May 2010 Archives

Tipoff: With primary next week, campaigns buy more TV time.

While the number of foreclosures in the San Fernando Valley jumped in April compared with a year ago, the number of homeowners behind on their mortgage payments slowed dramatically, a research center said Friday. Gregory J Wilcox in the Daily News.

The 53 percent decrease in the number of default notices - the first step in the foreclosure process - bodes well for the immediate future of the local real-estate market, indicating fewer foreclosures are likely in coming months, experts said.

"I like these numbers. They are moving down nicely," said economist William Roberts, director of the San Fernando Valley Economic Research Center at California State University, Northridge. "In the last four to six months it's looked good."

Hoping to save nearly $1 million a year, the Los Angeles City Council on Friday gave preliminary approval to close the Environmental Affairs Department, insisting the move would not reduce the city's commitment to environmental protection. Daily News.

The council voted 10-0 to close the department, with a final vote scheduled for next Tuesday.

The agency, created by former Mayor Tom Bradley to oversee and champion environmental issues, will see its duties transferred to the Building and Safety, Transportation, Sanitation and Mayor's offices.

Local leaders, residents and housing activists launched a campaign Thursday to crack down on foreclosed homes that have been allowed to deteriorate and blight their communities.Tony Castro in the Daily News.

They vowed to press authorities to enforce a new city law that would impose a $1,000-a-day fine on banks and other lenders that allow foreclosed properties to fall into disrepair.

"We are here to let the community know that they have this important tool to use against the banks," City Councilman Richard Alarc n told a news conference in front of a Pacoima home that was taken over by gang members after the bank foreclosed on the property earlier this year.

The leadership of the Los Angeles County Republican Party faces a challenge in court today as a group of self-proclaimed Tea Party activists ask a judge to install them on the county committee, effectively giving them control of the organization.Trou Anderson in the Daily News.

The seven activists claim they were fairly elected to the seven-member county executive committee last year, but promptly kicked off by the California Republican Party in a move that they say violated party bylaws.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Solner is supposed to decide today whether to dismiss the lawsuit or issue an injunction blocking current county Republican officials from representing themselves as the valid leaders of the local party.

An LAPD motorcycle officer whose ongoing dispute with his superior snowballed after he was punished for clocking out five minutes early one day has been awarded $2 million from a jury who believed his subsequent firing was unfair.Daily News.

Officer Richard Joaquin has been reinstated with back pay and is now stationed at the Los Angeles Police Department's Valley Traffic Division.

Joaquin's jury award on May 20 surpassed the $1.5 million settlement the city paid in 2007 to black firefighter Tennie Pierce, who sued for racial discrimination when colleagues put dog food in his spaghetti as a prank.

The Los Angeles Unified school board Tuesday unanimously approved rescinding 522 layoff notices for elementary school teachers. Connie Llanos in the Daiily News.

The move drops the number of overall expected layoffs next year to about 1,000 - down from the initial decision earlier this year to send layoff notices to nearly 3,100 teachers, administrators, nurses, librarians and counselors.

The number could be further reduced as officials continue to look for additional funding sources and savings

After touching down at Los Angeles International Airport, airline passengers from around the world stroll beneath a circle of white lights that mimic a halo, a subtle welcome to the City of Angels. Art Marroquin in the Daily News.

Gone are the stained walls, confusing signs and poor lighting that evoked an overall feeling of gloom inside the old Tom Bradley International Terminal.

Now, walls are illuminated by glass panels of brightly colored lights and time-lapse video artwork. Curved metallic ceiling panels resemble waves from the nearby Pacific Ocean. Bright blue signs and digital screens guide travelers through the roomy arrival hall of the renovated terminal.

Councilman Tony Cardenas will be in Washington D.C., on Wednesday to tsetify on behalf of the Youth Promise Act., a measure introduced at his request to improve gang intervention and prevention programs.
As part of his testimony, Cardenas is releasing a video prepared by his office that features celebrities such as Robin Wrigh, Jim Brown, Russell Simmons and others talking about the importance of the measure.
Last year, the Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved a Cardenas measure in support of the measure, which wiill make more funding availbable for anti-gang programs.
Cardenas and his staff filmed the video that features celebrities who, "firsthand, know the power of second chances."
The video is available at www.youthpromiseaction.org

The California Charter School Association filed a lawsuit today against the Los Angeles Unified School District, in an effort to gain better access to public school campuses.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The latest legal claim comes two years after both organizations settled a lawsuit intended to give the publicly-funded and independently run schools more access to district campuses.

