November 2010 Archives

California's top health insurers are being fined nearly $5 million after an 18-month state audit uncovered improperly paid claims to thousands of doctors and hospitals, an official announced Monday. C.J. Lin in the Daily News

The state's seven biggest health insurance companies will also need to pay restitution - estimated to be in the tens of millions of dollars - after the audit found that they underpaid care providers or failed to pay them on time, according to the state Department of Managed Health Care.

"Providers are struggling to stay afloat in a very difficult business environment," department Director Cindy Ehnes said Monday during a morning news conference at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank. "Improper payment of provider claims runs the risk that our health care delivery system could grind to a halt."

After 11 years of negotiations, the city Board of Public Works on Monday adopted a proposal requiring nearly a third of all workers on upcoming projects to be Los Angeles residents. Daily News.

Officials said as many as 98 projects, with a value of $2 billion, are on the initial list included in the proposal, which now goes to the City Council for final approval.

While city officials say it will help local workers in the slow economy, critics say the move could cost the city - and taxpayers - more in the long run.

The Office of Economic and Business Policy, under First Deputy Mayor Austin Beutner, has created a new city webpage called Los Angeles Works, designed to offer a portal for businesses and investors into the Los Angeles market.
The page offers links to companies on why they should consider Los Angeles, incentives available and links to green businesses as well as how costs can be reduced.

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Can everyone please stop talking total nonsense about the California budget? MarketWatch.

I know that facts and truth seem to be optional these days. I know that in the exciting new world of infinite media everyone can choose to believe whatever fantasies they want. But in the case of California, it's getting on my nerves.

Republicans are relishing the coming of a new day on Capitol Hill. But across the country in California, the party of Nixon and Reagan is drifting toward obscurity.AP in the Daily News.

The latest sign of imperiled health: In a year Republicans notched big victories in Congress, governor's offices and statehouses around the nation, California Democrats made a clean sweep of eight statewide contests on Nov. 2. Democrats padded their majority in the Legislature, where the party controls both chambers and no congressional seats changed parties.

California counted more registered Republicans in 1988 than it does today, even though the state population has since grown by about 10 million. Setting aside the politically ambidextrous Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose celebrity eclipsed his Republican registration, the California GOP counts only a single victory in 21 statewide contests since 2002 - that of insurance commissioner in 2006.

The "early start" calendar launched this year at 17 schools would be expanded throughout Los Angeles Unified in 2011, although some parents are mobilizing against the plan that would start classes in mid-August.Connie Llanos in the Daily News,

The school board is scheduled to vote next month on a calendar that would move up the start of the school to Aug.15, instead of after Labor Day. Classes would end June 1, about three weeks earlier than usual.

Proponents say the calendar mirrors the schedule used by most colleges, so would better prepare LAUSD students for a post-secondary education.

t's the public agency no elected official wants to hear from, and beginning in January, after 10 years of being under one director, the city Ethics Commission gets new leadership.Dai;y News.

Heather Holt, who has been director of policy research and analysis for the agency and has been on the Ethics Commission staff since 1996, takes over for LeeAnn Pelham in mid-January.

Tipoff: Councilman Tony Cardenas wants to know if gang crimes are determined by area.

About a year ago, Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa turned to a Wall Street investment banker, Austin Beutner, to become first deputy mayor. He was put in charge of 13 city agencies and asked to help shepherd the city's ailing economy back to health. New York Times.

It was the latest example of a City Hall turning to the private sector for assistance navigating public water: think Daniel L. Doctoroff, who held a similar position in New York.

For Valley Village resident Lori Dinkin, the Department of Water and Power's odd-even watering plan is one of the few good things the massive utility has done. Daily News.

"I always thought it was stupid to have everyone watering the same days of the week," said Dinkin, a longtime community activist in her neighborhood. "It makes more sense to let us water three days a week.

"My lawn is green now and all I have to do is set the timers on my sprinklers and it works out fine," Dinkin sa

In a rare move for elected officials, two members of the Los Angeles Community College District have decided to give up their positions, with both saying it was time for a fresh look at how the district operates. Daily News.

