| Lagging state budget leaves Lake County schools financially uncertain |
| LAKE COUNTY -- With the state now two and a half months late passing a budget and no end in sight, schools throughout Lake County are starting the year amid financial uncertainty.
Lower enrollment numbers at schools on the Northshore already mean less money from state and federal sources, according to district superintendents in Upper Lake and Lucerne. Officials said staff layoffs countywide at the end of last school year were based on enrollment numbers and state budget projections. No state budget means administrators are spending cautiously, and hoping for no more program cuts.
"Categorical programs are not funded right now programs targeted for student support. Districts are paying up front and waiting for the money from the state. Our districts are in good enough shape to do this for the short term, but not for the long term," Lake County Superintendent of Schools Dave Geck said.
While the numbers of students enrolled in the Kelseyville, Konocti and Middletown school districts are about the same as they were last year, Upper Lake Union High School District and Lucerne Elementary report declining enrollment. [Article] |
| by Tiffany Revelle, Lake County Record-Bee. 2008-09-05 |
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| Oakley signs on to county Delta plan |
| For decades, meetings of state boards, commissions, committees and task forces have generated warehouses filled with studies, reports, analyses, attachments and addendums – all focusing on the Delta, its problems and how to fix them.
In the meantime, the problems have grown steadily worse. Controversial, rejected proposals such as the peripheral canal have been resurrected as possible solutions.
Now the people who live in and around the Delta are starting to talk back and are generating some Delta documents of their own. At Thursday night’s Mayor’s Conference in Antioch, the cities in Contra Costa County were scheduled to sign onto the county’s recently adopted Delta Water Platform. [Article] |
| by Dave Roberts, Brentwood Press. 2008-09-05 |
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| Tobacco sales could be banned at county bars |
| Bars and restaurants in the unincorporated areas of San Luis Obispo County — including Nipomo — would not be allowed to sell tobacco products if an ordinance revised by supervisors last week wins final approval Sept. 16.
The provision banning tobacco sales in bars was not part of the original tobacco sales licensing ordinance scheduled for a public hearing Aug. 26 but was added on the motion of 4th District Supervisor Katcho Achadjian.
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Because the language was added during the hearing last week, the ordinance will not have to be reintroduced at a future meeting, then rescheduled for another public hearing before it can be adopted.
Achadjian asked to have the ban on bar sales added at the recommendation of Susan Hughes, program manager for the county’s Tobacco Control Program, and the request of 2nd District Supervisor Bruce Gibson. [Article] |
| by Mike Hodgson, Adobe Press. 2008-09-05 |
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| Agency for seniors gets county loan |
| A loan the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors approved Tuesday to a local social welfare agency serving Tuolumne and Calaveras counties illustrates the budget difficulties facing California.
The Area 12 Agency on Aging was forced to seek more than $53,000 from the county because the state has yet to pass a budget for the current fiscal year, which began July 1. The budget delay of more than two months is the longest in the state's history. It's due to disagreement among legislators on how to deal with a projected deficit of nearly $16 billion.
Because of the delay, seniors dependent on Area 12 may not get a particular service unless it's an absolute necessity, and some caseworkers have started paying for their own gas, according to the agency's director Linda Zach. [Article] |
| by WALT COOK, Sonora Union Democrat. 2008-09-05 |
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| Setback for new Yolo County Courthouse |
| The Yolo Superior Court suffered a big setback for a new court building this despite a big setback in the state legislature this past week, according to Yolo Court officials.
At the very end of the legislative session, the California State Assembly voted to approve SB 1407 (Perata), which authorizes construction and renovation of approximately 40 court facilities throughout the state.
A new Yolo Superior Court courthouse in Woodland is one of the top four projects designated in this bill, along with new facilities in Los Angeles, Butte and Tehama.
On the last day of the legislative session, however, a major change was made to the bill when $61.5 million earmarked for property acquisition and initial design work on the first four projects was eliminated. [Article] |
| by Staff Report, Woodland Daily Democrat. 2008-09-05 |
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| Countdown Continues For Calaveras County Jail Funding |
| San Andreas, CA -- Two weeks from today Calaveras County Sheriff Dennis Downum will be attending a Corrections Standards Authority meeting in Berkeley to hopefully acquire full funding for the new jail complex.
The county has already been awarded $10 million ... Downum sought $26 million to go along with the $31 million provided by the passage of Measure J in November. [Article] |
| by Bill Johnson, My Mother Lode. 2008-09-05 |
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| County women's shelter gets $250,000 grant for transitional housing |
| The county’s Women’s Shelter Program will receive a federal grant of a quarter of a million dollars, to be used for transitional housing, Rep. Lois Capps has announced.
Capps praised the program for what she called its crucial role in “providing safe housing for one of our most vulnerable populations: women and children survivors of domestic violence.”
