Wyatt Buchanan
Monday, May 21, 2012

Sacramento– Gov. Jerry Brown’s latest budget proposal attempts to close a formidable $15.7 billion deficit, but the real debate at the Capitol in the next few weeks probably will be over how to cut just a fraction of the big amount.

That’s because about $2 billion in the governor’s budget represents permanent reductions in spending on state welfare, child care and other programs that Democratic leaders in the Senate and Assembly have pledged to protect.

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By Kevin Yamamura
kyamamura@sacbee.com
Published: Sunday, May. 20, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Sunday, May. 20, 2012 – 8:30 am

Legislative Democrats aren’t organizing a bake sale just yet, but they say they will desperately search for cash in the coming weeks to avoid the most severe cuts proposed by Gov. Jerry Brown.

Saying the state’s budget deficit has risen from $9.2 billion to $15.7 billion, the Democratic governor has proposed more cuts to programs that serve the state’s poorest residents.

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Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 05/11/2012 05:23:52 PM PDT

An estimated 93,000 Californians lost unemployment benefits as of today when the federal government cut off funding that allowed the state to provide extended aid to the jobless since 2009.

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By Kevin Yamamura
kyamamura@sacbee.com
Published: Monday, Jan. 16, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 1A

As unemployed Californians struggle to find work, Gov. Jerry Brown has proposed strict rules for parents on welfare: Get a job in two years or lose nearly half of cash aid along with training and child care.

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Wyatt Buchanan, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau
Sunday, January 8, 2012

Sacramento –Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget plan released last week poses a stark choice for Californians: approve a five-year $35 billion tax increase in November or watch the hatchet drop on public school funding – with cuts so deep the school year could be shortened by almost a month.

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By Michael B. Marois and James Nash – Jan 5, 2012 9:01 PM P

California (STOCA1) Governor Jerry Brown proposed a budget that would lop off the equivalent of three weeks from the public school year if voters reject his proposal for $7 billion in temporary tax increases.

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Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
January 5, 2012

California’s top Senate Democrat today shut the door on Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget proposal to make deep cuts to social services programs in the first few months of the year.

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Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Corona./The Press-Enterprise

The region’s politicians in Washington are split along partisan lines about how to extend tax cuts and jobless aid
BY BEN GOAD
WASHINGTON BUREAU

bgoad@pe.com

Published: 13 December 2011 08:28 PM

WASHINGTON — As the debate over extending a soon-to-expire payroll tax cut and benefits for the unemployed nears a crescendo in Congress, few corners of the nation have more at stake than does economically battered Inland Southern California.

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California schools, libraries, prisons and disabled services will all be affected — with more to come, Gov. Jerry Brown warns.

By Anthony York and Teresa Watanabe
Los Angeles Times
December 14, 2011

Reporting from Sacramento and Los Angeles — Gov. Jerry Brown announced nearly $1 billion in new state budget cuts, slashing spending on higher education and eliminating funding for free school-bus service but avoiding the deeper reductions to public schools that many had feared.

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Lower-than-forecast revenue means automatic reductions will likely kick in. A shorter K-12 school year could result.

By Anthony York and Nicholas Riccardi
Los Angeles Times
November 17, 2011

Reporting from Sacramento— Sluggish state revenue is likely to trigger a new round of spending cuts that could mean a shorter school year and millions of dollars slashed from public universities, child care programs and services for the disabled, the Legislative Analyst’s Office says.

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Josh Dulaney, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 10/23/2011 01:16:17 AM PDT

SAN BERNARDINO — One staggering number tells the economic story of nearly half the city’s residents: $523,942,368.

More than half a billion dollars — that’s the amount of welfare assistance that is now pumped into the city annually, according to a report prepared by the county’s Legislation and Research Unit, Human Services Group.

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Inland Regional Center located on Waterman Avenue in San Bernardino.

BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com

Published: 21 October 2011 08:27 PM

SACRAMENTO — The nonprofit agency that serves developmentally disabled residents in Inland Southern California improperly spent almost $10 million and must repay the state, according to a highly critical audit released Friday that found continued widespread problems at the San Bernardino-based Inland Regional Center.

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Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/13/2011 05:57:06 PM PDT

(The Associated Press)

A new state law ending a long-standing practice of fingerprinting food stamp applicants has drawn criticism from San Bernardino County Supervisor Neil Derry, who said he will push to continue the practice in the county.

