Politics, Government & Business in California's Inland Empire
09:14 AM PDT on Wednesday, September 22, 2010
By RICHARD K. DE ATLEY
The Press-Enterprise
Riverside County deputy district attorneys received $1.3 million in cashed-out vacation time since July, county officials said Tuesday.
The amount was so much and in such a short time that the county launched an investigation into the sudden spike of money paid out in lieu of taking time off.
Harris
By PE Politics
on September 21, 2010 4:20 PM
Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for state attorney general, is scheduled to attend a Saturday forum sponsored by the Riverside and San Bernardino branches of the NAACP, her campaign confirmed this afternoon.
10:00 PM PDT on Tuesday, September 21, 2010
By ALICIA ROBINSON
The Press-Enterprise
Riverside’s ethics code will apply to elected officials and members of city boards at all times, not just when they’re on official business, and a committee of residents will do a full review of the code to propose other changes, the council voted unanimously Tuesday.
Christopher S. Rugaber, The Associated Press
Posted: 09/21/2010 07:56:00 PM PDT
WASHINGTON – More than half of U.S. states saw their unemployment rates rise in August, the largest number in six months, as hiring weakened across the country.
The jobless rate increased in 27 states last month, the Labor Department said Tuesday. It fell in 13 and was unchanged in 10 states and Washington, D.C. That’s worse than the previous month, when the rate increased in only 14 states and fell in 18. It’s also the most states to see an increase since February.
Chantal M. Lovell, Staff Writer
Posted: 09/21/2010 11:49:08 AM PDT
REDLANDS – Three City Council candidates are making their way ahead of the pack after landing four major endorsements.
Paul Foster, Bob Gardner and Jon Harrison garnered the support of the Redlands Chamber of Commerce, Redlands Professional Firefighters Association, Redlands Teachers Association and Redlands Education Support Professionals Association after interviewing with the independent groups.
Editor’s Note: Real Estate entitlements near this proposed interchange will benefit an area developer. Inquiring minds should check.
Council to focus on Citrus Ave. interchange plans
Josh Dulaney, Staff Writer
Created: 09/21/2010 03:07:18 PM PDT
FONTANA – Eminent domain and the planned Citrus Avenue interchange project are on tap for discussion at tonight’s City Council meeting.
Officials will talk about the need to acquire property near the 10 Freeway, where the city wants to replace the four-lane Citrus Avenue bridge with a $57.5 million freeway interchange.
Canan Tasci, Staff Writer
Created: 09/21/2010 09:08:12 PM PDT
Despite a decline in three key areas, San Bernardino County schools have continued to show signs of progress.
While the data for the 2009-10 school year have not been released by the state Department of Education, preliminary enrollment compiled by the county school offices show student enrollment has dropped 1percent, or from 420,325 students to 415,549.
Ken McLaughlin kmclaughlin@mercurynews.com
Posted: 09/21/2010 04:30:41 PM PDT
Updated: 09/21/2010 09:28:59 PM PDT
California may lean left, but Meg Whitman promised Tuesday that if elected, she would govern from the “right of center” and offered a few new details on her business-friendly agenda to repair the state’s financial ship.
In a wide-ranging and at times contentious interview with the Mercury News editorial board, the Republican nominee for governor reiterated her pledge to eliminate the sales tax businesses pay on equipment purchases — even though that would slam many financially strapped cities in Silicon Valley. Doing so, she said, is key to restoring the state’s competitiveness.
PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
September 21, 2010 | 10:00 pm
Meg Whitman kicked off a week of high-profile fundraisers Tuesday with an evening reception with Condoleezza Rice at the Hyatt Regency in Burlingame, just outside of San Francisco.
More than 350 supporters paid $1,000 a piece to feast on rack of lamb and flourless chocolate cake while the Republican gubernatorial nominee and the former secretary of state held an on-stage conversation about the state of California and the state of the campaign.
By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com The Sacramento Bee
Published: Wednesday, Sep. 22, 2010 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
Democrat Jerry Brown and Republican Meg Whitman avoid specifics when talking about how they’d deal with California’s budget crisis, but are verbosely specific when dueling over how Brown handled state finances during his governorship three decades ago.
Brown boasts of cutting taxes by $4 billion, while Whitman accuses him of raising taxes and leaving the state with a deficit when he left office in 1983. Technically, neither is lying, although both are misleading.
By Jim Sanders
jsanders@sacbee.com
Published: Wednesday, Sep. 22, 2010 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
Last Modified: Wednesday, Sep. 22, 2010 – 8:02 am
On the day before Easter 2004, David Lee Hill fatally shot San Francisco Police Officer Isaac Espinoza and wounded his partner with an AK-47 assault rifle as they approached him for acting suspiciously in the city’s Bayview area.
District Attorney Kamala Harris’ decision not to seek the death penalty has become a lightning rod in this year’s race for state attorney general pitting her against Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley, a leader in sending killers to death row.
September 22, 2010 | Ryan Gabrielson
Many of the loudest calls for California public pension reform point to law enforcement retirement plans as Exhibit A in showing that the state is too generous to police officers and other public safety employees.
So it is interesting to note that the Republican gubernatorial nominee Meg Whitman has said that pensions for new public safety employees should remain essentially the same.
People who have exhausted their jobless benefits are pressing policymakers for more aid and joining together to call attention to their cause.
By Alana Semuels, Los Angeles Times
September 22, 2010
After his wife of 23 years pulls out of the driveway every morning to head to college, Scott Mathewson sits down at the computer in his apartment and talks to his unemployment group.
By Ed Mendel
SAN FRANCISCO — After two decades of getting by only on investment earnings, an apparent record for public pension funds, the University of California pension system faces what a task force calls a “frightening challenge.”
A retirement system that got no money from employers and employees during a contribution “holiday” that began in 1990 now needs about $1.6 billion this year, 20 percent of the payroll, to be properly funded.
Southern California — this just in
September 21, 2010 | 8:51 am
A Wall Street rating agency downgraded Bell’s credit ratings Tuesday, saying the city’s financial woes put it at risk of defaulting on an upcoming debt payment, according to Business Wire.
They aren’t explicitly allowed or forbidden under county code, but are required to get use permits. Supervisors reject a bid for a temporary ban on the establishments in unincorporated areas.
By Raja Abdulrahim, Los Angeles Times
September 22, 2010
The Buddha and bamboo shoots are gone.
In their place is an empty home — except for the metal detector — that until recently was the site of one of half a dozen marijuana dispensaries that opened up in the last year in tiny Sunset Beach.