“It takes incredible courage and strength to escape domestic violence and we are fortunate to have the Women’s Shelter in our community for those who feel caught in that trap,” said Capps. [Article] |
| by Staff Report, San Luis Obispo Tribune. 2008-09-05 |
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| Assistant DA may get probation |
| Santa Cruz County District Attorney Bob Lee announced today that the State Bar Court of California has recommended that Assistant District Attorney George Hall Dunlap Jr. be placed on probation for five years and be suspended from practicing law for two of those years, according to a press release from Lee’s office.
The court cited professional misconduct, the majority of which occurred 13 years ago in 1995, and one instance occurring in 2002, all while Dunlap was a member of the San Joaquin District Attorney’s Office. None of the findings occurred when Dunlap was a member of the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s Office. [Article] |
| by Staff Report, Register Pajaronian. 2008-09-05 |
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| Clinic to get $2 million in upgrades |
| BALDWIN PARK - A busy animal clinic soon will get some much-needed upgrades.
The Baldwin Park Animal Shelter, at 4275 N. Elton St. in Baldwin Park, will receive almost $2 million worth of improvements at its clinic.
"We are busy 24-7," Animal Control Sgt. Chris Childs said. "It is just too small."
The condition of the clinic, which is operated out of a trailer, has deteriorated through the years because of heavy usage and has not received any upgrades since it opened, officials said. [Article] |
| by Jennifer McLain, Whittier Daily News. 2008-09-05 |
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| Baca blasts budgetless legislators |
| Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca took a break from hounding criminals this morning to take aim at a different group he said needs to get with the program: state legislators.
Baca reserved double-barreled criticism for lawmakers from his own Republican Party who went to Minnesota for the GOP convention. While they're making merry, Baca said, the state budget impasse threatens to make it harder for law enforcement agencies “who have to do the real work” of dealing with the mentally ill, meth addicts and gang members.
The sheriff, speaking in Burbank at an appearance with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, compared California's lawmakers to schoolchildren, who he said will lose funds needed to teach them how to behave like adults. [Article] |
| by Michael Rothfeld, Los Angeles Times - Orange County Edition. 2008-09-05 |
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| John Wildermuth: The Governor, the Money and Prop. 11 |
| It's not often that a politician doesn't want to get his name out before the public, but that's what may be happening in the race over the proposed redistricting measure, Proposition 11.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is co-chair of the committee backing the new redistricting plan, which would take the power to draw the state's political boundaries out of the hands of the Legislature and give it to a citizens committee. One of his political groups, "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's California Dream Team," put up $2.4 million to help collect the signatures needed to get it on the ballot.
But here's the problem. When any group puts up a big chunk of cash for a ballot measure, it has to be mentioned by name in any TV ads and mailers the group pays for. That's why the group that's raised about $5.7 million to back Prop. 11 is named (take a deep breath) "California Voters First, Yes on 11 for change in Sacramento -- a coalition of consumer, senior, public interest, taxpayer, community and business groups and leaders, major funding provided by Governor ..." [Article] |
| by John Wildermuth, San Francisco Chronicle. 2008-09-05 |
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| Supervisors appoint Merced accountant as county auditor |
| Lisa Cardella-Presto, a certified public accountant and Merced native, will take over as Merced County's auditor-controller in January, the Board of Supervisors decided this week.
Cardella-Presto, 35, will replace Stephen Jones as the county's top financial officer. Jones announced plans earlier this year to retire mid-term in January. Cardella-Presto will finish his term, which ends in 2010.
If she wants to keep the job past then, she'll have to win the post in an election.
The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to appoint Cardella-Presto, who has taught accounting at Merced College since 2006. [Article] |
| by Corinne Reilly, Merced Sun-Star. 2008-09-05 |
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| County left vulnerable by Measure T |
| When supporters of Measure T got the ballot initiative before voters in 2006, there was little doubt even then that eventually the county would end up in court over the controversial law.
The proponents of Measure T have a problem with the underlying principle of corporate personhood, a legal interpretation that basically allows corporations and businesses the same rights as individual Americans.
Measure T directly challenged that notion and sought to take away the free speech rights of nonlocal corporations, at least as far as local elections were concerned. In this case, non-local was defined as any business with employees or shareholders living outside of the county.
The ultimate hope of some was that this would kick off a legal revolution wherein the idea of corporate personhood would be turned on its ear when the battle ended up in court with a legal challenge to Measure T.
Lo and behold, that day of reckoning has come to pass. [Article] |
| by Editorial, Eureka Times-Standard. 2008-09-05 |
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| Four O.C. hospitals worst in the state for breast feeding |
| Four Orange County hospitals are among the worst in California at encouraging new mothers to breast feed their babies.
Coastal Communities Hospital, Anaheim General Hospital, Western Medical Center Anaheim and Garden Grove Hospital had rates of less than 5 percent for exclusive breastfeeding, which means babies were not given any formula during their hospital stay. Eleven other California hospitals were also in the lowest category, according to the report by the Human Lactation Center at UC Davis and the California WIC Association.
