Posts Tagged: interests

News

Recipient of $22 million from stem cell agency named to its board

Stem cell researcher and professor Larry Goldstein. (Photo: Screen capture, UCTV).

Larry Goldstein, a well-known stem cell researcher at the University of California, San Diego who has received nearly $22 million in awards from the California stem cell agency, today was named to its governing board. It was the first time in the history of the 16-year-old agency that a scientist who has received agency awards has been appointed to the board.

Podcast

Capitol Weekly Podcast: Lobbyist John Latimer eyes the new landscape

Sacramento lobbyist John Latimer. (Photo: Capitol Advocacy)

Capitol Advocacy, a prominent Sacramento lobbying firm, celebrates 20 years in the business this month. Founder John Latimer sat down to chat with Capitol Weekly’s John Howard and Tim Foster about the nuts and bolts of the of lobbying, the impact — or not — of term limits and what’s changed since he launched the firm two decades ago.

News

Stem cell: Knee arthritis in new $33 million research plan

A Liquid Nitrogen bank containing a suspension of stem cells. (Photo: Elena Pavlovich)

The California stem cell agency this week approved nearly $33 million for clinical stage research projects testing treatments for type 1 diabetes, arthritis of the knee, ALS and an immunodeficiency affliction.

Opinion

Infrastructure: Brown and Trump agree

The Tower Bridge in Sacramanto west of the state Capitol. (Photo: Tupungato, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: “Amen to that, brother,” Governor Jerry Brown exhorted in his state of the state speech in support of President Donald Trump’s call for spending $1 trillion on infrastructure improvements. It was the only sense of cooperation the governor offered to the new president and some of his expected policies.

News

Science: Companies in legal scrapes turn to Menlo Park firm

Illustration: Quentin Lueninghoener, FairWarning

FairWarning: The formula has turned the firm, now named Exponent, Inc., into a publicly traded giant in litigation defense and regulatory science. It’s a go-to destination for major industries with liability problems – even as it is derided by critics as a hired gun whose findings are for sale.

News

The Legislature: Let the sun shine in

Chamber of the state Assembly in the Capitol, Sacramento. (Photo: Felix Lipov)

Want to take a deep dive into the California Legislature? You may get your chance. Proposition 54 by Charles Munger Jr. and Sam Blakeslee on the November ballot would force the Legislature to record all its actions and post the video on the web for the public, except for certain proceedings. It would bar lawmakers from acting on any bill until its final form has been published online for at least 72 hours.

News

Dems battle one another in AD4

A Californian casts a ballot. (Photo: Vepar5 via Shutterstock)

Democrats are traversing the 4th Assembly District, seeking support in the sprawling district that stretches from the Bay Area to Sacramento and even further north into the Sacramento Valley and North Coast mountains. The big money from Sacramento hasn’t dropped in yet and might not, depending on whether special interests feel they have a candidate they really want.

News

Online poker bill emerges from committee — a first

Internet gambling, an illustration. (Photo: Pedro Sala)

The Legislature made history of sorts Monday when it recorded its first-ever committee vote on a bill to legalize internet poker in California, but the measure is light on details and remains a focus of intense negotiations. Assemblyman Adam Gray, D-Merced, introduced the bill, AB 431, earlier this year.

Opinion

Common Core: A critical tool to meet workforce challenges

Youngsters in a California classroom. (Photo: Monkey Business Images, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: The health of California’s evolving and global 21st century economy depends on a skilled workforce. Yet, there are too few qualified applicants to create talent pools for jobs that fuel our economic growth. And while STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) jobs in the state are projected to grow 22 percent by 2020, the National Assessment of Educational Progress found that in 2011, 75 percent of California’s 8th graders were not proficient in national math standards.

Opinion

Inside the Capitol: Examining gridlock and compromise

The state Capitol in Sacramento, ground floor near the West Steps. (Photo: Trekandshoot, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: What causes gridlock in the legislative process? Has it been getting worse over time? And, what can be done to lessen the conditions that promote gridlock and increase the conditions that promote compromise?

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