and irritated from keeping the air conditioning off in her home to combat a soaring power bill. Kerry Cavanaugh and Beth Barrett in the Daily News.

So the West Hills resident was really ticked off to learn she could soon be ticketed $100 for watering her lawn during the daytime - as she was doing Tuesday.

That's because the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is considering strict new water conservation rules governing everything from lawn watering to car washing.

Angelenos who break the rules could face fines of up to $300 for repeat offenders.

Foreclosures hit a record pace in April across the San Fernando Valley, soaring 201 percent from a year earlier and pounding down home prices, researchers said Tuesday.Gregory J. Wilcox in the Daily News.

During April, 608 families lost a home to foreclosure, up from 202 a year earlier and 511 in March, according to the San Fernando Valley Economic Research Center.

Foreclosures are now on pace to break the quarterly record of 1,854 set in the third quarter of 1996 - the most recent time the housing market was in a slump, said Daniel Blake, director of the center at California State University, Northridge.

Construction has started on a new LAUSD high school in Granada Hills, one of two schools to start construction this week in the San Fernando Valley.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Sitting on the former site of Granada Hills Community Hospital, Valley Region High School No. 4 will alleviate overcrowding at Granada Hills, Monroe, Kennedy and Northridge Academy high schools.

Today the district will break ground on a new elementary school in Canoga Park.

The race for the Board of Supervisors will continue.
With neither Councilman Bernard Parks nor state Sen. Mark Ridley-Thomas capturing a majority, the two will face off in the Nov. 4 general election, Ridley-Thomas won 45 percent of the vote, Parks had 39 percent.
Alll other county officials easily won re-election.
In contested state races, former Assemblywoman Fran Pavley easily defeated Assemblyman Lloyd Levine for the Democratic nomination in the 23rd state Senate District, while Bob Blumenfield won in a crowded field for the 40th Assembly District. Blumenfield will face Republican Armineh Chelebian in the general election.

ballots are in and they show that Councilman Bernard Parks and state Sen. Mark Ridley-Thomas could be headed for a runoff.
But, it looks like other county races will be easily won by incumbents.
District Attorney Steve Cooley had a wide lead over two contenders as Supervisors Don Knabe and Mike Antonovich were also returning to new terms on the Board of Supervisors.
In the Parks-Ridley-Thomas race, one candidate would have to win a majority to avoid a Nov. 4 runoff.

Ridley-Thomas staged his party in the Grand Ballroom of the Sheraton at LAX, with a live band and some 250 people.
Three large projectors were visible to all, the one in the center played a slideshow of Ridley-Thomas pictures and the two on the side giving updated election results. Supporters dined on stuffed mushrooms and fancy appetizers - no roasted pork in the room.
Ridley-Thomas chatted with supporters and discussed the historic nature of the Obama selection. Daily News Staff Writer Brandon Lowrey reporting.

Low voter turnout and a virtually glitch-free day at the polls made Tuesday's primary election one of Los Angeles County's sleepiest in years, election officials and watchdog groups said. Sue Doyle in the Daily News.
The election saw none of the confusion of the presidential primary four months ago, when a peculiar ballot design created confusion for hundreds of thousands of nonpartisan voters.
"It's been a real quiet day," said Eileen Shea, spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County registrar-recorder.

In the hotly contested 40th Assembly District, Bob Blumenfield took an early lead over Laurette Healey with Stuart Waldman trailing for the
Democratic nomination. Dan McCrory was in fourth place.
On the Republican side, Armineh Chelebian held a lead over Ken Sherman.
In the 23rd Senate District, former Assemblywoman Fran Pavley was leading Assemblyman Lloyd Levine.

Absentee ballots are in and they show that Councilman Bernard Parks and state Sen. Mark Ridley-Thomas could be headed for a runoff.
But, it looks like other county races will be easily won by incumbents.
District Attorney Steve Cooley had a wide lead over two contenders as Supervisors Don Knabe and Mike Antonovich were also returning to new terms on the Board of Supervisors.
In the Parks-Ridley-Thomas race, one candidate would have to win a majority to avoid a Nov. 4 runoff.

Daily News staff writer Brandon Lowrey reports:
At the campaign rally site for Councilman Bernard Parks tonight, about a dozen volunteers and others sat on folding chairs and continued to make last-minute calls before the polls closed.
An alleyway behind the headquarters on Crenshaw Boulevard had been transformed into a makeshift fairground-like atmosphere with dozens of tables, chairs and food.
Among the offerings were carne asada, fried chicken, french fries and catfish that would be cooked up.
Muriel Jones, co-owner of Shabazz Restaurant, said the fete would include small business owners from the district they hope will be represented by Parks. She said the gathering will reflect what drew her to Parks, letting real people from the district have input.
"He really supports small business owners," she said, adding she doesn't agree with Parks on every issue but she can't say that about any candidate. "Here you see people from the community who support him get to actually be part of the campaign.
"And at the same time he doesn't bust the bank."

