January 26, 2012, 12:05 AM
Corporations that donate to political campaigns – including through so-called super PACs that have no contribution limits – would have to report their activity if they have shareholders in California under a bill introduced this week in the state Legislature. ...
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October 6, 2011, 12:05 AM
Two bills on Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk seek greater accountability and transparency for corporate tax breaks. Under current law, California has no standard process for reviewing the efficacy of tax breaks and deciding whether to continue them. Brown has until Sunday to sign or veto the...
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August 1, 2011, 12:05 AM
A state audit released last week says UCLA wrongfully designated $23 million in student fees to pay for two projects that were not included in the original fee referendum approved by student voters in 2000. The finding was part of a 15-month audit [PDF] that concluded the...
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July 7, 2011, 12:05 AM
The La Honda-Pescadero Unified School District's problems with managing school construction projects have triggered scrutiny, lawsuits, an emergency county loan and the resignation of a superintendent. Two years ago, Bryan Burns, a parent in the district in southeastern San Mateo...
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May 19, 2011, 12:05 AM
More than one in four retiring state workers last year cashed out more than the state-allowed limit of unused vacation, costing the state millions of dollars and showing that the pressure of banked vacation on the state’s long-term liabilities isn’t likely to ease any time soon. ...
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May 19, 2011, 12:05 AM
When Rep. Hilda Solis inserted remarks in the Congressional Record praising Los Angeles activist John Perez as “an asset to the labor movement,” she was recounting the life story of a man who would later become California’s Assembly speaker. “After graduating from the...
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May 12, 2011, 12:05 AM
Palo Alto-based social networking giant Facebook is seeking an exemption to rules that would require political advertisements on the site to disclose the source of their funds, according to a letter submitted to federal regulators by company attorneys. The letter, first obtained by Talking...
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May 9, 2011, 12:05 AM
Studies of the health effects of Taser International’s stun guns are 75 percent more likely to deem the weapons safe when researchers have ties to the company, a new report concludes. Cardiologists at UC San Francisco's medical school examined 50 published studies that tried to...
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April 21, 2011, 12:05 AM
UPDATE: Ron Yank, director of the state Department of Personnel Administration, has responded to our post (and the LA Times'), effectively arguing that vacation caps for corrections officers are practically impossible to enforce. See his full letter after the jump. Last year we told you...
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April 7, 2011, 12:05 AM
An unknown out-of-state foundation has become a substantial backer of an ambitious nonprofit group that is positioning itself at the center of the state's debate over public pensions. Democratic consultant Marcia Fritz, who runs the nonprofit Californians for Fiscal Responsibility, first...
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March 18, 2011, 10:14 AM
Federal auditors are once again questioning how California chose to spend hundreds of millions of dollars in federal homeland security grants awarded to the state for fighting terrorism and preparing for catastrophes after the Sept. 11 hijackings. Investigators working for the Department of...
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March 3, 2011, 12:07 AM
Once the grand jury got together, it didn't take long for Larry Minor to fold. Less than 24 hours after his indictment last month, the Southern California agribusiness mogul pleaded guilty to charges that he funneled money through friends and family to circumvent the state's campaign...
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February 28, 2011, 12:06 AM
The agency responsible for financing affordable housing in California is lacking board members with "critical areas of knowledge and expertise," according to a report by state auditors [PDF]. The report indicates that inexperience with complex financial transactions likely...
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February 25, 2011, 12:06 AM
The majority of California's K-12 school districts are failing to comply with the state Public Records Act, according to a report released yesterday by the nonprofit group Californians Aware. The organization requested documents from more than 250 public agencies last fall, including half...
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February 17, 2011, 12:05 AM
It's been about a month since we mentioned some lawmakers' concerns that deep budget cuts could imperil the state's longstanding requirement that government organizations provide the public with fair notice of open meetings. But as the Associated Press reminded us earlier this week...
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