According to the charter association's interpretation of Proposition 39, LAUSD officials have a legal obligation to offer space to all charter schools that request it.

Los Angeles Unified officials released a list Monday of 17 new and chronically underperforming campuses that will be up for grabs under a district reform plan that allows teachers, charter operators and nonprofits to apply to operate campuses.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Eight chronically underperforming schools were selected: Woodcrest Elementary; Audubon, Henry Clay, Bret Harte, Horace Mann, and John Muir Middle schools; and Los Angeles and Huntington Park High schools.

Issuing a final ruling in the case, the U.S. Supreme Court Monday denied Tarzana tax attorney Richard I. Fine's request to be released from Men's Central Jail, where he has been held for failing to divulge information on his personal assets.Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

Fine, a 70-year-old former taxpayer advocate attorney who claims he's a "political prisoner," has spent 14 months in jail.

A former Beverly Hills attorney who once worked for the U.S. Department of Justice, Fine has been held in solitary confinement since early 2009 after he refused to pay $46,329 or release details of personal finances.

The race for a vacant Assembly seat in the east San Fernando Valley has gotten a little less complicated, but no less combative. Kevin Modesti in the Daily News.

It's down to two candidates in two overlapping contests: The first is for the remaining months of Paul Krekorian's term, and the second is for the next full two-year term in the 43rd District.

Both will be decided June 8, as the two candidates face no opponents in the primary election.

Tipoff: Austin Beutner making house calls.

Despite gains made over the last seven years, Los Angeles Unified's fourth- and eighth-graders are still among the nation's worst readers, with test scores that lag behind most major urban districts, according to a report released Thursday.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The Nation's Report Card, released by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, shows that LAUSD scored behind those in New York, Chicago and Boston - but ahead of Detroit - on tests that measure reading comprehension, retention and vocabulary.

LAUSD officials acknowledged the need to improve on the tests, which are administered by the U.S. Department of Education.

IIt was the happiest day of his life for one Los Angeles police officer, while for another, it brought back memories of the day that a barricaded gunman shot and killed one of their own. C.J.. Lin in the Daily News.

On Thursday, 17 police officers were awarded the department's highest honor, given for bravery and for going above and beyond the call of duty, at the 49th annual Medal of Valor Ceremony in Hollywood.

"I'm really lucky - I get to work with with heroes every day," said Chief Charlie Beck, citing the department's 9,963 sworn officers and 234 reserve officers. "There's a social contract that we make-us police officers, firefighters, soldiers-and that social contract goes like this: If you would be willing to risk your life for me, then I will honor you and I will also stand by you."

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power intends to fire two workers filmed drinking while driving city trucks and going into strip clubs on city time, agency head Austin Beutner said Wednesday.Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

The department has started termination proceedings under the civil service process, which gives the workers a chance to defend themselves.

Incensed that the City Council approved an economic boycott of his state, an Arizona official has threatened to have utilities there withhold power sales to Los Angeles. Daily News

There's only one problem with his plan: The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power co-owns the Arizona plants that supply up to 25 percent of city's electricity, meaning the Grand Canyon State has little control over it.

"These are our plants," said Los Angeles Councilman Ed Reyes, who authored the boycott of Arizona. "They have no control over our plants.

As a barrage of bullets were exchanged between Los Angeles police officers and a barricaded gunman who had killed several family members in Winnetka, Officer Randal David Simmons, a 27-year veteran, became the LAPD's first SWAT officer to die in the line of duty.C.J. Lin in the Daily News.

His fellow SWAT officer, James Veenstra, was shot in the face. He later recovered after undergoing extensive surgery.

Thursday, Simmons and Veenstra, along with more than a dozen officers, will each be honored with a Medal of Valor, which is awarded to officers who knowingly and willingly place themselves in harm's way whether they are on duty or not.

Facing massive investment losses, a key committee of California's giant pension fund voted Tuesday to make the state increase its contributions to employee retirement benefits by $600 million in the coming fiscal year. AP in the Daily News.

The demand comes as California grapples with a $19 billion budget deficit and a threat by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to eliminate its welfare program.

The contribution increase would be for one year starting in July, but the California Public Employees Retirement System is likely to require similar increases in future years. Local school districts, facing their own budget struggles, also will see their pension contribution rates grow.

