By Jim Sanders
jsanders@sacbee.com
Published: Tuesday, May. 22, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 1A

One week after Gov. Jerry Brown proposed slicing state workers’ pay by 5 percent, the Democratic governor and legislators find themselves targeted for a “share the pain” salary cut.

Members of California’s Citizens Compensation Commission said Monday that a pay-cut proposal for statewide officeholders will be on the table when the panel meets May 31.

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BY JIM MILLER AND BEN GOAD
STAFF WRITERS
jmiller@pe.com | bgoad@pe.com

Published: 19 May 2012 06:16 PM

Fueled by new political boundaries and court rulings, campaign committees representing special interests have revved up spending this election cycle, and much of that largesse is focused on Inland Southern California candidates.

Independent expenditures committees, known nationally as super-PACs, have been a fixture of legislative and statewide elections in California since 2001. The Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision brought the same type of unlimited spending to federal contests, from president to Congress.

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By Jean Merl, Los Angeles Times
May 14, 2012

In the first broad test of California’s new “top-two” election system, many candidates in heated races for Congress and the state Legislature have been campaigning earlier, spending more money and downplaying their party affiliation as they try to widen their appeal.

Gone are the party primaries, except in the presidential race. Now all state candidates appear on a single ballot. Only those who come in first or second on June 5 will move on to the November general election, in which no write-in or other added candidates will be allowed.

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BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com

Published: 11 May 2012 10:04 PM

Michael Fine, Riverside Unified School District’s deputy superintendent for business services, can tick off the hard numbers of what four years of recession-era state budgets have meant for his 42,000-student district.

The district has lost $110 million and confronts an annual $20 million gap between revenue and spending. The school year, which spanned 180 instructional days before the recession, is now 176 days.

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State Senator Bob Dutton left. Congressman Gary Miller right.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012 – 02:30 p.m.

Big money is starting to flow in the race to represent the 31st Congressional District.

Two major Super-PAC’s weighed in heavily for Congressman Gary Miller (R-Diamond Bar) Wednesday afternoon, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

Read the rest of this entry »

State Senator Bob Dutton, candidate for CD 31, is the beneficiary of a super-pac created by his Father Ted Dutton.

By PE Politics
May 8, 2012 9:29 AM

Newly posted Federal Election Commission reports show more than $21,400 in spending in support of State Sen. Bob Dutton, who is vying to represent California’s 31st Congressional District.

The money came from a group called Inland Empire Taxpayers for Jobs, a so-called SuperPac allowed to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money through independent expenditures.

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State Senator Bob Dutton left. Former San Manuel Tribal Chairman James Ramos right.

Saturday, May 5, 2012 – 10:15 a.m.

State Senator Bob Dutton’s support of Former San Manuel Band of Mission Indians Chairman James Ramos was front and center Thursday night.

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Six candidates for state-level office in California have been arrested within the last two years. But do voters care?

By Patrick McGreevy, Los Angeles Times
May 5, 2012

SACRAMENTO — It isn’t enough these days for certain state lawmakers to defend their voting records when seeking reelection. Some also have to explain arrest records.

Within the last 20 months, five state legislators and one former state senator with active campaigns have been arrested on suspicion of crimes including drunk driving, perjury, voter fraud, shoplifting and trying to carry a loaded gun through airport security.

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BY JEFF HORSEMAN
STAFF WRITER
jhorseman@pe.com

Published: 03 May 2012 07:09 PM

Riverside’s League of Women Voters, The Group, The Latino Network and the Riverside NAACP chapter are hosting candidate forums on Wednesday, May 9, for the 61st Assembly and 31st State Senate districts.

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State Senator Bob Dutton

Liset Márquez, Staff Writer
Created: 05/03/2012 06:01:14 PM PDT

ONTARIO – A local senator may soon revive a bill aimed at helping this city gain autonomous control of the struggling LA/Ontario International Airport.

