Recently in Sacramento Category

Joe Greblo straddles an A-shaped hump in the sidewalk in front of his Sylmar home that the city has refused to fix.Dana Bartholomew in the Daily News.

The 18-inch unrepaired hill is why he's behind a controversial state bill by San Fernando Valley lawmaker Felipe Fuentes that would require Los Angeles - and every cash-strapped city in California - to bear the cost of fixing sidewalk damage.

"I have my own private skateboard park in front of my house," Greblo says, looking down at the ramp pushed up by what looks like ash tree roots. "All the neighbors have been trying to get it fixed.

A political "Family Feud" of sorts, the race for the open 38th Assembly District seat features the wife of an incumbent congressman squaring off against a former top aide to the same lawmaker, along with two other candidates.

Most of the attention has been on Patricia McKeon, the wife of Rep. Buck McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, who decided to get in the race after Assemblyman Cameron Smyth was termed out.

McKeon, 70, one of three Republicans in the race,

With the state Academic Decathlon championship set for the weekend, teams from several San Fernando Valley high schools are preparing hard for Sacramento, trying to block out the shadow hanging over the program. Christina Villacorte in the Daily News,

For the first time, the Los Angeles Unified School District is considering cutting its Academic Decathlon program next year to help make a dent in its $557-million budget deficit.

Funding for the program has been dwindling steadily over the years, but never before has the district proposed chopping it altogether.

This is what it means when you take on the job of being chair of the Democratic National Convention: You travel. A lot.
Mayor Antomio Villaraigosa, fresh from two quick trips to Washington, D.C., takes off again for a weekend in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to speak at that state party's annual pre-primary convention.
From there, ,he goes to Sacramento on Monday to testify before the Assembly Taxation Revenue Taxation Committee on changes he believes are needed in Proposition 13.

Assemblyman Mike Feuer, D-Los Angeles, announced Tuesday the launch of his campaign for city attorney, following the announcement by City Attorney Carmen Trutanich that he's running for district attorney.

"I'm running to become Los Angeles' next city attorney because the people of L.A. deserve secure neighborhoods, innovative solutions to our toughest problems and a city government that inspires confidence and trust," Feuer said.

Previously, Feuer had said he would not challenge Trutanich for the seat. But his advisors said he needs to prepare for the election.

With the Community Redevelopment Agency of Los Angeles facing dissolution, local and state leaders are scrambling to understand how to shut down the multi-million-dollar agency while still preserving some of its blight-fighting powers. Dakota Smith in the Daily News.

Last month, the California Supreme Court upheld a ruling that ends the state's community redevelopment agencies, putting CRA/LA out of business as of Feb. 1.

Established in 1945, redevelopment agencies collect tax dollars in blighted areas to encourage and fund new development and affordable housing. Critics of the agencies, including Gov. Jerry Brown, successfully fought this year to divert the tax funds to core state services, such as education.

Even on a Casual Friday, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom still looks sharp. Capitol Weekly.

In a fitted navy suit and a cup of green tea freshly steeping in his manicured grasp, the political professional breaks from the bustling city streets with ease. Upon entering the Founders Den, a downtown San Francisco co-op that provides office space for fledgling online companies and serves as his headquarters, Newsom is quick to confess a sense of urgency that perhaps only a new father would understand.

Two political watchdog agencies indicated Thursday they are willing to give some leeway to political candidates who lost money because of alleged campaign embezzlement by Burbank-based treasurer Kinde Durkee. Daily News,

The state Fair Political Practices Commission and the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission issued advice letters saying those who lost money should be given additional time in which to close out accounts.

Durkee has been accused of mail fraud and misusing perhaps millions of dollars of campaign funds under her management.

Thanks to a new online registration program and aggressive community outreach efforts, a record number of students are applying for Los Angeles Unified's magnet schools, long considered the "jewels" of the sprawling district.Barbara Jones in the Daily News,

With two weeks remaining before the Dec. 16 deadline, nearly 17,000 students have applied for about 20,000 vacant seats in the 172 magnet programs. That compares with about 2,500 applicants through Nov. 30 of last year, with online access credited for nearly all of the surge.

Each year, California's School Boards Association gives out an award to the California state legislator who has been most supportive of education.Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa in the Daily News.

This year's winner?

Nobody.

That's right. The association could not find one single California legislator in 2011 who was outstanding in his or her support of education.

In fact, while other legislatures across the country debated and even passed meaningful new laws to improve student learning in our schools, Sacramento took a pass.

Despite facing a potential backlash from City Hall, Los Angeles Unified officials Tuesday voted to side with Gov. Jerry Brown on his plan to eliminate redevelopment agencies throughout the state.Connie Llanos in the Daily News,

The LAUSD school board approved filing a legal brief in support of the governor's plan, which is currently being fought in court by a coalition of city leaders and redevelopment agencies.

This spring Brown proposed to close more than 400 community redevelopment agencies which he said would funnel an estimated $1.7 billion back to California's coffers by 2012-13.

The state Senate approved special legislation Friday designed to expedite construction of a football stadium in downtown Los Angeles, saying it was willing to bend California's environment laws in order to generate thousands of jobs. Dakota Smith in the Daily News,

Senate Bill 292 fast-tracks legal challenges to construction of the 72,000-seat Farmers Field stadium. Approved by the Assembly on Wednesday and passed 32-7 on Friday afternoon, the bill now heads to Gov. Jerry Brown for consideration. He has not indicated whether he will sign it.

"The sheer scale and magnitude (of the project) will be felt statewide from an economic point of view," said state Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Van Nuys, who sponsored the bill. "We will feel that bump throughout the state.

Los Angeles lawmakers on Friday touted developer Anschutz Entertainment Group's downtown football stadium as an innovative facility that will transform the South Park neighborhood into a walkable, transit-accessible hub. Dakota Smith in the Daily News,.

That's why otherwise green-minded lawmakers said they were willing to back new legislation that would bend the landmark California Environmental Quality Act to accommodate the project.

"This would be the most environmentally friendly stadium in the country," said Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Van Nuys, who introduced Senate Bill 292 that would provide a myriad of protections and requirements for the stadium.

Teamsters clarify position

A major Southern California union has backed off its opposition to the proposed downtown football stadium.. Daily News.

On Thursday, Teamsters Joint Council 42 - representing 200,000 members in the San Gabriel Valley and Inland Empire -- had issued a strongly worded letter supporting Majestic Realty's proposed stadium in the City of Industry. The letter also blasted the competing project that Anschutz Entertainment Group has proposed for downtown Los Angeles.

Moving to protect dozens of planned housing and commercial projects, the City Council on Wednesday voted to preserve the Community Redevelopment Agency by sending $96.5 million in local tax money to Sacramento. Dakota Smith in the Daily News.

The council had little choice but to send the funds. Earlier this year, Gov. Jerry Brown ordered all statewide redevelopment agencies to either transfer a portion of their tax increment revenue or shut down. The city had an Oct. 1 deadline to comply.

City Councilman Tony Cardenas was one of numerous council members to loudly complain about the loss of funds.

Rep/ Janice Hahn, D-San Pedro, received her first committee assigntment on Thursday, and it's a big one.
Due to her district having the Port of Los Angeles and Los Angeles international Airport, Hahn was named as one of 14 Democrats on the panel.
"Homeland Security is a excellent place for me to tackle the issues that matter to my district," Hahn said.
" We need to be doing more to protect our families and the engines of economic growth in our area like LAX and the Port of Los Angeles. I'm eager to roll up my sleeves and get to work preparing and protecting the people of my community and our nation."