Assemblyman Chad Mayes, R-Yucca Valley, talks with then-Assembly Minority Leader Kristin Olsen on Sept. 1, 2015. (Rich Pedroncelli The Associated Press)

Incensed that Assembly Republican Leader Chad Mayes supported a Democratic plan to renew a key climate change policy, California conservative activists are calling for his resignation and raising allegations of an affair with his predecessor.

Read the rest of this entry »

Observations on California and its politics
By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
May 08, 2017 – 2:07 PM

Democratic legislators have counted on a revenue surge to persuade Gov. Jerry Brown to loosen up on spending – but just the opposite is occurring.

Read the rest of this entry »

Observations on California and its politics
By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
April 29, 2017 – 2:00 PM

Tax more, spend more and regulate more.

As state legislators completed their initial committee reviews of bills last week, it became evident that this year’s session may be the most liberal in California history.

Read the rest of this entry »

Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount), left, Gov. Jerry Brown and Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) were the forces pushing for a new transportation funding bill. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

Patrick McGreevy, Melanie Mason and John Myers
April 9 , 2017

In one of the biggest legislative victories of his storied political career, Gov. Jerry Brown pushed through an ambitious plan last week that will increase gas taxes and vehicle fees to raise $52 billion over the next decade for the repair of California’s system of crumbling roads, highways and bridges.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
By Jim Miller, Christopher Cadelago and Taryn Luna
jmiller@sacbee.com
April 8, 2017 – 12:01 AM

California drivers will begin paying 12 cents per gallon more in gas taxes later this year, the first of several tax and fee hikes contained in this week’s road-funding bill that eventually will cost the average motorist about $120 a year.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
By Taryn Luna and Alexei Koseff
tluna@sacbee.com
April 6, 2017 – 7:00 PM

The state Legislature on Thursday passed a sweeping $52 billion transportation plan that will raise California gas taxes after leaders struck deals with wavering lawmakers to fund road projects in their districts.

Read the rest of this entry »

Marv Owen, a delegate from Los Angeles, left, listens to state GOP Chairman Jim Brulte at the California Republican Convention at the Hyatt Hotel in Sacramento in 2013. Randall Benton RBenton@sacbee.com

Capitol Alert
By Christopher Cadelago
ccadelago@sacbee.com
January 30, 2017 – 2:19 PM

For Democrats enraged and taking official action Monday to denounce President Donald Trump’s order temporarily banning travel from seven majority-Muslim countries, California Republican Party Chairman Jim Brulte has a message: “This is purely hypocritical, political posturing.”

Read the rest of this entry »

By Jeff Horseman / Staff Writer
Published: Dec. 5, 2016 – 1:16 p.m.

The California State Legislature convened today with state senators and Assembly members taking the oath of office.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
December 3, 2016 – 2:00 PM

Last month, California voters approved, by a nearly 2-1 margin, Proposition 54, which if faithfully followed would shine some light on the Capitol’s dark corners.

Read the rest of this entry »

Christine Mai-Duc
Nov. 9, 2016, 10:38 a.m.

Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown (D-San Bernardino) has lost her long, expensive battle against fellow Democrat attorney Eloise Reyes.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Jeff Horseman, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 11/03/16 – 10:12 PM PDT |

Depending on where you live, the source of those political ads cramming your mailbox may be hundreds of miles away.

Read the rest of this entry »

[arve url=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/TH1lVmMStnQ”]

By Jeff Horseman / Staff Writer
Published: Oct. 20, 2016 – 2:56 p.m.

We have a new entry in the race for the ugliest Inland political contest of 2016.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
By Jeremy B. White
jwhite@sacbee.com
October 19, 2016 – 12:01 AM

The question for California legislative races is no longer whether Democrats will secure a majority. It’s how large their margin will be.

Read the rest of this entry »

Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown and challenger Eloise Reyes (Courtesy photos)

By Jeff Horseman, The Press-Enterprise
Posted: 10/16/16 – 2:55 PM PDT |

The dynamic that pitted Bernie Sanders against Hillary Clinton continues in California’s 47th Assembly District.

