Recently in Sacramento Category

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders were trying to work out a water deal Sunday as a midnight deadline neared for the governor to act on more than 700 bills.AP in the Daily News.,

The governor signed or vetoed about 200 bills by mid-afternoon, including one that will test a porgram requiring that drivers convicted of drunken driving install devices that block vehicles from starting if alcohol is detected on the drivers' breath.

Three inarguable facts dominate California's system of financing state government: Sacramento Bee.

• It's a mess.

• It's currently a mess in large part due to the deepest and most pervasive global recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

• It's been a mess for much of the past three decades because the combination of an out-of date tax system, reckless spending and fickle voters has made state government extremely vulnerable to the ebbs and flows of the economy.

With city and state revenues in a continual downward spiral, officials ranging from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa are eyeing tax reform as a boost to the economy and public coffers.Daily News.

At the end of a seemingly endless budget cycle this past year, Schwarzenegger said he wanted the state Legislature to go into special session to consider tax reforms from his Commission for a 21st Century.

The commission, a 14-member bipartisan panel, has yet to complete its report. But the governor said last week he is confident its recommendations will help fix the state's "broken tax system (that) has taken California on an unwelcome roller coaster ride."

SACRAMENTO -- California's rapid economic decline has prompted Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to propose what once was unthinkable - rolling back generous pensions in a state heavily influenced by public employee unions. AP in the Daily News.

The Republican governor said he's motivated by the need to save money. California has at least $63 billion in unfunded pension liabilities, an amount equal to roughly two-thirds of all annual general fund spending.

The concern is shared across the country, as local and state governments wrestle with hundreds of billions of dollars in unfunded public employee pension and retiree health care costs.

With California facing a possible lockout from a $4.35 billion federal education grant, Los Angeles Unified officials are hoping to branch out on their own to compete for the funds apart from the state.Connie Llanos in the Daily News.

Superintendent Ramon Cortines sent a letter to U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan this week requesting to apply for "Race to the Top," a competitive pot of stimulus dollars designated for school reform.

The grant is designed to be awarded through state departments of education, but recent criticisms by President Obama on California educational policies have led LAUSD officials to consider their own effort.

ov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a revised $85 billion budget Tuesday that he said contained "the good, the bad and the ugly," including additional cuts to child welfare programs, health care for the poor and AIDS prevention efforts. AP in the Daily News.

Schwarzenegger used his line-item veto authority to save an additional $656 million that will let the state restore a reserve fund he said is needed for tough times. Democrats immediately questioned whether he had the authority to make some of the cuts.

The mayors of Los Angeles and five other large California cities threatened Thursday to join forces in a legal action if the Legislature approves a budget that would use Daily News.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the five other mayors - all struggling with their own budget problems - said they will not allow the state to raid their coffers. Los Angeles stands to lose about $270 million under the tentative pact reached early this week by lawmakers and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"I represent 4 million people in this state," Villaraigosa told reporters. "With these other mayors, we represent the majority of the state. We have to speak out to protect our residents from this budget."

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and California's top lawmakers are set to resume talks Monday with the hope of hammering out the final details on a deal to close the state's $26.3 billion budget deficit.AP in the Daily News.

The negotiations come as the state pays its bills with IOUs for the first time in nearly 20 years and as major credit agencies threaten the state's already basement-level bond rating. The dismal economy has forced a new round of cuts just 4 1/2 months after California closed a previous $42 billion deficit.

The state's four top legislative leaders had been scheduled to meet with the Republican governor Sunday to work out what all sides expected to be the final budget deal. But the meeting was abruptly postponed by scheduling conflicts.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa returns to his "energizer" schedule today, as he prepares for his second term in a week where he announced he is not running for governor
His day begins with a ground breaking -- bring out those golden shovels -- for the Orange Line expansion in Chatsworth. He will be joimed by Supervisor Zev Yaroslavskly and Councilman Greig Smith.
Then, he's off to Sacamento to head a delegation of mayors to appeal to the state to not take
gas tax funds that could affect street maintenence work. In addition, that is money the state would not have to repay cities.

California Democrats should be riding high after a surge in voter registration and the emergence of a strong cast set to audition for next year's gubernatorial race. AP in the Daiily News.

But enthusiasm is being tempered by the state's fiscal problems, which have forced the state's majority party to take unpopular actions. Democratic lawmakers have angered the party's traditional supporters by making deep cuts in state services and upset centrists by passing billions in tax increases.

County prepared to help adoptive parents
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors agreed Tuesday to work with state lawmakers to help parents of adopted foster children adjust if steep cuts to benefits are made.Troy Anderson in the Daily News.

To close an estimated $24 billion budget gap, state lawmakers are considering slicing up to 25 percent from assistance payments to parents of adopted foster children.

LAUSD prepares for more cuts

Union leaders of the Los Angeles Unified School District came together Tuesday to blast proposed state budget cuts to transportation that could total more than $400 million statewide.
Connie Llanos in the Daily News.
The latest state budget proposal would cut transportation funding to schools by 65 percent, equivalent to about $443 million according to union leaders.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa returned to Sacramento on Tuesday for the second time in three weeks, leading a delegation of mayors trying to block state legislators from taking local funds.
Daily News.
At the same time, hundreds of city workers descended on Los Angeles City Hall to protest plans to furlough workers 26 days and close down basic services twice a month.

Villaraigosa, joined by the mayors of San Diego, Santa Ana and Sacramento, pleaded with the state to repay any funds that it takes from cities.

Mayors of the state's largest cities made a broad appeal Tuesday to California officials not to take property tax money from local governments struggling to balance their budgets. Daiily News.

Organized by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, officials from San Diego, Sacramento and Santa Ana met with state Treasurer Bill Lockyer, Controller John Chiang and legislative leaders, offering to work with them to solve the state's $21 billion deficit without harming local government.

In a world of political neophytes, Bob Blumenfield exudes political competence. As a former staffer for Rep. Howard Berman, D-Los Angeles, and as the former right hand for Joe Edmiston, one of the state's savviest bureaucrats, Blumenfield has an insider's knowledge of how to pull the levers of political power. Capitol Weekly.
While Blumenfield has become a shining light among the Assembly's freshman class, there is a reassuring amount of perspective that is uncommon among so many politicians. Blumenfield is clearly ambitious, but in talking to the 41-year-old father of two (including a two-month old daughter), there is an inner calm about him that indicates that while he loves his work, he doesn't need public office the way many elected officials do.

Arguing that the short-term pain of increased taxes is worth the long-term gain of permanent budget reform, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger picked up some major Los Angeles endorsements for a raft of ballot propositions designed to rescue state finances. Daily News.

"One of the most important things on issues is to get local political leaders, law enforcement leaders and business leaders to support us," Schwarzenegger said at a news conference staged at the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Sheriff Lee Baca and chamber President

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's office announced Thursday they will make state government more transparent with a new website, www.reportingtransparency.gov to make available the Statement of Economic Interests, Form 700, and the Travel Expense claims for the offices of the governor, senior staff, agency secretaries and department directors.
"Since taking office I have taken steps to make government more accountable and responsive to the people," Schwarzenegger said in a statement. "By making the economic, gift and travel information of the senior members of my administration easily available online, we are taking unprecedented steps to open up our government to the people - yet another critical step toward more government transparency."
Additionally, travel expense claims and Form 700s from the Governor's Office senior staff and deputies are now posted on the Governor's Office Web site at http://gov.ca.gov