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Interim leader’s last day Sept. 16
Christina Villacorte, Staff Writer
Created: 08/02/2011 08:33:04 PM PDT

The county’s troubled Department of Children and Family Services will undergo yet another leadership change, after the resignation this week of acting director Jackie Contreras.

She is the agency’s third chief in eight months to step down; her last day is Sept. 16.

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The National Debt Clock on 44th Street in New York just off Times Square on July 26. (Mark Peterson/Redux)

by Peter Coy
Friday, July 29, 2011

If Washington is deadlocked now, how will it deal with the much bigger debt problems that lurk in the decades to come?

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Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
July 25, 2011

Gov. Jerry Brown signed several dozen bills into law this afternoon, including a measure to allow college students who are undocumented immigrants to qualify for scholarships funded with private donations.

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Jim Steinberg, Staff Writer
Posted: 07/15/2011 06:18:04 PM PDT

This year, the number of people who receive some type of welfare in the city of San Bernardino, 96,380, is 140 percent larger than the entire population of Redlands, 68,747.

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Assemblyman Warren Furutani (D- Gardena) is held back by Manuel Perez (D-Coachella), left; Jerry Hill (D- San Mateo); and Richard Gordon (D-Menlo Park), as he exchanges words with Assemblyman Donald Wagner (R-Irvine) on Wednesday. (Hector Amezcua / Sacramento Bee / June 15, 2011)

By Shane Goldmacher and Anthony York, Los Angeles Times
June 16, 2011

Reporting from Sacramento — Democratic lawmakers passed a rare on-time state budget Wednesday over Republican objections, but the plan — balanced with a blend of taxes, cuts and clever accounting — faces an uncertain fate at the hands of Gov. Jerry Brown.

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Area seniors don’t trust changes
Mediha Fejzagic DiMartino, Staff Writer
Posted: 06/04/2011 09:50:12 PM PDT

Hunkering under a $14 trillion debt ceiling, Congress and the Obama administration are negotiating possible changes to Medicare and other benefits programs as part of a deal to increase the government’s ability to borrow.

But local seniors want lawmakers to keep their paws off the federally-sponsored health insurance program for the elderly.

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04:02 PM PDT on Tuesday, May 31, 2011

By JIM MILLER and BEN GOAD
The Press-Enterprise

The number of seniors in Inland Southern California increased by nearly a third during the past decade, putting added pressure on government programs and services for older residents.

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10:00 PM PDT on Thursday, May 26, 2011

By JIM MILLER
Sacramento Bureau

SACRAMENTO – Inland Regional Center’s first attempt at getting off state-imposed probation has fallen short, with a recent state letter highlighting continued concerns about operations at the San Bernardino-based facility.

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Supervisors to oversee 2 departments directly
Christina Villacorte, Staff Writer
Created: 05/17/2011 09:34:50 PM PDT

A month after one of his deputies sparked the anger of Los Angeles County supervisors by defying a direct order, the board voted Tuesday to seize authority over two troubled departments from county CEO Bill Fujioka.

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Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, pictured Thursday leaving a Blair House meeting on the budget, announced that insolvency looms for government entitlements. (Evan Vucci, AP Photo)

By Noam N. Levey, Washington Bureau
May 13, 2011, 11:19 a.m.

Caught in the sluggish recovery from the last recession, Social Security and Medicare face an increasingly dismal fiscal future, the federal government reported Friday in its annual review of the two mammoth entitlement programs.

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L.A. County pays millions to homeless
Christina Villacorte, Staff Writer
Created: 04/20/2011 09:06:26 PM PDT

Faced with the prospect of further budget cutbacks, two Los Angeles County supervisors who represent Inland Valley cities proposed a new plan this week to control the rapid growth of welfare payments to the poor.

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Dutton

From the Office of Senator Bob Dutton
Wednesday, April 13, 2011

SACRAMENTO – An effort by Senate Republican Leader Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga) to move California closer to making sure that those who receive welfare use those taxpayer funds as effectively and efficiently as possible was killed by Democrats during a hearing of the Senate Human Services Committee this week.

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Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Created: 03/28/2011 07:12:43 PM PDT

SAN BERNARDINO – A judge on Monday lowered bail by more than $1 million for a former county welfare worker accused of stealing from needy families, despite a prosecutor’s concern she may be a flight risk.

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The billions of dollars in cuts to government services signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown address a portion of the estimated $26-billion deficit facing California. Brown is still negotiating with Republicans on a proposal to put tax extensions before voters.

By Shane Goldmacher, Los Angeles Times
March 25, 2011

Reporting from Sacramento—

Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law billions of dollars in budget cuts Thursday that will mean fewer government services, particularly for the old, the poor and the sick.