Read the rest of this entry »

Marc Steinorth

By Jeff Horseman / Staff Writer
Published: Oct. 12, 2016 – Updated: 10:00 p.m.

• If they take the seat, Democrats would be one step closer to restoring their two-thirds supermajority in the state Legislature

There’s more at stake in California’s 40th Assembly District than incumbent Marc Steinorth’s political career.

Read the rest of this entry »

Opponents are accusing Abigail Medina, left, and Pete Aguilar of dodging political debates. (File)

By Ryan Hagen, The Sun
Posted: 10/12/16 – 11:29 PM PDT |

As Election Day approaches, some candidates have been skipping the debates that give voters the chance to hear directly from them.

Read the rest of this entry »

From left: Sen. Mike Morrell, R-Rancho Cucamonga; Assemblyman Freddie Rodriguez, D-Chino; and Assemblyman Marc Steinorth , R-Rancho Cucamonga.

By Beau Yarbrough, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Posted: 10/08/16, 12:34 AM PDT |

Last Friday night at midnight, Gov. Jerry Brown dropped his still-smoking veto pen, the 2016 California legislative session at an end.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
September 22, 2016 – 7:00 PM

There are few things more fundamentally important to life in contemporary California than transportation and housing, and both are in crisis.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Darcy Costello and Alison Noon, The Associated Press
Posted: 09/20/16 – 8:17 PM PDT |

SACRAMENTO >> In addition to their six-figure salaries and benefits, California’s 120 lawmakers are compensated for their cost of living and meals when they leave home and travel to Sacramento to write and pass bills.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
September 18, 2016 – 4:00 PM

The last night of the Legislature’s biennial session on Aug. 31 was, as usual, a hectic free-for-all.

Read the rest of this entry »

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By Jeff Horseman / Staff Writer
Published: Sept. 6, 2016 – 10:00 a.m.

The candidates in the competitive race for California’s 40th Assembly District are using video to tout their strengths to voters ahead of the Nov. 8 election.

To read expanded article, click here.

Capitol Alert
By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
September 2, 2016 – 10:49 AM

Wednesday night’s legislative stalemate on giving the State Bar permission to continue collecting dues from the state’s lawyers and, more controversially, overhauling its organization and operations, is already creating fallout.

Read the rest of this entry »

Liam Dillon
August 1, 2016

A major effort to overhaul the state’s energy regulator surprisingly collapsed after late legislative maneuverings led to the unraveling of the broad coalition that had pushed for changes at the scandal-ridden agency.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
September 1, 2016 – 5:16 PM

The biennial legislative session that ended very early Thursday morning amassed a very substantial record of action – some positive, some negative and much whose real effects won’t be known for years.

Read the rest of this entry »

By John Myers
August 31, 2016

California’s 120 legislators took the oath of office in December 2014 with pledges to tackle issues like the cost of a college education, the state’s minimum wage and beyond.

So how did they do?

Read the rest of this entry »

By Melody Gutierrez
Published: August 28, 2016
Updated:   August 28, 2016 – 8:37pm

SACRAMENTO — The fate of hundreds of bills will be decided by Wednesday, when state lawmakers wrap up their two-year session.

Read the rest of this entry »

Republican Assembly members Don Wagner, of Irvine, Beth Gaines, of Roseville, center, and Shannon Grove, of Bakersfield, in September 2015 as the legislative year came to a close. The current two-year legislative session ends Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2016. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP)

By Jim Miller
jmiller@sacbee.com
August 25, 2016 – 7:07 PM

There’s nothing like a deadline to focus the mind.

That chestnut of time management holds particularly true for the California Legislature. In session for about eight months each year, the Legislature goes into overdrive in the days leading up to committee and floor deadlines.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
August 25, 2016 – 4:27 PM

As the Legislature begins the last few days of its biennial session, hundreds of measures are pending – not counting, of course, “mushroom bills” that will sprout in the dead of night and pass before anyone outside the Capitol can react.