Georgia Mercer and Sylvia Scott-Hayes, each of whom has been elected three times to the board, said they do not plan to run for re-election in March. Both said they believe they have accomplished much of what they set out to do and, in Mercer's case, did not want to go through the stress of another campaign.

"I made the decision (after the last election) that this would be enough," Mercer said. "The last election was so awful, it took me six months to get over it. And I have some personal issues in my family - it's time to move on and let someone else do this."

Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley on Wednesday conceded the state attorney general's race to San Francisco D.A. Kamala Harris, sealing a Democratic sweep of all statewide offices. Daily News,

Citing the large gap he would have to overcome with just 150,000 of nearly 9 million ballots left uncounted, Cooley threw in the towel three weeks after Election Day and congratulated Harris, the first woman and first minority elected to the post.

"While the margin is extremely narrow and ballots are still being counted, my campaign believes we cannot make up the current gap," Cooley said in a statement.

Facing the threat of a mayoral veto, the City Council stalled Wednesday in asking voters to give its members the authority to remove DWP commissioners and fire the utility's general manager.Daily News

If placed on the March 8 ballot and approved by voters, the measure would strip the mayor of much of his power over management of the Department of Water and Power.

Council members said they'd received word that Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa would veto the measure if they put it on the ballot. Councilman Richard Alarcón said he'd been told by aides to Villaraigosa that he wanted the proposal broadened to include all city commissions.

With the holiday shopping season looming and the city's budget still in the red, officials on Wednesday urged Angelenos to spend money locally as they pushed a "Shop L.A." campaign. C.J. Lin in the Daily News

Patronizing local stores not only creates jobs, but generates sales tax revenue that funds city services.

"The start of the holiday season is the perfect time to remind local residents for every $10 in sales tax spent within Los Angeles, the city receives a dollar that goes towards services such as public safety, libraries, park and recreation programs and animal shelters," Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said during a news conference at Westfield Topanga mall in Canoga Park.

California's most intriguing up-and-coming political figure isn't Gov.-elect Jerry Brown. Capitiol Weekly.

It's his wife.

Anne Baldwin Gust Brown is viewed by her campaign colleagues as tightly organized and professional, reflecting an impressive corporate and legal background. They say she wears the pants and calls the shots, while reporters regard her as evasive, even prickly.

Food trucks operating within the city of Los Angeles would be required to post a letter grade health rating, but trucks catering for entertainment sets would be exempt from the new rule under consideration by the City Council.Daily News.

The preliminary move, pushed by Councilman Bill Rosendahl, was scheduled to return today with the language exempting the caterers on sets.

"Even if we don't act, the county is going to go ahead and rate these trucks," Rosendahl said. "If we don't want the letter grade posted, the county will still go ahead and grade them and put it up on their website. This is just to give the public a better idea of the quality of the trucks."

Members of the United Firefighters of Los Angeles City re-elected Firefighter Pat McOsker as president of the union, leaving a proposed new contract to be decided. Daily News.

McOsker, narrowly elected to a two-year term from a group dissatisfied with his leadership, said he will now return to work on the final details of the new contract.

"It is all concessions by us, but we want to make sure the language is what we agreed to," McOsker said. "There are still details we want to work out."

Amid growing concerns about an increase in child abuse and deaths in Los Angeles County, child advocates and county officials are fiercely debating what impact new reforms have had in recent years and how to best improve the troubled foster care system.Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

The debate centers in part over how the county's Department of Children and Family Services should be funded. A previous method was scrapped in 2007 because it gave financial incentives to tear kids away from their families and place them into foster homes.

The new method essentially involves the county receiving a fixed, capped amount of money under a waiver granted by the federal government.

Four months after he was hired, Planning Director Michael LoGrande has boiled down his new vision for the department to a simple mantra: Doing more with less.Daily News.

LoGrande has released a new document calling for changes that include streamlining the city permitting process, working better with neighborhood councils and improving community input.

"The Planning Department faces the challenge of doing more for Los Angeles, but with fewer resources," LoGrande said in the document.