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By Kevin Yamamura
kyamamura@sacbee.com
Published: Sunday, Mar. 20, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

Cutting universities, shifting prisoners to county jails and slashing funds for Medi-Cal patients is difficult.

But from a political perspective, those were among the easier moves.

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The effort to reduce California’s budget shortfall of $26 billion had bipartisan support. Gov. Jerry Brown is still working to secure votes on more contentious parts of his plan.

By Shane Goldmacher and Patrick McGreevy, Los Angeles Times
March 17, 2011

Reporting from Sacramento — State lawmakers Wednesday approved billions of dollars in cuts to welfare, medical programs for the poor and in-home care for the elderly and frail, among other services, moving forward key pieces of Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget reduction package.

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Haugan

10:00 PM PST on Saturday, March 12, 2011

Submitted to The Press-Enterprise

Linda Haugan, assistant executive officer of San Bernardino County Human Services, has been voted First 5 San Bernardino commission chair.

She began as a commissioner for First 5 San Bernardino in 2005.

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Tracy Garcia, Staff Writer
Created: 03/07/2011 10:04:28 PM PST

In response to Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal to shift certain state programs to local governments, Los Angeles County supervisors have voted to seek a state constitutional amendment to ensure a steady funding source for programs moved to local control.

Earlier this year, Brown proposed a series of “realignments” to cut costs, including making local governments responsible for state programs such as:

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By Joe Nelson
Created: 03/03/2011 02:17:33 PM PST

Eight people, including two former employees of San Bernardino County’s Transitional Assistance Department, have been indicted on suspicion of stealing more than $500,000 of taxpayer money intended for needy families.

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Seeking to trim $12 billion from California’s spending plan, the committee votes to increase drug Medi-Cal costs for patients and reduce payments to providers, among other cuts.

By Shane Goldmacher, Los Angeles Times
February 17, 2011

Reporting from Sacramento —

Lawmakers on a key state budget panel Wednesday took their first steps, albeit gingerly, to trim government spending, agreeing to charge the poor more for medical care, pay less to the physicians who tend to them and reduce what taxpayers spend on children’s eye care, among other cuts.

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By Kevin Yamamura
kyamamura@sacbee.com
Published: Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2011 – 6:36 am

The Legislative Analyst’s Office provides a sobering take on how to solve the state’s $26.6 billion deficit without new tax dollars in a memo released Monday.

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The president’s plan would give less energy assistance for poor households and less money for reducing neighborhood blight and beach pollution. But the House’s new GOP majority wants to cut much deeper.

By Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times
February 15, 2011

Reporting from Washington —

For struggling California, President Obama’s proposed budget will provide less money for a state government awash in its own red ink, less energy assistance for tens of thousands of poor households and less funding for projects such as those aimed at reducing beach pollution and neighborhood blight.

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By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com The Sacramento Bee
Published: Friday, Feb. 11, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
Last Modified: Friday, Feb. 11, 2011 – 12:14 am

Hundreds of developmentally disabled Californians and their parents and care providers packed the Capitol on Thursday to angrily or tearfully denounce Gov. Jerry Brown’s 2011-12 budget.

It was the latest outpouring of opposition to cuts in health and welfare services he says are needed to close a chronic deficit. Testifying en masse at almost daily legislative hearings, advocates for the poor, the aged and the disabled have hammered on two themes:

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Thursday, February 10, 2011 – 11:00 a.m.

Let’s face it.

Politicians overseeing California’s state and local governments have their collective heads up their rear-ends.

Yes, both parties are to blame.

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Monday, February 7, 2011 – 5:15 a.m.

When one reads about California Governor Jerry Brown’s proposed fixes for the state’s ailing budget, one thing is becoming crystal clear.

The return of the words ‘unfunded mandate’ is upon us.

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Proposed cuts attacked
Clients, providers defend need for in-home services
James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Posted: 02/06/2011 07:01:57 AM PST

Patricia Crouch’s hands shake.

She sometimes has trouble opening pill bottles. She needs help bathing, dressing and cooking.

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Brown says they could save half a billion annually
James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Posted: 02/06/2011 07:02:01 AM PST

If the Legislature approves Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget proposal, poor and disabled Californians insured by the state’s safety-net health insurance program would have to start paying for some services.

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Ryan Hagen, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/24/2011 07:39:12 PM PST

SAN BERNARDINO – The head of the Inland Regional Center on Monday outlined steps to comply with its probation, saying she expected such restrictions after complaints of fiscal mismanagement, improper bidding and a hostile work environment.

