Posts Tagged: authority

News

Bullet train path looking smoother

In an artist's rendering, California's proposed bullet train zips along the Central Valley. (Illustration: High Speed Rail Authority)

California’s $67.5 billion bullet train has been described as “off-track” so long that some thought it was permanently derailed. In fact, the outlook has brightened: A series of court decisions, a move by Gov. Brown to pump money into the effort and an awakening interest from high-dollar investors has given the huge project new momentum.

News

Foes raise $92 million over two ballot measures

Led by medical insurers, opponents of two November ballot initiatives aimed at regulating insurance rates, raising the limits on pain-and-suffering awards and requiring doctors to be drug tested have raised nearly $92 million from their largest donors, according to figures compiled by the state’s political watchdog.

News

California shakes, but many go without quake insurance

Richard M. Allen, director of the Berkeley Seismological Laboratory, points out the American Canyon Quake. (AP Photo/Alex Menendez)

California is known as much for earthquakes as it is Hollywood or surfers, but relatively few homeowners have bothered to buy earthquake insurance. A little better than one in every 10 residential properties is covered throughout California. In Napa, where Sunday’s 6.0 magnitude quake caused an estimated $1 billion in damage, the coverage level is even lower than that – perhaps 5 percent, according to the California Earthquake Authority

Opinion

Election recounts: Reforms urged

A California voter casts a ballot. (Photo: Vepar5)

OPINION: In some states, a narrow margin of victory triggers an automatic statewide recount at no cost to the candidate. California does not have such a provision, and I believe we need one.

Opinion

Local authority crucial to managing groundwater

OPINION: Rather than focusing our attention on creating uber districts with special powers or buttressing the powers of cities and counties so they can manage groundwater, it would be better to focus our attention on some of the causes for our present failures and direct our efforts to giving local stakeholders the tools to complete the task.

News

State high court says qualified undocumented immigrants can practice law

The state Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday that California’s undocumented immigrants are eligible to practice law if they meet licensing requirements — even though they are not citizens. The court’s decision involved Sergio C. Garcia, an undocumented immigrant from Chico who passed all qualifying state exams and was seeking a license to practice law in California. Arguments in the case were heard last year.

News

A bumpy ride on the bullet train

California bullet train. (Illustration: High Speed Rail Authority)

The latest actions are far from conclusive but they may force delays in the project, which is scheduled to be completed by 2028 to link San Francisco and Los Angeles through the Central Valley. High-speed rail has long been popular in Europe and Asia, but earlier efforts in the U.S. to develop high-speed rail have failed in Wisconsin, Ohio and Florida. (Photo: High Speed Rail Authority).

News

Power politics at OC transit board

A shift in power at the Orange County Transportation Authority board in part reflects a dispute over power in the largest town in OCTA’s jurisdiction – Anaheim. Major issues are at stake, as OCTA is a significant entity in O.C. ruled by a politically savvy, 17-member board.

News

Pension flap imperils transportation funding

Local transportation officials across California are not happy: The feds, weighing in on a public pension dispute, are holding back billions of dollars. That means trains may not run on time, buses may not get bought or fixed and projects may not get built. And that could translate into a lot of unhappy passengers.

News

The paramedic will see you now

A day in the life of a typical paramedic is nothing like that of a primary care provider. Though both are central to the healthcare system, a paramedic performs in a high-stress environment that focuses exclusively on providing emergency medical services, while a primary care physician is more focused on a patient’s long term needs.

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