With the city's water conservation plan blamed for a wave of water-main breaks, DWP officials on Tuesday proposed switching to a rotating system they say would reduce pressure on the city's aging pipes.Daily News/

The Los Angeles Water and Power Commission voted to allow residents with odd-numbered addresses to run their sprinklers on Mondays and Thursdays, while residents at even-numbered addresses could irrigate on Tuesdays and Fridays. The City Council would have to approve the plan before it takes effect.

Having adopted a $6.7 billion budget for next year, City Council members said Tuesday it is up to Los Angeles' labor unions to determine the scope of any layoffs and furloughs for municipal workers.Daily News.

The budget adopted Monday stipulates the layoffs of up to 761 workers - with the possibility of 1,000 more if revenue slides - plus 16 to 26 unpaid furlough days, beginning July1.

But council members and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa made it clear that the unions can avert many of the layoffs and furloughs if they are willing to make $110 million in contract concessions.

Four years ago, when she took over as secretary-treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, Maria Elena Durazo was focused on working conditions and pay for the 600,000-member union work force.Daily News.

Now, following her uncontested re-election to the four-year post Monday, Durazo said she is looking for ways to create the jobs that will keep those workers employed.

For the second week in a row, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is back in Washington, D.C., hjis office announced Tuesday.
The mayor will be attending the state dinner for Mexican President Felipe Calderon
as well as continue his lobbying efforts on behalf of his 30-10 plan for transit funding and Measure R.
However, most of the trip is tied up with official events, from the dinner to Calderon's speech at Congress a reception and luncheon.
.

A Los Angeles Unified School district official hopes to block further layoffs at local schools based only on seniority and is expected to introduce plans today that would launch negotiations with labor organization to end the state-mandated and union contract required practice.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The move follows an injunction issued last week that blocked further layoffs at three South Los Angeles middle schools during the 2010-11 school year, this after civil rights groups filed a class-action lawsuit in February against the district and the state of California over job cuts at these campuses. The groups said that the high numbers of less experienced teachers working at these inner-city schools would result in high turn-over that would deprive students at the campuses to their right to an equal education.

California's enterprise zone program - including a massive expansion in the San Fernando Valley announced this month - has been praised for its powerful effect on job creation in depressed areas, through the use of tax breaks and other incentives to encourage business growth.C.J. Lin in the Dailyu News

But the enterprise zone concept continues to face criticism from some experts who maintain that their value may be overrated, and that they create a disadvantage for businesses that are not in the zones.

Los Angeles officials announced recently that an existing enterprise zone in the Valley will be expanded to 5,444 acres, zigzagging across business clusters from the industrial Northeast Valley to corporate Warner Center. The zone will offer a range of financial incentives, including tax breaks, fee waivers and utility bill discounts.

Tipoff: Recall organizers hope for Arizona bounce.

While more local schools are reaching state targets on benchmark tests, nearly three-quarters of Los Angeles Unified campuses rank among the state's lowest-performing schools, according to data released Thursday by the California Department of Education. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The latest Academic Performance Index results show some positive trends for LAUSD, such as 158 schools meeting a target score of 800 points (on a 200-1000 point scale), up from 141 schools last year.

Also, 33 district schools were ranked among the top 10 percent of schools statewide.

West Hills Hospital and Medical Center will open a $60 million, state-of-the-art emergency department and critical-care unit next week, nearly a decade after the project was first proposed. Susan Abram in the Daily News.

The two-story addition is designed to transform West Hills Hospital from a community facility to a regional health care center, said president and CEO Beverly Gilmore.

"You've got to evolve to the patients' needs," said Gilmore, who has been at the hospital since 2004.

Los Angeles County officials should prepare for even more drastic budget cuts next year than they had expected after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger releases his revised state budget Friday, county CEO Bill Fujioka said Wednesday. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

Already making deep cuts to close a $511 million shortfall in the 2010-11 budget, officials say the county could lose as much as $1.5 billion in revenues under Schwarzenegger's proposed budget, potentially triggering unprecedented cuts in public services.

"The governor's office is speaking of horrible cuts," Fujioka said during a county budget hearing.

An expanded enterprise zone that will encompass many of the San Fernando Valley's top business centers is expected to save or generate thousands of jobs and has already attracted millions of dollars in investment, city officials said Wednesday. C.J. Lin in the Daily news.

The expansion of the zone to 5,444 acres across the Valley is expected to be formally announced this morning by First Deputy Mayor Austin Beutner during the Valley Economic Summit at the Sheraton Universal Hotel.