Breast feeding rates were lowest in Southern California and among low-income, non-white women.
But researchers point out that regardless of a woman's ethnicity, hospital policies shaped how many mothers breast fed their babies. Those with the highest rates had trained staff to help women, ensured that breast feeding started soon after birth, allowed mother and baby to room together and eliminated the marketing of formula to patients. [Article] |
| by COURTNEY PERKES , Orange County Register. 2008-09-05 |
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| County cracks down on illegal off-roaders |
| Ken Madsen looked forward to peace and quiet when he bought a three-bedroom home in semi-rural Elverta in mid-2006.
But his tranquility was short-lived.
Within a week of moving in, Madsen said, he was startled by the raging din of more than 40 motorized dirt bikes racing on a 35-acre field near his new home.
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"Their noise is unbearable," Madsen said of the cyclists, who have repeatedly trespassed onto the property at all hours.
"On hot days, when they are there, the entire field turns into a dust storm."
Now, relief may be on the way for Madsen and other residents who have complained about the motorcycles and four-wheel vehicles that invade private properties in Rio Linda, Antelope and Elverta.
In mid-August, Sacramento County began cracking down on trespassing off-roaders. Since then, violators have been subject to misdemeanor citations that can result in a fine, jail time, or both, upon conviction. The number of people cited to date was unavailable at press time. [Article] |
| by Edgar Sanchez, Sacramento Bee. 2008-09-05 |
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| Supervisors expected to approve budget |
| Placer County supervisors are expected Tuesday to approve an annual budget that reflects both growth and a tough economy.
The proposed $865 million budget for the 2008-09 fiscal year represents a 9 percent increase over the previous year's spending plan. But the new budget also leaves unfilled more than 200 of 2,845 employee positions.
About $325 million, or 37.5 percent, of the money is designated for capital outlay projects and road infrastructure, county spokeswoman Anita Yoder said. The funding had been set aside previously and cannot be used for general purposes, she said. [Article] |
| by Art Campos, Sacramento Bee. 2008-09-05 |
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| Officials concede land-use problems |
| Last week, Ventura County officials hosted an unusual meeting in a conference room just off of the courthouse cafeteria.
It was an intervention of sorts, a chance for the officials to hear just how bad things had gotten in their relationship with landowners and developers — but in this case, the targets of the intervention were the ones who set up the meeting.
The county had invited some of its most disgruntled customers: the property owners, lawyers and development consultants who regularly apply for land-use permits in the unincorporated areas.
They complained of glacial workflow, indifferent customer service, and puzzling decisions on the second floor of the county Government Center, where the Planning Division and most of the other land-use agencies are. [Article] |
| by Tony Biasotti, Ventura County Star. 2008-09-05 |
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| Kern ordered to pay $1 million in sludge lawsuit fees |
| The federal judge who ruled against Kern County in its legal duel with Los Angeles and Orange County over treated sewage sludge has dealt Kern another $1 million blow.
U.S. District Court Judge Gary Feess has ruled Kern owes $1.08 million to lawyers for the private hauling and spreading firms that partnered with Los Angeles and Orange in the lawsuit.
One year ago today, Feess ruled Kern County’s ban on the land application of the southland’s treated sewage sludge, also referred to as “biosolids,” is trumped by state waste recycling rules and violates interstate commerce law. [Article] |
| by James Burger, Bakersfield Californian. 2008-09-05 |
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| Supervisors honor Waterston |
| Fresno County supervisors paid tribute to retiring Supervisor Bob Waterston during the annual State of the County address Thursday, thanking him for his many years of public service.
It was at the same event a year ago that Waterston surprised everyone by abruptly announcing his retirement from the board at the end of his speech.
More than 600 people attended this year's event, which was held at the Radisson Hotel & Conference Center in downtown and put on by the Greater Fresno Area Chamber of Commerce.
Board Chairman Henry Perea gave the keynote address but only briefly mentioned the perilous budget situation facing the county. Instead, he focused his comments on efforts the county is making to clean up the environment. [Article] |
| by Kerri Ginis, Fresno Bee. 2008-09-05 |
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| Mayor fights inmate releases |
| Fresno Mayor Alan Autry said Wednesday he will pursue a court order blocking further inmate releases from the downtown jail, saying Fresno County is facing a "public safety crisis."
Autry said the City Council will hold a special meeting Friday to consider seeking a temporary restraining order against the Sheriff's Department. If approved, the city will ask a court Monday to halt inmate releases.
"This is a step I feel I have to make. I have no other choice to make," Autry said. "This is nothing less than a public safety crisis."
But sheriff's and county officials say they don't believe Autry has the legal grounds to make that request. [Article] |
| by Kerri Ginis, Fresno Bee. 2008-09-04 |
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