Read the rest of this entry »

Beach-goers walk on the sand near the San Onofre nuclear power plant in San Clemente. A report from Consumer Watchdog alleges that Southern California Edison, which operated the plant before it was shuttered, donated $130,000 to the California Democratic Party on the same day a Public Utilities Commission official cut a deal to make ratepayers — not shareholders — cover 70 percent of the $4.7 billion cost to close the fatally flawed facility. (AP Photo, Lenny Ignelzi)

By Kevin Smith, San Gabriel Valley Tribune
Posted: 08/10/16 – 10:54 AM PDT |

Twenty-six energy companies with business before the state donated nearly $10 million to Gov. Jerry Brown and the California Democratic Party over the past eight years — donations that often were made within days or weeks of winning favors.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
July 31, 2016 – 6:00 AM

Writing a new state budget in June turned out to be, in an old saying, easy-peasy.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
July 26, 2016 – 6:54 PM

The California Assembly has shown a certain appetite for institutional reform this year – noteworthy because it happens so rarely in the Capitol.

Read the rest of this entry »

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Patrick McGreevy
July 26, 2016 – 11:28 a.m.

A political committee funded by oil companies has launched ads on the Internet attacking state Sen. Connie Leyva of Chino for opposing the reelection of Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown of San Bernardino, a fellow Democrat, and questioning Levya’s party loyalty.

Read the rest of this entry »

Jazmine Ulloa
Patrick McGreevy
June 30, 2016 – 2:25 P.M.

Spurred by outrage over recent mass shootings, California lawmakers on Thursday sent Gov. Jerry Brown a sweeping package of gun control bills, including a ban on the sale of semi-automatic rifles with detachable magazines, background checks for those buying ammunition and new restrictions on homemade firearms.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
June 27, 2016 – 3:29 PM

• Competing measures would require more notice on bills
• Each side says the other’s proposal is flawed
• Deadline for November ballot looms this week

It’s showdown time for two fiercely competitive measures that would give the public more time to see legislative bills before they are passed.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
June 23, 2016 – 4:24 PM

• Gov. Brown wants to raise taxes for more repairs
• However, public is opposed to paying more at pump
• Republicans demanding CEQA reforms

California’s highways are in bad shape and getting worse every day, with a backlog of deferred maintenance totaling tens of billions of dollars.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
June 14, 2016 – 3:52 PM

• Capitol politicians sneak measures through process
• Ballot measure would require waiting period
• Legislature responds with its own proposal

The timing could not have been more perfect.

As dozens of state budget “trailer bills” were being given their first public airing Monday, in another part of the Capitol legislators were mulling whether the public should be given more time to review legislation before it is passed.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
By Alexei Koseff
akoseff@sacbee.com
June 13, 2016 – 3:28 PM

• Measure would ax daylight saving time in California
• Author notes lack of energy savings, workplace accidents
• Voters would need to approve change

With little debate, a bill to end California’s observance of daylight saving time cleared its first committee on Monday.

Read the rest of this entry »

Saturday, June 4, 2016 – 03:30 p.m.

Well the much talked about California Primary Election is before us.

Then things will get dull until the presidential nominating conventions. One can expect more policy speeches and sniping between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

Read the rest of this entry »

John Myers
June 2, 2016 – 4:50 P.M.

Two days of private negotiations among lawmakers resulted Thursday in brand-new legislation that would change the State Bar of California’s governing board and examine the idea of a major overhaul of the quasi-state agency.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Debra J. Saunders
Wednesday, June 1, 2016 – Updated 4:23 pm

California lawmakers seem intent on making Sacramento the place where reasonable reforms, much like runaway trains, jump the tracks. In that no-speed-limit spirit Tuesday, the California Assembly voted 41-37 to allow convicted felons to vote in jail. (Yes, you read that correctly — in jail.) If Assembly Bill 2466 becomes law, the ACLU estimates that 50,000 adults will be able to vote behind bars. The state doesn’t trust these people on the streets, but they are welcome in the voting booth.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
By Jeremy B. White
jwhite@sacbee.com
May 31, 2016 – 3:39 PM

• Critical audit cited backlog of discipline cases
• Assembly Bill 2878 would have altered make-up of board
• Lawmakers said more changes are needed

In a clear rebuke to California’s system for regulating attorneys, the Assembly on Tuesday decisively rejected a bill that sought to overhaul the State Bar.