Sen. Barack Obama, after bumping knuckles with his wife Michelle, reveled in the winning of the nomination of the Democratic Party for president, ending the first part of a campaign that began officially five months ago in Iowa.
After offering thanks to his family, campaign team members and volunteers, Obama seized the moment.
"Thousands of miles have been traveled, millions of voices have been heard," Obama said, speaking in the arena Republicans will be using for their convention in September. "Because you chose to listen not to yourselves or you fears, but your greatest hopes, we mark the end of one historic journey with the beginning of another.
"Because of you, I can stand here and say I will be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States of America."

Sen. Clinton never conceded the election to Obama during her remarks, that served to wind up the effort.
"This has been a long campaign and I will make no decisions tonight," Clinton said, adding she wanted her supporters to go to her website, hillaryclinton.com, to offer their opinions and what she should do next in the campaign.

On the final night of the presidential campaign, bolstered by an apparent win in South Dakota, Sen. Hillary Clinton thanked a raucous New York crowd for their support.
She congratulated Obama "on the extraordinary race they have run.
"Our party and democracy is stronger as a result."
Joined by President Clinton and daughter Chelsea, Clinton urged the crowd to show their appreciation for his successes.
:"Sixteen months ago, you and I began a journey," Clinton said. "We saw millions of Americans, registering to vote for the first time, raising money for the first time...saying, 'See, you can be anything you want to be.'"
Clinton said she appreciated the support she received across the country, receiving more popular votes than any presidential candidate in history.

Sen. Barack Obama was declared the presumptive Democratic nominee at 6 p.m., PDT, becoming the first African-American to be nominated as president by a national political party.
It came as voters in South Dakota and Montana were going to the polls, wrapping up a historic presidential primary political season and setting the stage for the November election.

Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, took advantage of the nation's attention on politics to offer congratulations to Sen. Barack Obama and try to set the terms of the national campaign.
Speaking in New Orleans, McCain addressed a rally before the polls closed in South Dakota and Montana, where he sought to distance himself from the policies of President Bush.
McCain also had high praise for Sen. HIllary Clinton. "I'm proud to call her my friend."
As for Obama, McCain said he was prepared to run a campaign on their differences.
"This is indeed a change election. Whoever wins this election will bring change, But it has to be the right change," McCain said.
"Serious and far-reaching reforms are needed in so many areas of government."
McCain said government has been slow to respond to the needs of the country.
McCain also criticized the response of the Bush Administration to the disaster in New Orleans, saying the country deserved competence from its government.

DNC superdelegate Rep. Maxine Waters has switcher her support from Sen. HIllary Clinton to Sen. Barack Obama, the New York Times is reporting.
Waters said she made the decision based on his "ability to unite the country and leadership on issues such as the housing crisis and war in Iraq."

With all the speculation about whether Sen. Barack Obama will ask Sen. Hillary Clinton to be his vice presidential candidate, NBC's Tom Brokaw introduced a dose of realty about the decision: What about Bill?
Brokaw said it is the former president who stands in the way as the biggest obstacle to the possible selection of Sen. Clinton.
Obama could well ask what role the former president would play if his wife is vice president as well as whether he would be willing to curtail his private activities, including his high payign speaking jobs if she is the vice president.

With the final presidential primary selection contests in South Dakota and Montana, Sen. Hillary Clinton was keeping suspense alive on what she will say in her remarks tonight in New York City.
Once the prohibitive front-runner for the nomination, Clinton has seen Sen,. Barack Obama emerge from the streets of Chicago to win the right to run as the Democratic contender for president.'
During the day, the Clinton campaign sent out mixed messages on whether she would concede,acknowledge Obama as the nominee or vow to fight on to the convention in August as negotiations began on her possibly running as vice president with Obama.

As the voters in the 2nd Supervisorial District go to the polls today, there is a lot of examination going on regarding the different strategies of the two main campaigns.
Sen. Mark Ridley-Thomas, D-Los Angeles, relied heavily on a ground campaign with four satellite offices in the district and a mail program, financed with some $4 million from local unions.
All of which ended up forcing Councilman Bernard Parks to turn to television to try to counter what Ridley-Thomas was able to spend on mail.
The Ridley-Thomas campaign believes it was able to target its message within the district with its direct mail more effectively rather than spending the estimated $500,000 a week needed for television ads that hit an audience outside its district.

John Perez, a superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention, announced today he is backing Sen. Barack Obama for president.
Perez, a candidate for the Assembly, made the announcement after casting is ballot in the election, saying that it was time for Democrats to unite behind Obama.
"I believe that now is the time for us to come together and unite for victory against John McCain in the fall," Perez said.
Perez is a cousin of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who is a co-chair of Clinton's campaign.