Sen. Bob Dutton, R-Rancho Cucamonga, created Senate Bill 446 in early 2011 in an effort to move discussions along between officials from Ontario and Los Angeles World Airports, which operates ONT under a 44-year joint-powers agreement.

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PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
May 2, 2012 | 2:52 pm

Faced with worsening budget problems, chances are growing that the Legislature won’t vote on comprehensive pension reform until the end of the session in August, some officials said Wednesday.

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Sunday, April 29, 2012 – 09:30 a.m.

Here’s some interesting factoids from across the financial and political transom:

First Quarter GDP Revised Lower

First quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was revised lower last week to 2.2%. The revised number was mainly supported by strong auto sales. A component that may not be sustainable looking ahead.

Why? Consumer spending has been outpacing non-existent wage growth.

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Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
April 26, 2012

A drive to convert the California Legislature to part-time won’t make it onto the ballot this year.

The campaign will continue to collect voter signatures, however, in hopes of placing the issue before voters in 2014, said Ted Costa of People’s Advocate, a co-leader of the drive.

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George Skelton

By George Skelton
Capitol Journal

April 26, 2012

Sometimes an old movie line says it best. Such a line came to mind when I read the Assembly speaker’s assertion that political money doesn’t influence legislative voting.

“I know people love to try to create that impression,” Speaker John A. Pérez (D-Los Angeles) was quoted as saying in a Times article Sunday about AT&T’s wide-ranging lobbying operation.

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Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
April 24, 2012

Post has been updated throughout the afternoon with responses and additional reporting.

A Sacramento Superior Court judge has tentatively ruled that the state controller has no authority to judge whether the state budget is balanced or block lawmakers’ pay as he did last June.

Read the rest of this entry »

Dan Walters

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
Published: Monday, Apr. 23, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

With the state budget mired in deficits, Gov. Jerry Brown and legislators, especially his fellow Democrats, are searching under every fiscal rock for money to spend.

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BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com

Published: 18 April 2012 10:22 PM

SACRAMENTO — Legislation that would restore a critical revenue stream for Riverside County’s newest cities cleared its first committee this morning, the first concrete success for the cities and their supporters following months of efforts to roll back part of last summer’s state budget.

Jurupa Valley, Eastvale, Wildomar and Menifee lost a combined $14 million when lawmakers approved an $86 billion budget that diverted vehicle-license fee money to pay for local law-enforcement grants. Officials in the cities warned of fiscal calamity, including possible disincorporation, if there is no fix.

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Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
April 19, 2012

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg pledged today to put forward for the 2014 election a package of major changes to California’s initiative process, including a provision to make it easier for legislators to place tax measures on the ballot.

Read the rest of this entry »

State Senator Bob Dutton

Thursday, April 19, 2012 – 10:00 a.m.

Should State Senator Bob Dutton abandon his congressional campaign and support Congressman Gary Miller?

The obvious answer is yes.

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Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
April 18, 2012

Opposed by powerful business and finance groups, key mortgage reform bills sponsored by Attorney General Kamala Harris are headed for a joint legislative conference committee.

The six-member conference committee will consist of two Democrats and one Republican from each house, according to multiple legislative aides who had been notified of the plan.

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State Senator Bob Dutton (File Photo: The P-E)

By PE Politics
April 16, 2012 4:37 PM

State Sen. Bob Dutton stood up from his table at a recent economic forecast event to announce he planned to push ahead with his long-tabled bill that would create an Ontario International Airport authority made up of local leaders and facilitate the transfer of the Inland airport from the city of Los Angeles to that local authority.

It sounded imminent, but it’s more like a maybe.

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Monday, April 16, 2012 – 09:30 a.m.

The showdown to make the top two candidates in the CD-31 is shaping up to be a real contest.

Will it be Congressman Gary Miller and State Senator Bob Dutton?