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11:09 PM PST on Sunday, January 23, 2011

By JIM MILLER
Sacramento Bureau

SACRAMENTO – The state has put the Inland Regional Center on probation following months of scrutiny into the operations at the San Bernardino-based facility, the largest of 21 nonprofit agencies that contract with the state to arrange services for developmentally disabled residents.

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Brown’s budget trims adult day-care program
James Rufus Koren, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/17/2011 08:35:48 PM PST

Services for seniors and the disabled were often targeted for cuts under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, and that trend is continuing under Gov. Jerry Brown.

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By Kevin Yamamura
kyamamura@sacbee.com
Published: Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2011 – 12:00 am
Last Modified: Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2011 – 8:13 am

To maneuver his budget through the Legislature and raise the millions of dollars necessary for a successful ballot campaign, Gov. Jerry Brown will have to align the many facets of his plan just right. The Democratic governor wants a two-thirds, bipartisan vote from lawmakers to cut spending and to ask voters for higher taxes, striking at the core of the Capitol’s ideological divide. His plan touches so many levels of government that almost every interest group in California has a stake.

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CORE stands by work

Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Created: 10/24/2010 05:01:02 AM PDT

Representatives of a national low income housing nonprofit stand behind a $42.5 million project approved by Rancho Cucamonga in 2007 that became a focal point in the criminal trial of Rancho Cucamonga Councilman Rex Gutierrez.

City Council members approved the project proposed by National Community Renaissance, or National CORE, on a 4-0 vote in August 2007. City Manager Jack Lam, who was the city redevelopment agency”s chairman at the time, Mayor Don Kurth, and redevelopment director Linda Daniels, who opposed the project, were all absent when the vote occurred.

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Marisa Lagos, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau
San Francisco Chronicle
Friday, October 15, 2010

(10-15) 04:00 PDT Sacramento – –

Banks are making nearly $1.5 million a month in fees by charging California welfare recipients to withdraw their benefits using ATMs and debit cards – an amount that has nearly doubled since 2008.

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California Watch
A Project of the Center for Investigative Reporting
Health and Welfare

October 15, 2010 | Lance Williams and Christina Jewett

The Southern California hospital chain under investigation for suspected Medicare fraud – and the labor union that blew the whistle – have both made significant political donations to officials with roles, present or prospective, in the probe.

As disclosed Tuesday by California Watch and the Los Angeles Times, Ontario-based Prime Healthcare Services is being investigated by state and federal authorities in connection with high rates of septicemia, or blood poisoning, reported among Medicare patients at the 13-hospital chain.

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Schwarzenegger vetoes nearly $1 billion for social programs before signing the budget bill lawmakers had passed about eight hours earlier. Advocates for the poor say the cuts are too deep.

By Jack Dolan and Shane Goldmacher, Los Angeles Times

October 9, 2010

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Friday vetoed nearly $1 billion in spending on welfare, child care, special education and other programs before signing the budget bill that lawmakers had passed about eight hours earlier after a marathon overnight session.

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PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
October 4, 2010 | 5:20 pm

California officials are cutting off use of state-issued welfare debit cards at casinos across the country and on cruise ships, in the wake of Times reports that the aid cards have been used to spend or withdraw millions of dollars in benefits at popular vacation spots including the Las Vegas strip and on ships sailing from ports around the world.

More than $69 million meant to help the needy pay their rent and clothe their children was accessed in all 49 other states, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam, according to data obtained by The Times from the California Department of Social Services.

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Las Vegas tops the list with $11.8 million spent at casinos or taken from ATMs, but transactions in Hawaii, Miami, Guam and elsewhere also raise questions. Officials say budget cuts hinder investigations.

By Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times
October 4, 2010

Reporting from Sacramento —

More than $69 million in California welfare money, meant to help the needy pay their rent and clothe their children, has been spent or withdrawn outside the state in recent years, including millions in Las Vegas, hundreds of thousands in Hawaii and thousands on cruise ships sailing from Miami.

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Chantal M. Lovell, Staff Writer
Posted: 09/30/2010 06:11:01 PM PDT

The state Legislature’s inability to pass a budget is hitting home for two preschools in Redlands.

Redlands Day Nursery and First Steps Child Development may have to close their doors if the Legislature continues at a stalemate much longer, said Redlands Day Nursery Program Director Deborah Wasbotten. Both are subsidized by the state and receive no money in the absence of a state budget.

