On the November Ballot, California voters are going to have a chance to make a loud statement about spending. On the ballot are nine different ballot measures that together would increase government spending in the Golden State by epic proportions. Today we are featuring the FlashReport’s 2006 General Election Ballot Proposition Voter Guide where we have tapped Board of Equalization Member Bill Leonard (pictured to the right) to assist us in walking FR readers through our recommendations for the November ballot measures. Of course, we strongly recommend casting nine strong NO votes against the NINE SPENDING MEASURES on the ballot — Propositions 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E, 84, 86, 87, 88, and 89. If these measures are all rejected by California voters, and we send a strong team of Republicans, including Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tom… Read More

On the November Ballot, California voters are going to have a chance to make a loud statement about spending. On the ballot are nine different ballot measures that together would increase government spending in the Golden State by epic proportions. Today we are featuring the FlashReport’s 2006 General Election Ballot Proposition Voter Guide where we have tapped Board of Equalization Member Bill Leonard (pictured to the right) to assist us in walking FR readers through our recommendations for the November ballot measures. Of course, we strongly recommend casting nine strong NO votes against the NINE SPENDING MEASURES on the ballot — Propositions 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E, 84, 86, 87, 88, and 89.

**There is more – click the link**… Read More

From today’s Wall Street Journal Political Diary E-mail:

‘I’m Barely a Lawyer’ Is Jerry Brown’s Popular Boast

Ever since he was governor of California in the 1970s, Jerry Brown has focused on the very big picture, earning himself the nickname "Governor Moonbeam." As mayor of Oakland in the 1990s, he did come down to earth and record some progress on crime and development issues, but still he was never known as a detail guy.

Now he faces an embarrassing lawsuit in his current race to become California’s attorney general. One of the requirements of the office is that anyone seeking it must be a lawyer… Read More

The FR is revamping our Blog Roll and so I need to get some input from readers on which blogs to go to that carry items of interest to those following California politics, from the Right, the Center or the Left. Here is a list I am starting with (red is from the right, blue is from the left, black is from the center):

The pro-family organization Campaign for Children and Families has an online voter guide as part of their Pro-Family Election Center (the CCF recommend the same positions on the 13 ballot measures as the FlashReport and our ballot measure guru, Bill Leonard). The reason for this post is that I thought that in their section under Judges, they offered up some great advice that I am sharing with all FR readers, whether your interest is in finding out more about a judicial candidate, or any other candidate for that matter. They walk their supporters on how to research candidates online. Now in the case of the CCF, their examples include research on where candidates stand on abortion or homosexual rights, but obviously you can utilize this research technique to look up whatever issues are of importance to you in deciding how to vote. They say:

The California League of Cities is hiring a "public affairs fund raiser" according to an ad they placed in this week’s Calpeek. You can see the job description here.

In general there is nothing wrong with special interests raising funds to promote their cause–their unique interests. However, so-called quasi-government organizations such as the League should perhaps be held to a different standard.

In fact, the League plays a major role in not just influencing government from the outside looking in like other lobby groups that represent doctors or labor, the League actually makes public policy and decides who is appointed to various major government bodies.

Take Orange County for example where it is the League of Cities chapter that selects what local elected officials will serve in many of our… Read More

The California Target Book today came out with one of their invaluable wrap-ups of who’s been spending what in the different legislative races.

For instance, the Indians have been doing lots of polling, mail and tv – while the Bay Meadows Land Company has gone to bat for two Dems in the Central Valley, but have done so more with lawn signs and radio buys.

I’m not judging, but with $300,000, I just think an IE committee can do better than lawn signs.

Most interesting, and I’m not kidding here, the ‘Legislative Black Coalition Committee’ has dropped $46,140 against Shirley Horton on ‘potholders production, postage, and distribution.’

Again, I’m not making this up. Nearly $50 grand. On potholders!

I could try to finish this post with some short little quip about what a waste of money this is, or how they just bought themselves Horton’s re-election… But really, it’s potholders. They wrote the punchline for me.… Read More

Let’s say you buy a bank-auctionedpiece of property in a slightly remote area with a junker of a house sitting on it, a fixer-upper at best. You put a significant amount of money and personal physical labor into it so as to make it your home, not simply a house. After the County Assessor shows up and completes a re-assessment of the property, your tax bill goes up significantly. You pay it.As time goes by, you pay all your property taxes as they progressively increase based on the limiting provisions of Prop. 13.

Years go by and you lose the home in a terrible fire. Through your long re-building process it becomes apparent the County Assessor failed all that time ago in adequately measuring the square footage of your then-house, thus under-assessing you in property taxes all those years.

A typical bureaucratic mess, resulting in a nightmare for you. Should you have known the professional county appraisers couldn’t handle a tape measure or do simple math? Would you have known such a thing? Your property tax bill doesn’t show your square footage.After all, the county did increase your assessment based on a physical inspection. They are… Read More