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State Senator Bob Dutton left. Congressman Gary Miller right

Saturday, April 14, 2012 – 07:30 p.m.

Congressman Gary Miller (R-Diamond Bar) has apparently continued unabated in his fundraising even though State Senator Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga) entered the race to represent the 31st Congressional District.

Latest campaign finance reports for the 2011-12 election cycle filed with the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) show the following as of March 31, 2012:

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Congressman Joe Baca left. State Senator Gloria Negrete-McLeod right.

Saturday, April 14, 2012 – 04:30 p.m.

Congressman Joe Baca (D-Rialto) has a significant fundraising advantage over State Senator Gloria Negrete-McLeod (D-Chino) in the 35th Congressional District.

Latest campaign finance reports for the 2011-12 election cycle filed with the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) show the following as of March 31, 2012.

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By David Siders
dsiders@sacbee.com
Published: Saturday, Apr. 14, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
Last Modified: Saturday, Apr. 14, 2012 – 12:10 am

Gov. Jerry Brown urged the Legislature on Friday to “man up” and make spending cuts, acknowledging the state budget deficit is likely larger than he previously thought.

The Democratic governor, in an interview on Bay Area talk radio station KGO (810 AM), said the deficit is “probably bigger now” than the $9.2 billion he estimated earlier this year.

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Liset Marquez, Staff Writer
Created: 04/12/2012 08:41:05 PM PDT

SAN BERNARDINO – From the viability of L.A./Ontario International Airport to ongoing progress at San Bernardino International Airport, legislators from the Inland Empire held a hearing on Thursday evening to discuss the importance of air transportation in the region.

The Select Committee on Inland Empire Transportation, led by Assemblywoman Wilmer Amina Carter, D-Rialto, met Thursday evening at the main auditorium at the Norton Regional Events Center.

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By Ed Mendel
Monday, April 9, 2012

SANTA ROSA — A two-house legislative committee is working with Gov. Brown’s Department of Finance on a ‘hybrid’ retirement plan for new state and local government hires, a committee member told a forum here last week.

Assemblyman Michael Allen, D-Santa Rosa, twice referred to a “cash balance” plan while talking about a cost-cutting hybrid, proposed by Brown, that combines a lower pension with a 401(k)-style individual investment plan.

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BY JIM MILLER AND BEN GOAD
STAFF REPORTERS
jmiller@pe.com; bgoad@pe.com

Published: 03 April 2012 10:06 PM

California’s top-two primary will make its statewide debut June 5, more than three years after it emerged from state budget deal-making.

No one is sure how the new system will play out, as candidates and interest groups try to feel their way around the state’s reshaped political landscape.

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Emmerson

Point of View

Sen. Bill Emmerson
Created: 04/02/2012 09:14:27 AM PDT

Californians have made it clear that they support key reforms to our unsustainable public employee pension system. According to a recent poll by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California, 83 percent of Californians agree that our state’s pension problems must be addressed. With the average debt of both state and county pensions at $30,500 for each California household, it’s no wonder that an overwhelming majority of Californians are demanding reform.

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Congressman Gary Miller

THE PRESS-ENTERPRISE
Published: 18 March 2012 07:44 PM

Rep. Gary Miller and state Sen. Bob Dutton had far different interpretations of the California Republican Party’s recent endorsement of Miller for San Bernardino County’s redrawn 31st Congressional District.

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March 29th, 2012, 11:39 am
Posted by BRIAN JOSEPH, Sacramento Correspondent

Republican leaders in the state Legislature unveiled Thursday a $4.4 billion package of alternate budget proposals they say would eliminate the necessity for trigger cuts to education in the event voters don’t approve Gov. Jerry Brown‘s tax measure in November.

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By Kevin Yamamura
kyamamura@sacbee.com
Published: Tuesday, Mar. 27, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Tuesday, Mar. 27, 2012 – 7:28 am

In a show of good faith one year ago, legislative Democrats slashed Medi-Cal, cut universities and reduced welfare grants to slice the state deficit 13 weeks before the constitutional deadline.