The enterprise zone now includes land zoned for industrial and manufacturing use in Chatsworth, Canoga Park, Northridge, the Van Nuys Airport corridor, Warner Center and the Northeast Valley industrial area.

With some members offering emotional personal stories, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday voted to boycott the state of Arizona because of its new law cracking down on illegal immigration. Daily News.

The 13-1 vote came with little dissent and could affect upwards of $58 million in contracts the city has with Arizona or companies based there.

Councilman Greig Smith cast the only no vote. He said he believed Arizona was taking steps to enforce federal immigration laws but would not comment further.

Mayor Antoinio Villaraigosa heads to Washington, D.C., for a series of meetings on Thursday to continue his lobbying effort for the 30-10 transit funding plan.
The mayor's office announced late Wednesday that he will be meeting with officials to build support for the funding program, in which he hopes to have an advance on the $40 billion expected from Measure R.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's schedule of public appearances for
Thursday, May 13, 2010:
He will be meeting with members of the House Ways and Means Committee in the morning and speak at the Center fo rNational Policy at a luncheon.
Villaraigosa also will be meeting with a bipartisan coalition of officials in the afernoon and speak at the United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce dinner.

With the revenue outlook continuing to teeter uncertainly, a Los Angeles City Council committee Tuesday recommended the city make 1,000 more layoffs next year than the 761 already planned by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Daily News.

The Budget and Finance Committee adopted the recommendation from Chief Legislative Analyst Gerry Miller, who said uncertainties over $53 million in revenue from the lease of parking structures means the city should plan to eliminate 1,761 positions.

"We recognize that these recommendations will have major impacts on city services and city employees," Miller said. "However, there continues to be significant risk to the city's financial condition."

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to approve an agreement with the city of Los Angeles that clarifies details about upcoming public hearings regarding the $3 billion makeover of Universal Studios. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

The move will help determine how the hearings will be held, such as whether the county and city will hold separate or joint hearings, and who will conduct them, County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said.

The action comes as city and county officials are preparing the environmental impact report for the project.

Los Angeles Unified officials said Tuesday they have learned lessons from the first year of the landmark School Choice reform plan and intend to make key changes as they prepare to launch the next round later this month. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The School Choice plan, which lets outside operators bid to run new and low-performing schools, was approved by the school board last summer.

It drew fierce opposition from district employee unions that called the effort a "giveaway" of schools, while some of the bidders complained they had little time to prepare.

State and city officials are scheduled to announce on Thursday a major expansion of a San Fernando Valley enterprise zone that will include job centers throughout the region. Daily News.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and other city officials will announce the success of a yearlong effort to increase the zone to include 5,444 acres from Chatsworth through Canoga Park, Van Nuys Airport corridor, Warner Center and the Northeast Valley industrial area.

New, apparently temporary, regulations designed to curb noise in the City Council chambers drew a wide protest from the City Hall press corps today.
The regulations, developed by Council President Eric Garcetti and President Pro Tem Jan Perry with the concurrence of other council members, also puts severe limits on the media's access to council members and the activities of council members.
For instance, council members who go in a the back media room for interviews _ or even as one member said was a call of nature _ need to formally be excused from the council meeting.
Also, it says access to the media room can be controled by the sergeant-at-arms.
Perry acknolwledged the regulations, drafted without talking to any members of the press, probably "went too far" and would be reviewed.
"I've been taking notes and we'll figure something out," Perry said.
Perry said the regulations were drafted to respond to complaints from various council members.
"Sometimes, it gets too noisy and raucus in there," Perry said, adding most o f the problem was due to staff members standing around the council chambers.

*** City Council President Eric Garcetti issued new guidelines at 5 p.m., giving back teh access to council members by the media and not limiting their movements.

A creek winds through lush wetlands along a Los Angeles River walk surrounded by native plants and birds. Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

The natural setting is part of a 16-acre golf and tennis property that Studio City residents and some local politicians want to convert into the so-called Los Angeles River Natural Park.

But there's only one problem with their elaborate plan: The land isn't theirs.

"This is the craziest g*****n thing I've ever seen in my life," said Guy Weddington McCreary, whose family has owned the Weddington Golf & Tennis property for 55 years. "It's not their land. It's private property.

Angelenos turned in more than 2,500 handguns, rifles and assault weapons during the city's second annual Mother's Day buyback program over the weekend, nearly 50 percent more than last year's take. Daily News.