Tipoff: L.A. city candidates starting their marathon.

helving an earlier proposal to streamline construction permitting, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's business team has come up with a new way to make the city friendlier to business. Daily News.

The Build L.A. proposal would assign city case managers to developers working on big projects to help shepherd them through some 17 steps and departments they need to slog through for city permission to build.

It replaces the 12-2 plan, which Villaraigosa proposed shortly after his re-election last year, that was supposed to reduce a dozen elements in the permitting process down to two.

With Nancy Reagan on his arm, former President George W. Bush on Thursday brought his bestseller campaign and an unexpected sense of humorous storytelling to the cathedral of American Republicanism - the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Tony Castro in the Daily News.

"I have zero desire to be in the limelight except to sell the book," Bush said in an evening marked by a display of Mark Twain-like humor as he told stories of his presidency mixed with fatherly advice.

Several hundred GOP faithful, many of them carrying copies of his book "Decision Points," gave the former president a rousing standing ovation when he arrived under the nose of the gleaming Air Force One in the main pavilion of the library.

The cost of a University of California education is going up again, but fewer students will pay the full sticker price. AP in the Daily News.

By a 15-5 vote Thursday, the UC Board of Regents approved a plan to raise undergraduate tuition by 8 percent next fall while offering more financial aid.

Student fees for California residents will increase by $822 to $11,124, which doesn't include individual campus fees or room and board.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa named a 26-member committee Thursday to make a top-to-bottom review of security at Los Angeles International Airport. Daily News.

The panel, which includes city employees and outside experts, will look at all security aspects at LAX, including counter-terrorism, law enforcement, fire protection, emergency management and the resources available for public safety.

"This panel will have full authority to review and inspect all aspects of security at LAX, which is a top terrorist target in the nation," Villaraigosa said. "We have made improvements, but we must ensure our facility and protocols remain state of the art to prevent and disrupt potential threats.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa heads to Mexico City on Friday for a three-day trip that include meetings with mayors from other world cities to discuss environmental issues.
Villaraigosa is scheduled to be address the World Confernece of Mayors on Climate Change to discuss the roles of cities in helping to develop a green economy.
He also is scheduled to be part of a meeting at the United Cities and Local Governments meeting at the Summit of Local and Regional Leaders 2010.
Mayors from major cities around the world are expected to participate in the events.
Villaraigosa is scheduled to return on Sunday.

Los Angeles Unified officials cancelled a $3.7 million contract with four long-time district consultants shortly after a confidential report revealed irregularities with the deal, district officials confirmed Tuesday.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Superintendent Ramon Cortines said he cancelled the contract with Consilia LLC on Friday, asking its four partners to hand in their badges and cease doing any work for the school district for now.

Earlier that week, the Daily News reported that a study from the Office of the Inspector General - a watchdog agency within LAUSD - found Consilia was hired as a subcontractor, violating a district ban on using subcontractors on that contract.

In a move that environmentalists hope will spur a statewide movement, the Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 Tuesday to ban plastic bags at supermarkets, pharmacies and convenience stores in unincorporated Los Angeles County.Troy Anderson in the Daily News,

Under the ordinance, subject to final approval next Tuesday, stores would have to provide recyclable paper bags to customers for 10 cents each.

Los Angeles voters will be asked in March to consider reforming the Department of Water and Power, taxing medical marijuana and reworking the city pension system under measures placed on the ballot Tuesday by the City Council.Daily News.

The proposed DWP reforms were developed after a months-long power struggle with the council over the utility's effort to sharply raise rates.

One measure would create an Office of Public Accountability, with a ratepayer advocate and inspector general.

The California Supreme Court weighed in Monday on the politically contentious immigration debate when it ruled that undocumented immigrants are entitled to pay in-state tuition at public colleges and universities as long as they meet the same residency requirements as other students. Tony Castro in the Daily News.

The court's unanimous decision upholds a 2001 law that grants in-state tuition to any student who attended a California high school for at least three years and graduated, regardless of their immigration status.

In-state tuition saves about $11,000 annually at California State and $23,000 a year at University of California campuses.

