A tossed plastic bottle ends up in the ocean off Santa Monica. (Photo: Danila Delimont, via Shutterstock)California’s inability to meet its long-stated goal of cutting solid waste by 75 percent by 2020 prompted environmentalists to craft a ballot initiative aimed at November targeting single-use single-use plastic products – including a sharp limit on their production.
A view of Los Angeles blurred by a hazy atmosphere. (Photo: evijaf, via Shutterstock) OPINION: For 11 years, Next 10 has been measuring economic and environmental indicators in the California Green Innovation Index. This year, the data is sobering. If the current pace of emissions decline continues, we will miss our 2030 climate targets by more than thirty years.
An illustration of a male prison inmate. (Image: phoelixDE, via Shutterstock)Proposition 47, the voter-approved ballot initiative aimed at easing prison overcrowding by releasing non-violent offenders, has generally succeeded in its goal. But the controversial measure also has run into some glitches. Researchers find that Proposition 47, approved in 2014, contributed to a decrease in rearrest rates while spurring a slight uptick in property crimes.
Image by Tim Foster, Capitol WeeklyCalifornia’s 2014 primary election had its fair share of surprises, but none was greater than David Evans, a virtually unknown candidate for state controller who was just seven-tenths of 1 percent away from beating both Betty Yee and John Perez to capture the coveted second spot and move on to the general election. This was a shock to political insiders, most of whom had never heard of him.
It may seem nostalgic to think that small businesses and the people they employ could work together for the strength of our communities, but that old-fashioned idea is making a comeback because giant corporations like 7-Eleven are threatening the survival of both local franchise owners and workers in our communities.
Calpensions: Employer and employee groups are urging CalPERS to “undertake all efforts” to avoid the “Cadillac Tax,” a 40 percent tax on high-cost health plans imposed in 2018 by President Obama’s health care law, a CalPERS staff report said this month. But it’s far from clear that one of those efforts will be Gov. Brown’s proposal to give state workers the option of a low-cost plan with a high deductible, even though the administration mentions the looming penalty tax as a reason for offering the plan.
A California voter casts a ballot. (Photo: Vepar5)Election 2014: As California voters head to the polls, state elections officials report a continued surge in the percentage of registered voters with no party preference and further erosion in the percentages of voters registered with the Republican and Democratic parties.