The Skinny: Look who’s back!

It's always hard to say goodbye to former legislators. So imagine our surprise when we were cruising through the fourth floor of the old Capitol and we saw former North Coast Assemblywoman Patty Berg! This was no "returning to school after you graduate" visit, either. Berg was setting up shop in Capitol room 450, and she looked like she was getting ready to stick around for a little while. Berg was so we checked in with the Speaker's press office. While the speaker did confirm that Berg had been hired on, the press office referred all further questions to the Assembly Rules Committee. We still don't know all the details, but apparently Berg, who was an early supporter of Karen Bass when Bass ran for speaker, is helping out with new member orientation. Her final salary was not disclosed as part of the latest employee compensation list received by Capitol Weekly, but we hear Berg will be making a salary similar to what she made as a state lawmaker. But, hey. now she gets a pension! While Speaker Bass has shown a willingness to reward her friends, she's also not afraid to dish out a little pain. Three Democrats were stripped of their chairmanships for not voting the way the speaker wanted them to on the floatila of state budget bills. Tony Mendoza, Sandre Swanson and Warren Furutani all lost their chairmanships this week. Furutani and Mendoza who were rumored to be on recall lists being circulated by labor groups opposed to the budget deal.