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By Malcolm Maclachlan | 09/30/10 12:00 AM PST

Nearly a year after the Schwarzenegger administration awarded $26.5 million to county district attorneys to combat fraud in the state In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) system, DAs are beginning to report some results.

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Overseer criticized officials for unspent stimulus money
Joe Nelson and Josh Dulaney, Staff Writers
Created: 09/20/2010 06:58:08 PM PDT

San Bernardino County’s Transitional Assistance Department spent less than a third of the $3.5 million it received from the federal government for job-placement programs during a nine-month review period, according to the state inspector general for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The department spent only 27 percent ($954,057 out of $3,586,571) of its money received for subsidized employment between July 1, 2009, and March 31, according to Laura Chick.

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California Watch
A Project of the Center for Investigative Reporting
Money and Politics

September 21, 2010 | Lance Williams

Here’s one reason why the unemployment rate in California’s Inland Empire is stuck above 14 percent.

A San Bernardino County jobs program obtained $3.58 million in federal stimulus grants to provide local jobs and failed to spend most of the money, says state Inspector General Laura Chick.

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U.S. rate reaches 14.3% – 43.6 million people
Mediha Fejzagic DiMartino, Staff Writer
Posted: 09/16/2010 10:10:40 PM PDT

A line of people waiting to receive groceries on Thursday snaked around a block in Rancho Cucamonga.

To secure their spot, some people arrived as early as noon for the 4:30 p.m. distribution at Gap Food Bank Ministries.

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L.A. NOW
Southern California — this just in
September 3, 2010 | 2:47 pm

Welfare payments to children of illegal immigrants in Los Angeles County increased in July to $52 million, prompting renewed calls from one county supervisor to rein in public benefits to such families.

The payments, made to illegal immigrants for their U.S. citizen children, included $30 million in food stamps and $22 million from the CalWORKS welfare program, according to Los Angeles County figures released Friday by Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich.

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11:19 PM PDT on Sunday, August 29, 2010

By CHRISTINA JEWETT
California Watch

The office of Attorney General Jerry Brown has dismissed an increasing number of criminal cases against defendants suspected of elder abuse, while cutting back on surprise inspections to investigate violence and neglect in nursing homes.

A California Watch review of elder abuse prosecutions found Brown’s office in sharp contrast with his predecessor, Bill Lockyer, who made similar cases a top priority during his two terms. In addition to dismissing abuse prosecutions already in motion, Brown’s office has filed fewer new cases per year than Lockyer’s office.

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California Watch
A Project of the Center for Investigative Reporting
Health and Welfare

August 27, 2010 | Christina Jewett

Scores of medical providers that rely on the Medi-Cal program for funding are now getting “value of claims” statements in lieu of payments.

The Medi-Cal agency ran out of funding for providers that typically see $300 million per month from the state, said Anthony Cava, a spokesman with the Department of Health Care Services, which runs Medi-Cal.

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www.iepolitics.com

Written by Administrator
July 10th, 2010 at 11:06 pm

It doesn’t seem to matter if we are discussing Jeff Burum, the Lewis Family, or any other of a number of successful, wealthy businessmen in our community, they are all “corrupt.” I don’t mean that they are really, truly corrupt, but they are “corrupt” in the minds of the less successful. The common thought seems to be that if one has money, then one has no integrity. Our community doesn’t allow for making an “honest” hundred million or so. Hard work, sacrifice, intellect, college education, and just plain good old-fashioned luck can all be damned. If one is successful, then one must be a crook.

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www.iepolitics.com

Written by Administrator
July 6th, 2010 at 1:28 am

In writing this series about corruption at San Bernardino County’s only county-operated hospital, Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC), there was one thing I could never understand about the situation and that is why does ARMC contract out over $28 million in services every other year but is not required to go through the RFP process even though many of these contracts are for a million dollars or more, well above the statutory limit for no-bid contracts. So I asked an expert and here is his answer:

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Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issues an executive order requiring recipients to promise they will use cash benefits only to meet basic subsistence needs. GOP legislators call for the cash to be returned.

By Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times

June 25, 2010

California welfare recipients using state-issued debit cards withdrew more than $1.8 million in taxpayer cash on casino floors between October 2009 and last month, state officials said Thursday.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issued an executive order requiring welfare recipients to promise they will use cash benefits only to “meet the basic subsistence needs” of their families. The order also gave the state Department of Social Services seven days to produce a plan to reduce other types of “waste, fraud and abuse” in the welfare program.