Read the rest of this entry »

Published: May 9, 2016
Updated:   May 11, 2016 – 6:45 a.m.

Critics of San Bernardino Democrat Cheryl Brown have a new nickname for the Inland assemblywoman – “Chevron Cheryl.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Melanie Mason
May 5, 2016 – 2:25 P.M.

Just six days ago, Assembly Republican leader Chad Mayes was the opening act to his preferred presidential pick, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, at the California GOP convention.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
April 28, 2016 – 2:51 PM

• Former Sen. Joe Dunn fired as State Bar’s boss
• Accused of deception, he’s now suing quasi-public agency

Joe Dunn’s ears must have been burning Tuesday.

Read the rest of this entry »

A campaign mailer, underwritten in part by Chevron, touts Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown, D-San Bernardino, as a champion of the environment. She failed to support major climate-change legislation last year. (Dan Smith dssmith@sacbee.com)

Capitol Alert
By Taryn Luna
tluna@sacbee.com
April 20, 2016 – 2:29 PM

• California Environmental Justice Alliance condemns campaign mailer that lauds Brown’s environmental record
• Brown’s camp defends the Democrat’s depiction as environmental advocate
• Independent expenditure committee to support Brown’s re-election, largely supported by Chevron, paid for the advertisement

A California environmental group is crying foul after Chevron helped fund a campaign mailer casting Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown as an “environmental champion for us all.”

Read the rest of this entry »

A full-scale mock-up of a high-speed train is displayed at the Capitol in Sacramento last year. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

Ralph Vartabedian
April 18, 2016

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.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
April 17, 2016 – 12:05 PM

• Legislature micromanages horse racing, liquor trade
• Approving Arabian horse races rates an ‘urgency’ bill
• Important issues languish in preoccupation with minor matters

One might think – or at least hope –that the men and women who occupy the state Capitol would devote themselves tirelessly to resolving complex issues of a very diverse and difficult-to-govern state.

Read the rest of this entry »

Assemblymember Cheryl Brown laughs on Wednesday, June 17, 2015, in Sacramento, Calif. (Andrew Seng)

Capitol Alert
By Jeremy B. White
jwhite@sacbee.com
April 14, 2016 – 12:24 PM

• Brown under fire for environmental record
• Faces election challenge from fellow Democrat
• A California Democrat facing a rare challenge from the left over her environmental record has gotten a $1 million boost from Chevron.

The independent expenditure on behalf of Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown, D-San Bernardino, should sharpen the divisions in a race showcasing liberal discontent with business-friendly Assembly Democrats. Environmental and labor groups angered by Brown’s stance on climate legislation last year have backed a challenger and fellow Democrat, attorney Eloise Gomez Reyes.

Read the rest of this entry »

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, from left, talks with Democratic U.S. Reps. Janice Hahn of San Pedro, Lucille Roybal-Allard of Downey and Marcy Kaptur of Ohio on the steps of the Capitol. (Tom Williams / CQ Roll Call)

Phil Willon
April 13, 2016

The calls to Encino attorney Janice Kamenir-Reznik came every few weeks, pleading for her to run for the California state Senate seat being vacated by Democrat Fran Pavley.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
By Jeremy B. White
jwhite@sacbee.com
April 12, 2016 – 3:27 PM

• Latest setback for effort to limit sugary beverage consumption
• Year after year, the campaign has met defeat in Sacramento

Elections come and go, legislative leaders rise and fall, but one constant remains in Sacramento: Soda taxes can’t get traction.

Read the rest of this entry »

Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown, D-San Bernardino

April 5th, 2016 – 11:10 am ·

The signing of a bill that will gradually raise California’s minimum wage to $15 an hour was a cause for celebration among the state’s Democrats on Monday, April 4.

But in the race between two Democrats for an Inland Assembly seat, the new wage provided more fodder for attacks. Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown, D-San Bernardino, voted for the minimum wage legislation signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown.

To read post by Jeff Horseman in The P-E Political Empire Blog, click here.