But this year Democrats are refusing to go along with Gov. Jerry Brown’s most controversial reductions, spurning his demand to have cuts in place by March.

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State Sen. Bob Dutton, R-Rancho Cucamonga, is among legislators who have described themselves as small business owners on ballots. 2009/File Photo

BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com

Published: 25 March 2012 08:26 PM

SACRAMENTO — Inland Southern California lawmakers Mike Morrell, Jeff Miller, Bob Dutton and Kevin Jeffries spend a large chunk of their week in Sacramento, voting on bills and sitting through committee hearings as state legislators making base annual salaries of $95,291.

All of them want voters this year to view them as something different: businessmen.

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By Jim Sanders
jsanders@sacbee.com
Published: Monday, Mar. 26, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Monday, Mar. 26, 2012 – 7:01 am

Salaries for California lawmakers remain the nation’s highest despite years of budget crisis and a belt-tightening backlash that sparked legislative pay cuts three years ago.

For voters eager to target lawmakers as scapegoats for the state’s massive problems, California’s top ranking is sure to fuel debate this week over whether to cut deeper into legislative paychecks.

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Dan Walters

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
Published: Monday, Mar. 26, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
Last Modified: Monday, Mar. 26, 2012 – 6:33 am

California’s great public pension battles are heating up, and may be headed for some kind of political explosion.

The Legislature’s Democratic majority appears to be doing its best to ignore significant pension reform, even though Gov. Jerry Brown says the current system is “unsustainable” and an overhaul is needed to persuade voters to raise taxes this year.

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BOS 1st District AD-61 SD-31 CD-41

BY JIM MILLER AND BEN GOAD
STAFF WRITERS
jmiller@pe.com; bgoad@pe.com

Published: 23 March 2012 06:35 PM

Voters in western Riverside County are about to find out what it’s like to be at the center of a campaign convergence.

Several overlapping – and highly contested – local, legislative and congressional races this year will focus unprecedented attention and spending on the area as campaigning escalates before the June and November elections. Voters will be buried in TV ads, mailers, yard signs and visits to their front doors.

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Dan Walters

By Dan Walters
Published: Friday, Mar. 23, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
Last Modified: Friday, Mar. 23, 2012 – 7:53 am

Its popularity has declined sharply, many of its details have yet to emerge, and independent authorities have questioned its financial and operational viability, but California’s bullet train project is very likely to get the green light from the Legislature soon.

That’s the consensus of those who have been counting votes among the Legislature’s dominant Democrats, who can give the California High-Speed Rail Authority authorization to sell bonds and begin construction of an initial segment in the San Joaquin Valley.

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John Tavaglione, who has been elected to the Riverside County Board of Supervisors five times in nonpartisan elections, finds himself in the unfamiliar realm of a partisan dogfight as he runs for Congress. He is opposed by Democrat Mark Takano. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times / February 15, 2012)

By Phil Willon, Los Angeles Times
March 16, 2012

For the first time in 20 years, a Republican running for Congress in Riverside needs help.

John Tavaglione huddled with supporters in the mirrored back room of a local Coco’s on a recent rainy evening, laying out a ground game for his first crack at federal office. As a Republican and political heir of a powerful Riverside family, the longtime county supervisor would have breezed into Washington, D.C., in past elections.

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State Senator Bob Dutton left. San Manuel Tribal Chairman James Ramos right.

Thursday, March 15, 2012 – 10:00 a.m.

For State Senator Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga) no good deed goes unpunished.

Dutton, a candidate for the 31st Congressional District lost out on the California GOP endorsement this week, after the San Bernardino County Republican Central Committee, last week, took a neutral position on endorsing between he and Congressman Gary Miller (R-Diamond Bar).

