Political Stories Top stories George Skelton: Lawmakers pump the brakes after Jerry Brown goes full throttle on pet projects — Gov. Jerry Brown’s two very pricey legacy projects took hits in the Legislature last week. They were light jabs, and he didn’t even flinch. But the fact that some fellow Democrats had the temerity to challenge […]

Political Stories Top stories  Dan Walters: California preschool spending a big conflict – In the broadest sense, this year’s version of the annual budget wrangle pits Gov. Jerry Brown, who wants to keep a lid on spending and build budget reserves, against his fellow Democrats in the Legislature, who want to spend more. The sharpest skirmish is […]

Political Stories Top stories California scores lowest on Moody’s fiscal ‘stress test’ – California, whose state budget is highly dependent on volatile income taxes, is the least able big state to withstand a recession, according to a “stress test” conducted by Moody’s Investor Service. Sacramento Bee article  Brand, Perea lead Fresno mayor money chase — It looks almost certain […]

Political Stories Top stories California voters back income tax extension, school bonds, poll says – California voters are inclined to extend extra taxes on the state’s high-income residents to support public education and pass a new school construction bond issue, a poll by the Public Policy Institute of California has found. Sacramento Bee article; San Jose Mercury News article; EdSource article […]

Political Stories Top stories Delta tunnels bill mandating voter approval advance — A California Assembly committee on Tuesday moved to force a public vote on a controversial water conveyance project. The $15.5 billion plan to construct two massive water conveyance tunnels in the heart of California’s water circulatory system has driven the latest round of a […]

Political Stories Top stories  Lawmakers seek to tighten bullet train oversight, suggesting growing concern about project – A key state legislative committee on Monday unanimously approved a Republican-led bill to strengthen oversight of the California bullet train, a sign of growing bipartisan concern about the project. LA Times article Congressional candidates Huerta, Rogers show good money in reports […]

Political Stories Top stories Dan Walters: California Legislature ignores problems, occupied with trivia — Poverty, water supply, educational shortcomings, traffic congestion and housing shortages are just a few of those knotty issues that seem to limp along year after year without resolution. Much of the Legislature’s time and energy, however, is consumed by what most of […]