By Shea Johnson, Staff Writer
Posted Apr. 3, 2016 at 3:21 PM

The California Secretary of State and San Bernardino County Election’s office released their lists of certified candidates Friday, detailing the make-up of six pivotal local races. The lists show not much changed in recent weeks with the exception of some fringe candidates not qualifying for the ballot.

Read the rest of this entry »

Liam Dillon and Patrick McGreevy
March 31, 2016

In a move that puts California at the forefront of efforts to raise wages for low-income workers across the country, the Legislature approved a sweeping plan Thursday to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour over the next six years, boosting the future paychecks of millions of the state’s workers.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Monica Rodriguez, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Posted: 03/12/16 – 7:48 PM PST |

After meeting Friday’s deadline for submitting nomination papers to county Registrar of Voters offices, scores of candidates seeking seats at the local, state and federal level are gearing up for the June 7 primary election.

Read the rest of this entry »

Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown (D-San Bernardino), right, speaks at a town hall meeting at San Bernardino Valley College flanked by members of the Assembly’s moderate Democratic caucus. (Christine Mai-Duc)

Christine Mai-Duc
March 12, 2016

What happens when a Democratic lawmaker strays from party leaders on a key piece of Gov. Jerry Brown’s policy agenda? One assemblywoman who held back support for a sweeping climate-change bill last year is starting to find out.

Read the rest of this entry »

Lawmakers at the State Capitol reported a big haul of gifts last year. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

Patrick McGreevy and Liam Dillon
March 2, 2016

State legislators accepted more than $892,000 in gifts last year, including foreign trips, expensive dinners, concert and sports tickets, golf games, spa treatments, Disneyland admissions and bottles of tequila and wine, according to filings released Wednesday.

Read the rest of this entry »

Patrick McGreevey
March 3, 2016

Twenty-one state legislators on Wednesday disclosed that they attended a conference in Maui last November that was paid for by a non-profit group funded by special interests including the oil industry and state worker unions.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
March 1, 2016 – 2:59 PM

• Governor and Legislature once made public policy
• Ballot measures and court battles now dominate
• Brown’s measure exemplifies their importance

There was a time, at least 40 years ago, when the governor and the Legislature made public policy for California.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
February 29, 2016 – 6:10 PM

• Republicans provide votes for new tax on managed care organizations
• With medical issue settled, attention turns to gas tax
• Is there a deal on new transportation revenues?

When Republicans gained a few seats in the Legislature two years ago, they regained their power over tax increases.

Read the rest of this entry »

Gov. Jerry Brown speaks at the Capitol on Jan. 7. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

By Melanie Mason
February 29, 2016

Culminating a prolonged, wonky debate that has consumed the Capitol for months, legislators on Monday approved a new tax on healthcare plans that would help finance the state’s public healthcare program for the poor.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
February 28, 2016 – 4:01 PM

• Voters told what will happen if they approve measures
• But is officialdom duty-bound to make it happen?
• Ignoring promises erodes trust in the system

So you, a conscientious voter, read the language, the official summary, the economic analysis and the pro and con arguments before voting on a state ballot measure.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
February 22, 2016 – 3:54 PM

• Gov. Jerry Brown proposes tax on medical organizations
• It would generate net gain in federal health care aid
• Republican votes needed and likely in Assembly

Opposition to new taxes has been a bedrock stance for Republican legislators, one they can enforce because taxes require two-thirds legislative votes.

Read the rest of this entry »

Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown, D-San Bernardino.

Published: Feb. 18, 2016 2:14 p.m.

Two Democrats running to represent part of San Bernardino County in the Assembly continue to gather endorsements that reflect a matchup between the Democratic establishment and liberals who want to take down a moderate incumbent.

To read post by Jeff Horseman in The P-E Political Empire Blog, click here.