Sanitation man Paul Blount stood upon a hill above Lake View Terrace on Monday, admiring heaps of lawn and tree clippings being turned to gold. Daily News.

Atop a long-closed Lopez Canyon Landfill, city workers were piling, sorting and pulverizing a daily haul of 450 tons of green waste into sweet-smelling mulch.

Then slowly composting it for farmers across Southern California.

As the vote counting in the attorney general race continues -- as well as bickering among the campaigns -- we have some real news to report: The state's campaign finance watchdog confirmed today that it has launched an investigation into Steve Cooley's gift-taking in recent years -- a practice detailed in The Chronicle. S.F. Chronicle.

The FPPC's investigation, however, is not an indication that the agency believes Cooley has done anything wrong.

Cuncilman Paul Krekorian, who won a difficult election to the City Council last year, began his first re-election campaign this past weekend. Several challengers, including some who lost to him last year, have announced they will run against him on March 8.

A key element of California's political-reform effort will gain steam this week when members are chosen for the citizen's commission that voters have put in charge of redrawing the state's famously gerrymandered legislative districts. Kevin Modesti in the Daily news.

The commission's importance has grown since the Nov. 2 election. The easy passage of Proposition 20 gave the panel power to map congressional districts as well as state Senate and Assembly districts. A sweep of legislative races by incumbents highlighted calls for a more level playing field. And voters reiterated their support by rejecting Proposition 27, which would have eliminated the citizens commission and returned the power to draw district lines back to the Legislature.

The success of Proposition 20 showed how much Californians want to take district line-drawing out of the hands of self-serving office-holders, analysts said.

The pending Republican takeover in the U.S. House of Representatives has not fully derailed local advocates' hopes for immigration reform that includes a path to citizenship for some of the undocumented. Tony Castro in the Daily News,

While Republicans will likely fight most citizenship proposals, some San Fernando Valley immigrant-rights advocates feel optimistic because of last week's promises by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to push for the Dream Act in the lame duck session of Congress - before the new Republican majority is sworn in.

The Dream Act would legalize young, undocumented immigrants if they attend college or serve in the military, a bill that experts said has the best chance of enactment of any of the proposed immigration reform legislation.

Tipoffs: Looking ahead to March 8

Los Angeles community colleges lag behind others across California, with only one in four students fulfilling their goal of earning a certificate or associate degree or transferring to a four-year university, according to a new study. Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

The nine-campus Los Angeles Community College District received especially poor marks for the lower completion rate of its black and Latino students.

"We've got to reverse the trend," said Nancy Shulock, executive director of the Institute for Higher Education Leadership and Policy at Cal State Sacramento, a co-author of the study released last week.

The Westfield Group's plan to build a 146,000-square-foot Costco to anchor its Warner Center expansion is creating quite a stir. Gregory J.Wilcox in the Daily News.

Some members of the Woodland Hills Warner Center Neighborhood Council are so riled up about the project, they've crafted their own site plan to counter the one unveiled last summer for the 31-acre site bordered by Erwin Street, Owensmouth Avenue and Victory and Topanga Canyon boulevards.

The site plan was designed by Dennis DiBiase, co-chairman of the neighborhood council's planning, land use and mobility committee. He's also a partner at Van Tilburg Banvard & Soderbergh Architects, a Santa Monica-based firm noted for designing retail and commercial office buildings and interiors.

Four years ago, Francis Parkman Middle School was spiraling downward with plummeting enrollment, abysmal test scores and notoriety for unruliness. Then teachers stepped out of the classroom and took charge of the school. AP in the Daily News.
Today, the rechristened Woodland Hills Academy is run by a teacher-controlled committee where the principal carries the same weight as a teacher and the district has minimal say in operations.

Test scores are up 18 percent and enrollment has spiked more than 30 percent. The model works, teachers say, because everyone from the principal to the janitor is vested in the outcome. "Everybody has a stake," said teacher Bruce Newborn. "We all suffer and we all win."