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State Senator Bob Dutton left. Congressman Gary Miller right.

By PE Politics
on March 12, 2012 5:33 PM

State Sen. Bob Dutton said Monday that he was disappointed, but not surprised, by the California Republican Party’s endorsement of Rep. Gary Miller for San Bernardino County’s 31st Congressional District.

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Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Created: 03/11/2012 07:03:56 AM PDT

Three factors – California redistricting, incumbent retirement, and the new open-primary ballot – are making the 2012 elections in the Inland Empire much more dynamic and unpredictable than in the past, political experts said.

The new conditions, coupled with the top-two primary, also have the potential to reduce Republican power in the state and in Washington. It’s no wonder the party has been fighting to get the lines redrawn.

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March 11, 2012 9:35 AM
From Staff Reports

With the local 2012 election season now in full swing, candidate fields are finally firming up in what look to be some hotly contested races — especially for those seeking the posts of San Bernardino County 1st District supervisor and House representative for the newly drawn 8th District.

But there’s still time for late newcomers to throw their hats in the ring: The filing deadline for the most local races has been extended to Wednesday because incumbents are not seeking re-election.

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State Senator Bob Dutton

Sunday, March 11, 2012 – 11:30 a.m.

State Senator Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga) left the San Bernardino County Republican Central Committee meeting empty handed on Thursday night.

The California Republican Party requested the county central committee render endorsements for state and congressional offices this month.

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Benjamin Demers, Staff Writer
Created: 03/09/2012 01:56:43 PM PST

Dozens of local candidates for Congress, state Senate and Assembly, and supervisorial districts returned nomination papers to county Registrar of Voters in time for Friday’s deadline to run in the June 5 primary election.

In a change from years past, all candidates will be on one ballot, regardless of political affiliation. The top two vote-getters – even if from the same party – will advance to the general election Nov. 6.

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Thursday, March 8, 2012 – 10:30 a.m.

Is State Senator Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga) backpedaling on his endorsement of democrat James Ramos?

Or did he ever endorse Ramos at all?

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Hueso

Thursday, March 8, 2012 – 09:45 a.m.

It appears that a San Diego County democrat Assemblyman may be feeling the heat.

Or maybe he figured out the votes aren’t there to remove California Fish and Game Commission President Dan Richards.

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Dan Walters

By Dan Walters
Published: Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
Last Modified: Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012 – 8:31 am

Dan Richards, who chairs the California Fish and Game Commission, is under fire in the Capitol because he killed a mountain lion in Idaho and posed with his trophy for a picture that was later published on a hunting publication website.

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February 24, 2012 5:20 PM
From Staff Reports

LOS ANGELES • State Sen. Sharon Runner is recuperating at UCLA Medical Center after undergoing a successful double lung transplant.

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May I have some more please sir?

Friday, February 24, 2012 – 05:30 p.m.

San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors candidate and San Manuel Band of Mission Indians Chairman James Ramos, a man burning through a hefty war-chest at a record clip, appears to be trying to tap non-gambling sources.

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Dan Walters

Capitol and California – Dan Walters
Published: Friday, Feb. 24, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

Were California Republicans a biological genus rather than a political one, they could demand special protection under laws protecting endangered species like the kangaroo rat, to wit:

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Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Created: 02/22/2012 06:30:42 PM PST

State Sen. Republican leader Bob Huff, R-Walnut, and Assembly Republican leader Connie Conway, R-Tulare, on Wednesday introduced legislation that duplicates Gov. Jerry Brown’s pension reform plan.

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Runner steps down while battling illness
February 22, 2012 5:07 PM
ShareThis| Print Story | E-Mail Story
Natasha Lindstrom, Staff Writer

Hours after state Sen. Sharon Runner announced Wednesday she won’t be seeking re-election, Assemblyman Steve Knight declared his bid to replace her in the Senate.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
February 22, 2012

Republican Sen. Sharon Runner, who is awaiting a lung transplant for a rare autoimmune disease, announced today that she will not seek re-election in November.