Exchanged for $200,000 in gift cards from Ralphs, Mercury Insurance, KCBS (Channel 2), KCAL (Channel 9) and other corporate sponsors, the weapons will be melted down, with the metal donated to local artists.

"Promises made, promises kept," Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said at a news conference at the Police Administration Building, where an array of weapons was spread out for the cameras.

Former Gov. Pete Wilson, who rode anti-immigrant sentiment to a second term _ and turned off a generation of Latino voters to the Republican Party, is back with a radio commercial on immigration on behalf of 'GOP candidate Meg Whitman,
The commercial, available here, has Wilson saying, "I know how important it is to stop illegal immigration and I know Meg Whitman....She'll fight to secure our border and go after sanctuary cities."
Wilson is chair of Whitman's campaign and she has been fighting contentions by Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner she would support amnesty for immigrants.

When it comes to jury duty, not even the mayor is exempt from being called to serve.
For the second time since he has served as mayor, Villaraigosa was summoned for jury dury _ spending the day like most other jurors, waiting to be called.
As of noon, the4 mayor still had not been called to serve on a trial _ although he was forced to move up a news conference on a gun buy back program by a half-hour.
Villaraigosa was called to serve in traffic court.

Gary Bay knew it was coming.C.J. Lin in the Daily News.

He had already stopped growing and cultivating pot at Suite 215, his medical marijuana collective in Van Nuys, ahead of a city ordinance that aims to shut down 439 dispensaries by June 7.

But when the letter ordering the closure from the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office finally came last week, he couldn't help but try to make a stand.

Los Angeles will serve as host to the 2011 Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference, the largest convention the city has ever hosted, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is set to announce today.Daily News.

Up to 15,000 people are expected to attend the convention, scheduled for July, 2011, at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Some $45 million in spending at hotels, restaurants and other facilities in the city is expected to be generated as a result of the event, officials said.

"Hosting this banner event for the global technology community is a major win for Los Angeles and an important boost for our local economy," Villaraigosa said.

Tipoff: Election 2010 steps up to fight for attention.

The three Republican candidates vying for a U.S. Senate seat clashed over immigration, gun control and rights for terrorism suspects in a testy debate Thursday night, with each making the case they were the true conservative who could beat incumbent Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer.Mike Zapler in the Mercury-News.

With less than five weeks until the June 8 primary and polls showing a fluid race, former Congressman Tom Campbell, former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and state Assemblyman Chuck DeVore engaged in a series of sharp exchanges in a debate that, at times, forced the candidates to think on their feet and not rely on canned responses.

Countering assertions by former Mayor Richard Riordan that Los Angeles should consider declaring bankruptcy, a top City Hall official said Thursday that the city is working to resolve its financial crisis without resorting to Chapter 9 protection.Daily News.

City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana issued a point-by-point rebuttal to the op-ed article written by Riordan and investment adviser Alex Rubalcava, saying the city is moving aggressively to reduce its payroll, cut costs and avert financial disaster.

The annual Canoga Park Memorial Day Parade honoring America's fallen service members has fizzled for the first time in decades, a victim of the recession.Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

Instead, the host of the procession that has traditionally drawn thousands of onlookers to Sherman Way will hold a Memorial Day street festival instead.

"There will be no marching. I am very sad," said Miguel Fernandez, parade chairman and treasurer for the Canoga Park-West Hills Chamber of Commerce. "It's very simple: It's just a matter of money."

With Republican candidates for the U.S. Senate scheduled to debate tonight, the Democratcic Senatorial Campaign Committee is getting in its own shots to try to take down the three, Tom Campbell, Carly Fiorina and Chuck DeVore.
The commercial, "GOP Demon Sheep" attacks all three and, to hype interest, they include a disclaimer, "Not suitable for most California audiences."
The debate, co-sponsosed by the League of Women Voters, will be at 7 p.m. at the Museum of Tolerance in West Los Angeles.

The Men's Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles fosters a "culture of violence and fear" that allows guards to routinely deliver brutal beatings to prisoners, resulting in broken bones and other severe injuries, the ACLU alleged in a report released Wednesday. Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

In the 64-page report uncovering "30 years of medieval abuse," the authors described an atmosphere in which inmates fear retaliation if they speak out, allowing guards to abuse them with little restraint.

"I routinely see injuries on prisoners when I go to the jail," said Mary Tiedeman, the jails project coordinator for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California. "I routinely see black eyes, broken ribs and other broken bones. I see boot marks on people's backs and long marks on their bodies that look like they are from flashlight (beatings). I see that a lot."