The sun sets on the Morongo Casino Resort Spa in Cabazon, Calif., in 2005. The leader of the wealthy Riverside County tribe has raised concerns about fantasy sports legislation. (Glenn Koenig/AP)

Capitol Alert
By Jim Miller
jmiller@sacbee.com
February 10, 2016 – 3:33 PM

• The Morongo and San Manuel bands question the legislation’s fairness
• Tribes suggest daily fantasy sports games are illegal
• Assembly Bill 1437 swept through the Assembly last month

The daily fantasy sports industry’s string of easy wins in the California Legislature may be about to end.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Melody Gutierrez
February 8, 2016
Updated: February 9, 2016 – 7:27am

SACRAMENTO — A fight over encryption-protected smartphone data is heating up in California and New York where lawmakers and law enforcement groups are pushing bills to enable investigators to unscramble data to obtain critical evidence in human trafficking, terrorism and child pornography cases.

Read the rest of this entry »

Democratic Assembly candidate Eloise Reyes.

Published: Feb. 5, 2016 Updated: 1:49 p.m.

After her rival won the Democratic Party’s pre-endorsement, state Assembly candidate Eloise Reyes is striking back with the AFL-CIO’s help.

To read post by Jeff Horseman in The P-E Political Empire Blog, click here.

Capitol Alert
By Jim Miller
jmiller@sacbee.com
February 5, 2016 7:17 PM

• More than $2.5 million in contributions reported in month leading up to Sept. 11 recess
• Members of Assembly raised almost all of the money
• Despite Senate rules restricting fundraising, some members took money

California’s campaign finance disclosure calendar means the public only now is getting a look at elected officials’ fundraising and spending during the second half of 2015.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
By Jim Miller
jmiller@sacbee.com
February 5, 2016 2:06 PM

• Finance reports show lawmakers have $40 million to spend in election year
• Legislators collectively had about $3.4 million in outstanding debt Dec. 31.
• Searchable database shows how much each member has

Members of the California Legislature began the election year with more than $40 million cash on hand after raising about $39 million last year, according to campaign reports filed this week.

Read the rest of this entry »

Saxophonist Eddie M dances with Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown, D-San Bernardino, during a Sheila E. concert on the Capitol steps hosted by the Black Legislative Caucus on June 17, 2015. (Andrew Seng / The Sacramento Bee file)

Capitol Alert
By Alexei Koseff
akoseff@sacbee.com
January 30, 2016 3:23 PM

• Assemblywoman receives 80 percent of pre-endorsement vote from local Democratic delegates
• Brown faces controversial challenge from fellow Democrat after vote on climate change bill last session
• In another intraparty fight, longtime Rep. Mike Honda narrowly fails to win pre-endorsement

Despite an unusual challenge from a fellow Democrat, Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown received enough support at a delegate vote in her San Bernardino-area district Saturday to secure the party’s endorsement at its upcoming convention.

Read the rest of this entry »

Assemblyman Eric Linder, R-Corona, in 2013. SEIU California announced Friday that it has endorsed Linder, R-Corona, the first Republican endorsed by the union in 20-plus years. (Hector Amezcua hamezcua@sacbee.com)

Capitol Alert
By Jim Miller
jmiller@sacbee.com
January 29, 2016 3:07 PM

• Linder could be Democratic target in 2016
• Union endorses some Democratic incumbents in races but not another

Assemblyman Eric Linder could be a Democratic target this year, with at least three Democrats so far announcing candidacies for Linder’s western Riverside County district.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
January 24, 2016 – 9:02 AM

• Jerry Brown wants to sock away extra billions
• Democratic legislators want to spend extra billions
• Governor warns that reserves needed to cushion recession

The single most important factor in writing a new state budget is determining how much money there is to spend.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
January 14, 2016 3:39 PM

• Internal rivalries bubbling to surface
• Enviros target moderate Democrats
• Legislative leaders on the spot

There’s nothing like a family feud to expose jealousies and rivalries that have been percolating for years.

Read the rest of this entry »

Published: Jan. 7, 2016 – Updated: 10:24 p.m.

Most if not all of the elected offices on the 2016 Inland ballot will have a choice between two or more candidates.

But right now, a handful of races for assembly, state senate and congressional seats appear to be more competitive than others. Incumbents tend to have a big advantage because they can raise more money and enjoy greater name recognition than their opponents, and many legislative districts are drawn in a way that favors one party.

To read article by Jeff Horseman in The Press-Enterprise, click here.