Read the rest of this entry »

Dan Walters

By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
Published: Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

When Republican Assemblyman Cameron Smyth decided to leave the Legislature rather than run for the state Senate this year, it virtually guaranteed that Democrats will achieve a two-thirds supermajority in the Senate, changing the Capitol’s political dynamics.

Read the rest of this entry »

Congressman Joe Baca

BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUrEAU
jmiller@pe.com

Published: 13 February 2012 07:59 AM

SAN DIEGO — As of late Saturday, longtime Rep. Joe Baca and state Sen. Gloria Negrete McLeod had seemingly tied in their fight for the California Democratic Party endorsement in the 35th Congressional District.

Read the rest of this entry »

BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com

Published: 12 February 2012 08:25 AM

SAN DIEGO — Longtime Rep. Joe Baca narrowly failed Saturday to get the official support of the California Democratic Party in an increasingly bitter race against state Sen. Gloria Negrete McLeod in the Inland area’s redrawn 35th Congressional District.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sanders
jsanders@sacbee.com
Published: Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 4A

A Democratic political strategist and a former Democratic assemblyman will help lead opposition to a proposed ballot initiative that would reduce California’s Legislature to part-time.

Read the rest of this entry »

PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
February 6, 2012 | 5:36 pm

A proposal by Assemblywoman Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) probably won’t make her many friends among her colleagues. She wants to reduce the Legislature to part-time status and cut its pay from $95,000 annually to $1,500 a month.

Read the rest of this entry »

Dan Walters

By Dan Walters
Published: Friday, Feb. 3, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

Many years of partisan wrangling over the state budget reached a climax in 2010 when public employee unions and Democratic politicians persuaded voters to pass Proposition 25, eliminating the two-thirds vote for budgets.

It gave the Legislature’s majority Democrats the power to pass budgets without having to garner Republican votes. But that’s not all it did.

Read the rest of this entry »

Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
January 31, 2012

Rural and urban school districts in California that make heavy use of buses appear safe — for now.

State lawmakers are fast-tracking legislation that would transform a $248 million midyear school bus cut into a general-purpose reduction that hits each K-12 district evenly. The Assembly Budget Committee passed Senate Bill 81 with bipartisan support Tuesday, while an aide to Gov. Jerry Brown testified that the governor supports the proposal.

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By Jim Sanders
jsanders@sacbee.com
Published: Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

A California Supreme Court ruling Friday significantly raised Democratic Party prospects of gaining the supermajority needed in the state Senate to pass tax or fee increases.

The high court decided that Senate maps drawn recently by a 14-member citizens commission will be used for this year’s legislative elections, even if a pending referendum qualifies for the ballot.

Read the rest of this entry »

PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
January 27, 2012 | 10:19 am

A correction has been added to this post. See below for details.

The California Supreme Court, faced with a possible ballot measure to scrap newly drawn election districts, decided Friday to leave the boundaries in place for this year’s state Senate races.

Read the rest of this entry »

Dan Walters

By Dan Walters
Published: Friday, Jan. 27, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A

Last Tuesday, the Public Policy Institute of California issued a new poll that found, among other things, just 17 percent of the state’s voters like the Legislature’s performance.

Simultaneously, the Legislature’s top leaders provided another reason for Californians to harbor such scorn.

Read the rest of this entry »

California State Controller John Chiang

PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
January 24, 2012 | 1:51 pm

Democratic lawmakers sued state Controller John Chiang on Tuesday seeking limits on the controller’s right to withhold lawmakers’ pay during a budget stalemate.

Read the rest of this entry »

Wyatt Buchanan, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau
Sunday, January 22, 2012

Sacramento –Gov. Jerry Brown’s plan to finally fix California’s finances relies on several dubious assumptions, including that voters approve his proposal to raise taxes in November and that the revenue from those come in at the level the administration projects.