Cheered by tenants and jeered by landlords, a city committee Wednesday recommended a four-month freeze on rent increases for Los Angeles' 630,000 rent-controlled units. Daily News..

If approved by the full City Council later this week, the freeze would prevent landlords who own buildings built prior to 1978 from raising rents in the period, which could be extended by two months.

Council members said the freeze will give them time to study the city's rent stabilization ordinance and recommend changes.

During recess Wednesday at Pomelo Drive Elementary as one student searched the online catalogue of the school's library, for books about pizza, another paced the fiction aisles digging for a "Star Wars" selection. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Two second-graders curled up on one of the room's big red couches while another group of students enjoyed the sunny day to read under some trees right outside the library.

"At recess and lunch this place can get crowded" said Fran Johnson, the library aide at Pomelo Drive.

When urged to explain her library obsession fourth-grader Reika Rashidi's answered promptly "I love my library...it's a quiet place to think."

Over the years, massive tree roots have buckled the sidewalk in front of Deborah and David Martin's Woodland Hills home - creating a dream ramp for skateboarders, but an unsightly two-foot-high obstacle for pedestrians. Tony Castro in the Daily News.

"We have no usable sidewalk," says Deborah Martin, "I imagine it would cost thousands of dollars to repair."

Traditionally, the city would pick up the tab for repairing the walkway because the now 100-foot tree was planted on a public easement.

But the City Council will consider a plan over the next few weeks to pass on all the costs for sidewalk repair - which could range from $3,000 to $5,000 - to homeowners like the Martins. That would not only increase their bills, but shift liability to homeowners for trip-and-fall incidents on sidewalks, likely raising homeowner insurance premiums.

The city of Lancaster faces a lawsuit against the City Council's policy of opening meetings with sectarian prayers. Kevin Modesti in the Daily News.

Plaintiffs Shelley Rubin and Maureen Feller filed suit Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court asking a judge to prohibit City Council sessions from including "a prayer wherein the name of Jesus Christ is invoked."

The suit was filed three weeks after 75.8 percent of Lancaster voters supported a ballot measure to allow the prayers.

A months-long dispute between the City Council and the Department of Water and Power ended Tuesday when the utility agreed to release $73.5 million that it had withheld during the battle over power rates. Daily News.

DWP Interim General Manager Austin Beutner, in an hour-long grilling by the City Council, also pledged to bring a new sense of "civil discourse" in dealing with the council and greater openness with the public.

The agency had withheld the $73.5 million from the city general fund last month after the City Council rejected a DWP electricity rate hike. The funds were the last installment of a $220million contribution that represents the utility's annual expected transfer to boost the city's general budget.

Notices were sent Tuesday to some 400 medical marijuana clinics in Los Angeles, advising them to close by June 7 or face criminal or civil action. Daily News.

Under an ordinance that takes effect next month, only the 130 or so clinics that opened prior to a Nov. 13, 2007, moratorium can continue operating. The "courtesy notice" sent to dispensary operators and their landlords is a first step in closing the rest of the clinics.

unday's gubernatorial debate became a game of Find the Conservative as both Meg Whitman and Steve Poizner highlighted the other's past moderate positions and Democratic endorsements. The two tangled over immigration, Wall Street and past positions, as Poizner attacked Whitman's investments in Goldman Sachs and Whitman characterized Poizner as expedient and shifty.Capital Weekly.

Without intending to, Hollywood director and producer Rob Schiller on Sunday cast his children as the poster kids of volunteerism in Los Angeles.Tony Castro in the Daily News.

The Schiller children - Jordan, 11, Adam, 8, and Zoe, 7 - were among thousands of volunteers who helped organizations and schools commemorate the 12th anniversary of Big Sunday, billed as the country's largest community service weekend.

The Schillers gave their time at the Penny Lane Foster Family Agency where they rubbed elbows with the children of foster families at a playground fair featuring zoo animals, face-painting, games, arts and crafts, music and food from In-N-Out Burger.

Tipoffs: City budget hearings go on, and on, an on.

Just five weeks before the June 8 election, backers of a parcel tax to support Los Angeles Unified schools have only raised $100,000 and acknowledge they face a tough fight persuading voters to support the measure amid a weak economy. Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Measure E would raise the parcel tax by $100 per year and generate $92 million for LAUSD annually for the next four years.

District and campaign officials concede their fundraising has fallen short of where they should be at this point in time, and they have yet to win the backing of the district's biggest union.