The field of contenders for the next City Council and school board elections began to firm up Saturday, as more than 80 candidates made the deadline in the first stage of qualifying for the March 8 ballot. Daily News.

Saturday was the last day for candidates to take out "declaration of intention" papers to run for City Council, Los Angeles Unified School District board and the Los Angeles Community College District board.

However, the City Clerk's Office said a complete list of candidates will not be available until Monday.

****
Final updated list
Go the City Clekr's webpage for tjhe final list of declared candidates:
http://cityclerk.lacity.org/election/Candidates/declarat.pdf

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's attorneys spent tens of millions of dollars in legal fees while lacking sufficient cost controls and oversight, according to a new audit. http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_16586253

In six major cases alone, litigation costs by Metro attorneys totaled more than $80 million, according to the audit by Metro's inspector general. In eight other cases, fees topped $1 million each.

"Eighty million dollars - that's a lot," said City Controller Wendy Greuel. "It is an extraordinary amount of money as we look at funds necessary to public transportation that exists for buses and other services."

You could call it detention hall for ditchers or a time-out for truants. Connie Llanos and Melissa Pamers in the Daily News.

Just don't call it fun.

In an effort to curb the number of students playing hooky, Los Angeles Unified recently opened Attendance Improvement Centers at eight of its campuses, including one at Sepulveda Middle School in North Hills.

Campaign 2011 officially landed on the steps of City Hall on Wednsday, with a potential City Council candidate taking off after an incumbent politician.
The candidate, Tomas O'Grady, complained about the lack of support from Councilman Tom LaBonge in helping a veteran get support to put a ribbon on the Hollywood sign. O;'Grady has taken out papers to challenge Labonge in the 4th District race to be decided on March 8.
David Weiss, a Marine Corp veteran, who said he was able to get the sign wrapped in the ribbon in past years to show respect for veterans, said LaBonge told him in a telephone call he would help him and, two hours later, reneged on the issue.
"It shouldn't be that you have to know someone to get permission," said Weiss, who lives in Newport Beach.
LaBonge said he agreed with the importance of the symbolism of the gesture and that he was not the person who blocked the proposal.
"I tried to get him help and referred him to the Hollywood Chamber and the trust fund (responsible for the sign)," LaBonge said. "When it stalled, I called him up and told him we could put something around City Hall, but he didn't want to do that."
Weiss said he found the City Hall proposal unworkable.

Katherine Gould already scrapes by, working two jobs while she raises twin girls and studies for a graduate degree at Cal State Northridge. Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

But the cost of her diploma will likely spiral upward as California universities ponder piling on hundreds of dollars in fees - again.

"I am barely making it," the 42-year-old Glendale resident said Tuesday, standing in front of the Oviatt Library, where she works at one of her part-time jobs. "I have no idea where it'll come from.

Los Angeles Unified officials took a big step forward Tuesday toward launching a new controversial method to evaluate teachers based on the performance of their students. | "LAUSD votes to wait on consultants' contracts" Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The school board approved two consultant contracts to study and develop the new teacher evaluation method, with a combined cost of up to $4.5 million.

Neither side is willing to concede as the count for who won the Attorney General's race in last Tuesday's election continued.
Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley has taken a lead in the count of provisional and absentee ballots, aide to San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris are telling supporters to not give up hope.
Most of the ballots counted so far are from conservative regions, spokesman Brian Brokaw said and they expect to see "abrupt swings" as more votes are counted.
The Harris camp has begun enlisting volunteers to monitor the vote counts and said more than 1,000 have been dispatched around the state.
The Cooley campaign has been urging supporters to hang on and wait to see the final count.
Neither side has said if they will ask for a recount. California does not have an automatic recount, but the campaigns _ or any voter _ could request a recount on a county-by-county basis by Dec. 5.

Yhey have prosecuted streetwalkers. Imprisoned drug dealers. Gone after graffiti. And busted landlords for blight. Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News,

Now the acclaimed Neighborhood Prosecutor Program that for eight years has helped patch "broken windows" across Los Angeles has fallen victim to the budget knife.