Read the rest of this entry »

Bob Dutton, left. Gary Miller, right.

Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/19/2012 11:19:19 AM PST

The race for the 31st District got more interesting this week with state Sen. Bob Dutton officially tossing his hat in the ring.

Dutton, R-Rancho Cucamonga, will face a field of contenders that includes Rep. Gary Miller, R-Diamond Bar; Renea Wickman, the cofounder of a nonprofit aimed at helping juvenile offenders readjust to society; Justin Kim, an attorney from Loma Linda; and Redlands Mayor Pete Aguilar.

Read the rest of this entry »

PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
January 19, 2012 | 3:28 pm

Now that Gov. Jerry Brown has unveiled his budget proposal, it’s time for lawmakers to pull out their red pens.

The Senate Budget Committee held its first hearing Thursday, and its Assembly counterpart will do the same Tuesday. Until the governor releases an updated proposal in May, lawmakers will be poking and prodding his budget plan – and spinning it for political purposes.

Read the rest of this entry »

Thursday, January 19, 2012 – 08:05 a.m.

The latest candidate to jump into the election fray is State Senator Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga).

After toying with the prospect of challenging Assemblyman Mike Morell, Dutton will now take on Rep. Gary Miller (R-Diamond Bar) for the 31st Congressional District seat being vacated by Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Redlands).

Read the rest of this entry »

State Sen. Bob Dutton, R-Rancho Cucamonga, has announced he will seek election to the 31st Congressional District.

BY JIM MILLER
SACRAMENTO BUREAU
jmiller@pe.com

Published: 18 January 2012 04:17 PM

SACRAMENTO — State Sen. Bob Dutton declared his candidacy Wednesday for the redrawn 31st Congressional District, setting up a June showdown with veteran Rep. Gary Miller, R-Diamond Bar.

Read the rest of this entry »

In this early 1980s photo, Former state Sen. Ruben Ayala, wife Irene Ayala and granddaughter Sarah at the Chino Christmas Parade. (Courtesy Photo)

Canan Tasci, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/14/2012 06:07:45 AM PST

Ruben Ayala was more than just a man who served as a state senator, or a person who has had a park, school and streets named after him – he was a devoted husband, father and a person who loved his community.

Read the rest of this entry »

Josh Dulaney, Staff Writer
Created: 01/13/2012 11:29:33 AM PST

SAN BERNARDINO – State Sen. Bob Dutton, R-Rancho Cucamonga, teed off on a variety of issues Friday during a legislative breakfast at Shandin Hills Golf Course, but his biggest swing came at the end, when he hinted at a possible run for Congress.

Read the rest of this entry »

PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
January 13, 2012 | 1:47 pm

By election guru Allan Hoffenblum’s reckoning, there could be a record number of open seats up for grabs in this year’s elections, including 33 of the 80 state Assembly posts.

Read the rest of this entry »

U.S. Rep. Gary Miller (R-Brea)

By Frank C. Girardot, Staff Writer
Posted: 01/13/2012 09:16:01 PM PST

Rep. Gary Miller, R-Brea, is moving on.

The longtime congressman has spent 13 years on Capitol Hill representing his hometown of Diamond Bar. And, those who live there know, Gary’s a fixture around town when he’s not in Washington.

Read the rest of this entry »

PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
January 12, 2012 | 5:41 pm

Republican state senators say Gov. Jerry Brown is overstating the need for new tax hikes, according to an internal analysis.

The 61-page report, which examines Brown’s proposals from a Republican perspective, said state tax revenues will bounce back without the temporary taxes the governor wants.

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Thursday, January 12, 2012 – 05:30 p.m.

Whew…..

Congressman Jerry Lewis (R-Redlands) has finally announced he won’t seek another term in the republican-controlled House of Representatives.

An expected move based on the congressman’s recent indecision.

Read the rest of this entry »