Posts Tagged: low

CalPERS’ investment earnings climbing steadily

CalPERS headquarters, Sacramento. (Photo: Wikipedia)

by ED MENDEL posted 09.22.2014

Calpensions: Three years ago CalPERS investment earnings hit bottom in a Wilshire consultants report that ranks the performance of big pension funds — dead last among its peers over the previous five years. Last week a new Wilshire report showed CalPERS investment earnings steadily climbing up the ranks, finishing in the top quarter of big pension funds during the last three years.

Low turnout waits in the wings

Ventura County voters go to the polls in a California general election. (Photo: Spirit of America)

by BOB MULHOLLAND posted 07.30.2014

OPINION: I now believe the turnout this November will be closer to 45% than 50%. In the previous 8 governor primaries (1982-2010) the average turnout was 39.2% and in those eight General Elections the average turnout was 59.0%, thus, on average an increase of 19.8% from the Primary to the General.

Imagine being pick-pocketed every time you show up to work. For thousands of low-wage workers right here in the Bay Area, that’s the sad reality they face each day. Their employers, mega-corporations in the fast food industry, are illegally downsizing workers’ paychecks in much the same way they supersize a meal.

Among the findings: Dianne Feinstein’s approval ratings are on the decline and rank among the lowest she’s received in her 20 years in office. Barbara Boxer’s positives are on the rise. Meanwhile, more than four out of five Californians disapprove of the job Congress is doing, which is close to a record.

Another year, another Top 100 list, but there’s a big difference in this go-round: This is the first time we’ve put the list into a dedicated booklet and we think that’s pretty snazzy. The list, like Capitol Weekly itself, is now being published by the public benefit corporation Open California — and that’s cool, too.

It is fitting that the Western States Petroleum Association’s latest critique of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard invoked a 22-year-old desperado movie. The message that Californians should continue to rely exclusively on a single fuel for our cars and trucks, much of which comes from unstable sources, is outdated. And just like Thelma and Louise,

In the movie Thelma and Louise, the two hapless heroines clasp hands and hurl their turquois Thunderbird over a cliff and into an abyss of certain death.  It’s become an iconic moment in American film, a noble if extreme solution when all hope is lost.

California is about to hurl itself over a cliff

California is home to the world’s greatest innovation economy. From semiconductors to social networks, the state boasts a rich tradition of supporting new technologies that spawn job-creating companies and industries and provide California consumers with the goods and services that make their lives better. But recent attacks on the Low Carbon Fuel Standard could stifle

California was first in the nation to mandate a 10 percent reduction in the overall carbon intensity of fuel sold in the state by 2020.  However, we will not assume a real national leadership role in this important endeavor without first stepping back from California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) Program to reassess critical feasibility,

By Mark DiCamillo and Mervin Field

Despite a record number of Californians registered to vote, the turnout in today’s election will likely include about one million fewer voters than in the last presidential election. The Field Poll estimates that 12.75 million Californians will participate in today’s presidential election, down from 13.74 million who voted in