Read the rest of this entry »

Wednesday, June 23, 2010 – 09:18 P.M.

Based on information contained in a story published in Thursday’s Los Angeles Times, InlandPolitics.com has verified by cross-referencing database lists from the California Department of Social Services and the California Gambling Control Commission that some local indian casinos allow welfare recipients to withdraw cash with state issued debit cards.

Casinos operated by the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians in Highland, Morongo Band of Mission Indians in Cabazon, Pala Band of Mission Indians in Pala, and the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians in Temecula, offer automated teller machines (ATM) that accept debit cards issued by the state’s welfare system.

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By Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times

June 24, 2010

Reporting from Sacramento —

California welfare recipients are able to use state-issued debit cards to withdraw cash on gaming floors in more than half of the casinos in the state, a Los Angeles Times review of records found.

The cards, provided by the Department of Social Services to help recipients feed and clothe their families, work in automated teller machines at 32 of 58 tribal casinos and 47 of 90 state-licensed poker rooms, the review found.

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http://www.iepolitics.com

Written by Administrator
June 13th, 2010 at 5:49 pm

So is our illustrious San Bernardino Board of Supervisors up to stupid again? We hope not. But we won’t know for sure until Tuesday’s meeting. BOS agenda item No. 16 has left us scratching our heads. This board item approves new,2-year contracts with all of the various medical providers for Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC), with the exception of the Anesthesia contract, which is extended six months.

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By Susan Ferriss
sferriss@sacbee.com
Published: Sunday, May. 30, 2010 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

As he stares into the abyss of a $19.1 billion state budget shortfall, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg is urging Californians to consider an earth-shifting governmental move.

To help social services such as child welfare and elder care avoid massive cuts, he wants to transfer more responsibility for those programs from the state to counties.

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The following e-mail was received from an employee st San Bernardino County-owned and operated Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC).  InlandPolitics would like to reiterate to our readers that the the lack of concern for quality of patient care is alarming and of most concern to us here. Tags for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the California Department of Justice have been attached to this story to allow the agencies to flag the post. InlandPolitics has learned Special Agents for the California Department of Justice have been questioning employees connected to the facility.

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Ron Wall
Posted: 05/25/2010 08:14:08 PM PDT

I attended the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors meeting May 11. Two physicians reported concerns about the quality of care at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC), the political environment and the lack of action to correct problems.

After Dr. John Steinmann and his colleague Dr. Keyvan Safdari presented their concerns, the hospital CEO Patrick Petre defended the practices of the hospital. Members of the board asked questions to clarify what Petre described. A lack of expertise by the members is evident. They do not know the regulations surrounding hospital licensure, Medicare certification or regulatory limits to physician contracting. This allowed Petre to gloss over issues by providing vague responses.

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Employees are starting to give a glimpse at just how cover-ups and vicious politics override patient care priorities at  San Bernardino County-owned and operated Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC).

Threatening physicians, profiteering, and strong-arming have become commonplace at the struggling hospital.

Read the rest of this entry »

www.iepolitics.com

Written by Administrator
May 24th, 2010 at 5:27 am

As a child growing up with a mother who prescribed to old-fashioned thoughts about medical care, I was always told never to allow doctors to operate on cancer because exposing cancer cells to air would cause them to grow exponentially.  Of course, today we know how to use surgery to cure an otherwise fatal tumor.

Several years ago all of Southern California watched the crisis at the Los Angeles County-run King-Drew Medical Center.  If history can predict the future, we have a similar, fatal cancer growing at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC) that needs to be excised fully and quickly.

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10:12 PM PDT on Friday, May 21, 2010

By LORA HINES
The Press-Enterprise

The ability of Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton to ensure high quality health care has been compromised by systemic problems involving critical areas, including patient rights and surgical services, according to federal investigation reports.

During a lengthy November inspection, regulators documented cases of patient abuse, improper sterilization of operating room and equipment and use of medicine as a patient restraint, according to a 200-page report issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

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Many people are asking why it appears San Bernardino County seems to be ignoring many of the problems occurring at its own Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC).

The answer that seems to be surfacing is political.

As in campaign contributions.

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County leaders say taxpayers would still have to foot the bill under Schwarzenegger’s plan. The size of the monthly grant to recipients would drop, though.

By Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times

May 21, 2010

Reporting from Sacramento

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s plan to save $1.6 billion a year by eliminating welfare is the budgetary equivalent of rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic, say county officials: The cost would simply get shifted to them, and California taxpayers would end up paying about the same amount for a smaller social safety net.

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