At its peak last year, the City Attorney's Office assigned two dozen prosecutors to police stations citywide to pursue petty crimes, chronic nuisances and quality-of-life complaints.

Tipoff: Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa been absent from debate over DWP reform; looking back at electoins 2010.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa seems to have woken up a bit. This past summer, the Daily News launched a two-month editorial series calling the mayor out for his long, second-term nap at a time when Angelenos needed him the most. Daily News Editorial

As part of the series "Fixing a broken city," the Daily News asked the mayor to shake off the apparent lethargy and get back to work.

Republican voters in Southern California might feel they totally missed the party last Tuesday, when election results gave the GOP far less to celebrate in the Golden State than in the rest of the nation. Kevin Modesti in the Daily News.

For them, think of the following as a bite of leftover cake.

A closer look at races for the state Legislature and the House of Representatives shows that although Republicans failed to gain seats in California, their candidates garnered higher percentages than in recent elections in the vast majority of districts.

The Valley Industry and Commerce Association's recent business forecasting panel featured an economic cat fight. Gregory Jl Wilcox in the Daily News,

During VICA's annual session on Oct. 28, local economists James Paulsen, William Roberts and Bill Watkins offered divergent outlooks, ranging from morose to surprisingly upbeat.

Paulsen, chief investment strategist at Wells Capital Management, was most optimistic of the three.

Whetting the appetites of Los Angeles sports fans, AEG's top executive said Thursday the company's proposed downtown football stadium and events center could field an NFL team starting in the fall of 2015 and host the 50th Super Bowl at the end of that season.Kevin Modesti in the Daily News,

Tim Leiweke, CEO and president of the company that owns Staples Center and L.A. Live, said he would expect the new facility to host three Super Bowls and two college basketball Final Fours in its first 10 years and be suitable to hold the World Cup final if the United States secures the 2022 soccer tournament.

Those were among details Leiweke spelled out in a luncheon speech and Q&A session in front of members of the L.A. organization Town Hall a week after he first went public with the concept in a talk to San Fernando Valley business leaders.

When "Casey A." graduated from high school at the Challenger Memorial Youth Center, he couldn't read a single word on his diploma. Troy Anderson in the Daily News,

"He didn't know what a diploma was, even though he was handed one," Mark D. Rosenbaum, chief counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, said Thursday.

"And when we asked him where he wanted to have lunch to celebrate, he said `Denny's' because there were pictures on the menu and that was the only place he could order

City Controller Wendy Greuel announced plans Thursday to undertake a wide-ranging audit of the Department of Water and Power's purchasing program following allegations that employees misused credit cards. Daiky News.

Greuel said the department management asked her to review the P-Card program after disclosures two workers had overcharged for furniture and kept the proceeds.

Felony fraud charges have been filed against Anthony Carone, 49, and Akbar Fonooni. The two are charged with a third man, Troy Mitchell, for misappropriation of public funds, conflict of interest and conspiracy.

The once and future governor, Attorney General Jerry Brow, won election on Tuesday in a runaway victory over billionaire Meg Whitman as Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer won what turned ot to be an easy re-election. Daily News electioncoverage.
The California voer willingness to embrace experienced politicians seemed to defy the national anti-incumbent sentiment throughout the state as returns showed no major upsets in races for Congress or the state legislature. The only newcomers elected, for the most part, were for seats opened due to term limits.
Boqwn, the last Democrat to serve a full two terms as governor, wrote to supporters following his victory that California will continue to face tough times, but that he is hopeful for the future.
"I just got off the stage at the Fox Theater in Oakland. I chose this theater because it is a symbol of renewal -- of what is possible in our state," Brown wrote.
"I want everyone in California to know we might, and we will, have tough times, but if we all pull together and if we operate with honesty, transparency, tell it like it is, and level with you, we can meet the challenges ahead.
"What we need is a larger sense of agreement and the only way we can get beyond where we are -- which is polarization, division and hostility -- is to get past these partisan divisions. So I take as my challenge the responsibility of forging a common purpose. Not just a common purpose based on compromise, but a common purpose based on a vision of what California can be.
"And I see a California once again leading on renewable energy, leading on education. We are all God's children and while I understand politics, I will always carry with me my sense of that missionary zeal to transform the world -- that's always been my calling. That's what it's all about -- the vision. :

Los Angeles Unified officials announced Tuesday that nine San Fernando Valley schools will be among more than 40 campuses eligible for the third round of the district's landmark Public School Choice plan.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

The reform effort, approved in summer 2009, allows nonprofit organizations, charter operators and teachers to apply to run new and underachieving campuses.

