A map showing cities in a swath of northern California. (Photo: BestStockFoto, via Shutterstock.More than 7,100 people have applied to be on California’s independent redistricting commission, the 14-member panel that will draw new political boundaries based on population counts from the 2020 census. State Auditor Elaine Howle’s office said of the large applicant pool, nearly 6,000 were tentatively eligible.
Plastic garbage on the beach, tossed there or brought in by the tide. (Photo: Larina Marina, via Shutterstock)OPINION: You’ve probably heard the phrase, “You are what you eat” a thousand times. It’s a motto usually used to encourage skipping the fries or chips for the recommended servings of veggies and fruits. But lately this phrase has a taken on an alarming new meaning. We are eating plastic.
A pharmacist puts medications on the shelves of his store. (Photo: viewfinder, via Shutterstock)OPINION: We’ve seen the stories of Pharma Bro, we’ve read about Big Pharma’s Q1 profit margins. What drug companies are trying to keep secret though, is Pay-for-Delay, a sneaky tactic that brand name and generic drug companies are using – and getting away with — that costs Americans $3.5 billion per year in higher health care costs.
A basketball player takes to the air to score an amazing dunk. (Image: PKpix, via Shutterstock)Amateurism’s last stronghold in California, intercollegiate student athletics, may be coming to an end. Up before lawmakers are two bills – SB 206 and AB 1518 – that tackle an age-old characterization of student athletes as amateurs. As amateurs, they cannot receive compensation beyond a scholarship or enlist the help of a sports agent.
The CalPERS headquarters in Sacramento. (Photo: Kit Leong)The annual payment to CalPERS for state worker pensions next fiscal year is expected to be $7 billion, a jump from $6.4 billion this year — and a quantum leap from $160 million when a pension increase, SB 400, was approved 20 years ago.
The state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: Rigucci, via Shutterstock)With the recently concluded 2017-18 legislative session, it is valuable to look at some of the key data, including bill introductions, the fate of those bills, the work of the committees, the lawmakers’ legislation and the actions of the governor. So let’s crunch some numbers: We’ll look at the Senate first.
Tom Hannigan and his daughter Erin, a Solano County supervisor. (Photo: Erin Hannigan Facebook page)Tom Hannigan, formerly a major legislative leader, director of California’s Department of Water Resources and an avid marathon runner, has died of natural causes. He was 78. Hannigan, a Marine Corps veteran who fought in the Vietnam war, is the father of Solano County Supervisor Erin Hannigan, who announced his death on her Facebook page.
Mail boxes all in a row in rural California. (Photo: Ant Clausen)More and more of them are flooding your mailbox. They are usually bright, colorful, and nonsensical. Political mailers. What else? It’s the season, after all. Even in the age of texting and twitter, old-fashioned paper still has its charm for campaign strategists, especially in-down ballot races where a shotgun approach is not useful.
Paul V. Horcher during his years as a member of the California Assembly. (Photo: Assembly)That year, 1994, Assembly Republicans gained their first majority in a quarter century only to have one of their own — Paul Horcher — break away and vote to keep Willie Brown, a Democrat, in power. It was one of the most amazing moments in the history of the Assembly.
Lobbyist Pamela Lopez testifies before an Assembly committee about sexual harassment in the Capitol. (Photo: Rich Pedroncelli/APLeaders in the California Senate and Assembly have promised transparency as they combat sexual harassment in the Capitol, but so far most information from misconduct investigations remains hidden from public view. The Senate announced a contract with lawyers from two independent firms to investigate sexual harassment complaints, but attorney-client privilege could shield the investigations from public disclosure.