Obernolte

By Staff Reports
Posted Jan. 5, 2016

Assemblyman Jay Obernolte, R-Hesperia, was named Tuesday to a leadership position in the state Assembly.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
January 4, 2016 2:37 PM

• State getting billions of extra dollars
• Democrats want to spend financial windfall
• Gov. Jerry Brown remains reluctant

Halfway through the 2015-16 fiscal year, state finances are continuing to improve with billions of extra revenue dollars.

Ordinarily, that would be good news.

Read the rest of this entry »

Juliet Williams, Associated Press
Sunday, January 3, 2016 – Updated: 10:57 am

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California lawmakers return to the Capitol Monday facing two of the most vexing problems from last year: a looming $1 billion hole in funding for the state’s health care program for the poor and a $59 billion backlog in road repairs needed over the next decade.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
January 3, 2016 4:01 PM

• Democrats lost legislative supermajorities in 2014
• Party hopes to recover lost seats in 2016
• However, moderate bloc is more important factor

Democrats won supermajorities – more than two-thirds of the seats – in both houses of the Legislature in 2012.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
December 31, 2015 – 2:26 PM

• U.S. Senate race will be top contest
• California could play presidential role
• High-dollar ballot measures abound

Since 2016 is a number divisible by 2, this is also an election year, and that biennial fact will dominate – and perhaps distort – California politics in the forthcoming months.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
By Alexei Koseff
akoseff@sacbee.com
December 30, 2015 10:00 PM

No legislators were arrested for corruption, but 2015 was another turbulent year in California politics, full of globetrotting politicians, hours upon hours of emotional testimony at the Capitol, and the state’s first open U.S. Senate race in more than two decades. If you can’t remember it all, we’ve got you covered – from the landmark legislation to the television sitcom appearances.

Read the rest of this entry »

California Gov. Jerry Brown, with Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, left, and Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, in June. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

John Myers
December 11, 2015

In the eyes of Martin Weil, it’s not the hard slog of political deal-making that explains why his 26-year old daughter, a quadriplegic with cerebral palsy who is unable to speak, struggles to keep the services she needs.

It’s more like political malpractice.

Read the rest of this entry »

Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins, faulted by some for not controlling her moderate faction, is being forced out of her seat by term limits but doesn’t want to retire, so she is challenging Sen. Marty Block’s bid for a second term in San Diego. (Rich Pedroncelli The Associated Press)

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
November 8, 2015

• Dominant parties split into factions
• More Democrat vs. Democrat duels coming
• Legislative leaders will face big test

Thirty-six years after it erupted, Capitol old-timers still marvel at the ferocity of a historic Democrat-vs.-Democrat battle for the Assembly speakership.

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Dan Walters
By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
October 26, 2015

• Building energy bill changed at last moment
• Legislators not told before voting
• Energy Commission reverses itself

Odd things happen during the final hours of any legislative session as hundreds of bills are processed in what one sage accurately termed a “sausage factory.”

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By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
October 25, 2015

• California has many pending issues
• Comprehensive approaches difficult
• Politicians settle for patchwork

Were the El Niño phenomenon to actually generate copious rainstorms in California, it could create a dilemma for homeowners with elderly roofs – patch the leaks or spend big bucks for a new roof.

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Democrats and Republicans alike want to fix California’s dilapidated streets, highways and bridges, but there’s not enough support for the higher taxes that Gov. Jerry Brown wants to pay for it. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Chris Megerian
October 18, 2015

A little more than a year ago, Gov. Jerry Brown was touting an outbreak of bipartisanship in the Capitol. Lawmakers from both parties backed crucial deals on water and state finances — “a high point in our work together,” the governor said.

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Capitol Alert
By Jim Miller
jmiller@sacbee.com
October 13, 2015

• Democratic governor considered 941 bills this year, vetoing 133
• More than 100 of those vetoed passed both houses with two-thirds vote or better
• Lawmakers reluctant to override fellow Democrat

More than 100 of the 133 bills Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed this year cleared the Legislature with bipartisan super-majority support. That also happens to be the threshold needed for a gubernatorial veto override, should lawmakers so desire.

They probably don’t.

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