The City Council took a preliminary step Tuesday to let voters decide whether to create watchdog positions in the Department of Water and Power, but it held off on the final OK until the measures can be further refined.Daily News.

The council plan would create an Office of Public Accountability within the DWP, including a ratepayer advocate position and an inspector general.

Scheduled to appear on the March ballot, the proposal follows a year of contentious relations with the DWP during a battle over the utility's efforts to pass a series of rate hikes

Gubernatorial candidates Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman and senatorial contenders Sen. Barbara Boxer and Carly Fiorina all spent parts of the day in Los Angeles County, home of more than one-quarter of California voters. Kevin Modesti in the Daily News,

All the candidates made election-eve dashes up and down the state to inspire voters, who are not expected to overrun polling stations.

Meg Whitman put in a 25-minute appearance at the Republican campaign office in Woodland Hills to urge phone-bank volunteers not to believe polls that show Brown and Boxer leading.

Former Deputy Mayor Jimmy Blackman, who left the staff of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa in July, will return to Ciyt Hall next Monday as chief of staff to Councliman Dennis Zine.
Zine has been close to Blackman over the years and has had a vacancy on his staff for several months, following the retirement of Cliff Ruff.
Zine won re-election last year and will serve through 2013. He has said he is looking to run for City Controller if Controller Wendy Greuel decides to run for mayor.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa hits the campaign trail in California and Nevada today.
The mayor will be appearing at a rally on behalf of the California Democratic ticket of Jerry Brown for governor and the re-election bid of Sen. Barbara Boxer.
Then, he is off to Nevada to support get out the vote rallies among Latinos for Sen. Harry Reid and Nevada Democrats. He is scheduled to return to Los Angeles at 9 p.m. tonight.

But, wait, you say, I haven't gotten over the November elections.
The Los Angeles City Clerk's office announced that candidates interested in holding city office can begin taking out their declarations of intent for the March 8, 2011, city election.
The seven even-numbered seats on the City Council are to be decided, but the only open seat is in the 12th District, where Councilman Greig Smith is stepping down. Strong campaigns are expected in the 4th District where Councilman Tom LaBonge is expected to face a number of opponents and in the 14th District, where Councilman Jose Huizar is facing some well-financed opponents.
Also on the ballot are the four odd-numbered seats on the Los Angeles Board of Education and the four odd-numbered seats on the Los Angeles Community College Board of Trustees.

Some of the very things that made Carly Fiorina such a popular choice in the GOP's primary in California have become the focus of Sen. Barbara Boxer's strongest criticism as the two campaigns enter the final stretch of their hard-fought contest.AP iin the Daily News.

Boxer, knowing that Republicans constitute only 31 percent of the state's registered voters, checked off a list of issues Sunday where she perceives that Fiorina is in disagreement with a majority of Californian voters.

Sarah Palin's endorsement. Check. Fiorina's opposition to a permanent ban on offshore drilling off the coast. Check. Continuing the 2001 and 2003 tax breaks for those making more than $250,000, or as Boxer put it, "millionaires and billionaires." Check.

Amid the worst recession in modern history, the salaries of top Los Angeles County officials have shot up 12 to 45 percent in three years and some public servants are now making more than $400,000 annually in total compensation, a Los Angeles Daily News investigation has found.Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

The analysis of a county salary database obtained through the California Public Records Act found 17,686 of the county's more than 100,000 employees make more than $100,000 annually in total pay.

This includes a Coroner's Office executive secretary making $113,825 and a firefighter who collected a whopping $271,498 last year.

Tipoff: Los Angeles by the numbers; no rest for politics at City Hall..