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Two years after Gov. Jerry Brown and the Legislature dismantled California’s $5 billion-a-year redevelopment program, Brown wants to bring some elements back — but he’s offering less money, a different name and a change in local voters’ approval. The crux of Brown’s plan is to expand the reach of the rarely-used, little-known Infrastructure Finance Districts. The districts, or IFDs, have taxing authority and are created with voter approval. They function on property tax dollars and focus on highways, transit and sewer projects, libraries, parks and child care centers.
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But even as the rain clouds appear sparse, there may be a silver lining for the backers of a major ballot measure: Experts say the grim outlook could spur voters to approve a multibillion-dollar bond facing voters in November 2014. It could bring to reality the need to borrow money and resolve some of the state’s water issues. (Photo: Lower American River, USFWS)
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Two special elections viewed as make-or-break contests for the Legislature’s Democratic supermajority had something in common Tuesday night – miserable turnout.
In the southern Central Valley, the high-stakes battle for the 16th Senate District pitted Kern County Supervisor Leticia Pérez, a Democrat, against Republican Andy Vidak, a Hanford cherry farmer.
With all the precincts at
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California’s minimum-wage earners are one step closer to seeing their pay tied to the cost of living, a goal that advocates for low-income workers have sought for years.
Under a bill awaiting action in the Senate, the minimum wage, currently $8 per hour, would be raised by 25 cents per hour next year, then
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The Feb. 19 auction of emission allowances, a key piece of California’s law to curb climate-changing greenhouse gases, will carry a slightly higher reserve price than last November’s cap-and-trade auction, the state’s top air-quality regulator told lawmakers on Monday.
Mary Nichols, the chair of the California Air Resources Board, said the per-allowance reserve, or