A portion of the state code dealing with employees and independent contractors> (Photo: 7713 Photography, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Of all the bills wriggling through the Capitol’s sausage machine, my favorite is AB 1577 – the one to unionize legislative employees. It should be one of yours, too. It’s the only way to stop the Legislature from using your tax dollars to campaign for people you don’t like.
A a set gillnet underwater on the sea bed. (Photo: Damsea, via Shutterstock)Conservationists are pushing a $1 million effort this summer to change the way swordfish are caught off the California coast by phasing out the use of gill nets. They are the mile-long nylon nets used to catch swordfish but that also ensnare other species, causing conservation organizations to seek an end to their use.
A motorcyclist and his bike, ready to roll. (Photo: oneinchpunch, via Shutterstock)FairWarning: The apparent 10 percent increase in motorcycle fatalities, based on an analysis by the Governors Highway Safety Association, coincided with a projected rise of about 8 percent in traffic deaths overall in 2015. Preliminary figures from the National Safety Council put the traffic deaths total at 38,300, also the highest level since 2008. In California, in contrast to the national trend, motorcycle crash fatalities actually declined by 7 percent.
A jumble of prescription drugs. (Photo illustration via Shutterstock)California voters, confronted by a multimillion-dollar advertising blitz, overwhelmingly rejected Proposition 46, which would have raised the cap on pain-and-suffering damages in medical malpractice lawsuits. But new legislation in the Capitol targets a slice of Proposition 46 dealing with the state’s prescription drug database. And rival forces that clashed over Proposition 46 are poised to do battle again.