Dear Editor: I respectfully disagree with Paul Mitchell’s opinion in the April 24, 2018, Capitol Weekly article,“CA120: Political intrigue: BOE’s redistricting and the gas tax.” My vote against raising the gas tax was a matter of policy, not politics.
Board of Equalization Chair Jerome Horton chats with colleague Diane Harkey in the Capitol. (Photo: AP/Rich Pedroncelli)Whether you liked it or not, the state Board of Equalization successfully blocked a gas tax increase. This saved Californians 4-cents-a-gallon at the pump, but handed Gov. Jerry Brown and lawmakers a $617 million hole in the state budget. What caused this rather dramatic policy move? I keep being drawn to the extraordinary events surrounding the 2011 redistricting of the BOE, which has four directly elected members.
Don Edwards Wildlife Refuge headquarters, South San Francisco Bay, Alviso.(Photo: Sundry Photagraphy)OPINION: The California Water Commission has the opportunity to create a new paradigm for water storage that delivers more cost-effective storage and an ability to ensure there will be enough water for communities, business and public purposes –keeping our rivers alive with enough water for fish, wildlife and recreation for people. That opportunity is to include groundwater storage in Proposition 1 allocations.
Nurses and physicians in a busy hospital corridor. (Photo: Monkey Business Images)The California Nurses Association is still committed to pushing through its controversial universal health care bill despite stiff opposition from the Democratic Assembly Speaker and medical professional organizations. The union has a strong ally in front-runner gubernatorial candidate Gavin Newsom, who says that a single-payer system as proposed in Senate Bill 562 is the best way to provide health care to all.
Gov. Brown delivers his 16th state of the state address. (Photo: Screen capture, ABC 7 Los Angeles).Jerry Brown professes to not be interested in legacies. Yet his 16th and final state-of-the-state speech last week was all about a legacy – his own. The governor talked about how dire the state’s fiscal situation was before he became governor. Then he talked about how good things are now that he’s been in charge for the last seven years.
Outside the House office of California Republican Congressman Darrell Issa, who plans to retire, following an apparent uptick in Democratic strength in his district. (Photo: Katherine Welles)>The national narrative on the 2018 election goes something like this: The first midterm election of a new president always goes strongly against the party in power. President Trump has been more unpopular in his first term than any in the modern age of polling, so this could get very bad for Republicans.
Re:“Builders, contractors: Numbers tell the tale” (Capitol Weekly, Jan. 17), it is unfortunate that Mr. Hunter of the Building and Construction Trades Council chooses to devalue the impact of the hard-working men and women comprising California’s construction industry, solely to boost his short-sided, self-preservationist agenda.
The Milky Way viewed through the trees in the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument.(Photo: David Hoffmann)When it comes to national monuments, California is hoping it won’t suffer a fate similar to Utah’s. President Trump recently signed orders to reduce the size of two Utah national monuments. But will there be others?
CalPERS headquarters, downtown Sacramento. (Photo: CalPERS)CalPERS wants unions and local government groups to come up with legislation that would retroactively correct a mistake that could lead to more pension cuts, like the 63 percent reduction last July in pensions promised about 200 former employees of LA Works.
A pipette and recepticles used in stem cell research. (Photo: CI Photos)The California stem cell agency has doubled down on its bet on a potentially breakthrough treatment for kidney transplants, raising to $25.4 million its support for a project that is entering its final stages. The hope is that the treatment will not only improve the success rate of kidney transplants but also lead to use in liver, heart and other solid organ transplants.