A state law proposed by Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes that would limit L.A.'s ability to control land use was sponsored by a developer whose Tujunga project would benefit from the legislation.Kerry Cavanaugh in the Daily News.

The move has infuriated Los Angeles City Council members, who voted last month to oppose the state intervention in local land-use decisions.

This week, some members said they are appalled that the bill appears designed to aid a particular developer.

For the first time in more than six decades, California voters will go to the polls today in a split primary election that will decide the fate of state and federal legislators and, in Los Angeles County, a closely contested seat on the Board of Supervisors.Daily News.

The split primary comes after state officials decided to move up the presidential primary election to Feb. 5 to try to give California a bigger role in national politics with Super Tuesday voting among a dozen states.

But so many elections this year - a total of three including the November presidential ballot - mean that even though California and county officials are not projecting voter turnout, most believe that without any real contested races it will be less than 20 percent.

After years of operating under complex legal battles with property owners, a portion of the Encino-Tarzana Regional Medical Center was sold Monday to a for-profit company that specializes in buying cash-strapped hospitals. Susan Abram in the Daily News.

The sale of the 151-bed facility to Prime Healthcare Services for an undisclosed price comes at a time when the facility has lost $10 million in the past year, Prime executives said. The sale includes just the Encino portion of the campus.

The new owners say they plan to invest "multimillions of dollars" in the facility, including upgrades to its computer system, radiology equipment and emergency department.

Residents and the government regulators who oversee hospitals should feel assured that the sale of the Encino facility will improve service, said Lex Reddy, Prime's president and CEO.

More than $32 million worth of contracts aimed at improving runway safety at Los Angeles International Airport were approved Monday by the Board of Airport Commissioners. Art Marroquin in the Daily Breeze.

A runway stoplight system will be installed by San Diego-based Helix Electric Inc. as part of a $2.7 million contract awarded by the airport commission.

The runway status lights system is expected to start working by the beginning of next year on four taxiway intersections and the inner runway on the north airfield. The south airfield will have lights at three taxiways.

With the presidential primary season lurching to an end, you can create your own electoral map. No prizes. No awards. Just bragging rights that you are smarter than the experts.

Gasoline consumption is dropping. Angelenos are driving less. Once traffic-choked freeways are slowly thinning out. And all that was even before prices at the pump topped a stomach-dropping $4 a gallon. Sue Doyle in the Daily News.

It's still too soon to tell whether these are short-term ripple effects in response to the staggering prices or the start of larger, long-term changes in a city madly in love with cars.

But if prices at the pump continue to soar, Los Angeles could eventually undergo profound changes that would reshape the region into more community-friendly neighborhoods emphasizing mass transit, walking and biking.

TIPOFFS: Traveling mayors carry lots of baggage; Tuesdsay's election a matter of turnout..

Sen. HIllary Clinton was declared the winner of the Puerto Rico presidential primary election as the nominating season grinds to a close with a final burst of balloting on Tuesday .
There were no hard estimates on the returns and whether it will provide enough votes for Clinton to continue to press her argument that she has received more votes than Obama.
Puerto Rico has 55 delegates.

Rep. Laura Richardson lost her Sacramento home in a foreclosure auction two weeks ago and left behind nearly $9,000 in unpaid property taxes. Gene Maddaus in the Daily Breeze.

Richardson, D-Long Beach, appears to have made only a few payments on the house, which she bought in January 2007 for $535,000.

After buying the home, Richardson hardly had time to live in it. Three months later, Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald died and Richardson - then a freshman member of the state Assembly - launched a campaign to replace her in Congress.

Aaargh. Groan. Sigh.

Skyrocketing prices for everything from gas, utilities and food to tuition, trash pickup and health insurance have left many Angelenos frustrated, outraged and downright fed up.Julia Scott in the Daily News.

And even if you can still afford a $3 latte, today's economic pressures can seem overwhelming.

"The prices all across the board went up quickly at the same time, and that's sort of a slap across the face," said Neal Frankle, who manages $95million in investments at Wealth Resources Group in Woodland Hills.

His clients, middle-class working families and retirees, are making ends meet but rethinking discretionary spending, such as for vacations, dining out or the latest handbag.

It was hot and humid inside the 21-car train carrying the body of Robert F. Kennedy from New York City to Washington, D.C. Larry Altman in the Daily Breeze.

The air conditioning had failed and the 226-mile journey that should have taken three hours lasted a sweltering five, with the trip slowed by mourners lining the tracks to pay their respects to the presidential candidate assassinated in Los Angeles.

Darwin Horn remembers the trip like it was yesterday.

"There were millions of people alongside," recalled the Rolling Hills resident, a retired Secret Service agent who supervised protection for Ethel Kennedy and her family after her husband died on June 6, 1968 - 40 years ago this week.