In September, on our main daily news page, the FlashReport featured an LA Times article, “Cities, counties pay price for Capitol clout,” which reported that last year local government in California spent nearly $40 million on capitol lobbyists – more than labor, oil or business.

The League of California Cities and the California State Association of Counties justified these enormous expenditures of tax dollars by claiming that unlike other private interests, they can’t make political contributions to legislators and causes.

Apparently that might not be the case… In recent weeks, the League of California Cities campaign finance reports and a leaked memo suggests otherwise. In fact, their reported lobbying expenses are just the tip of the iceberg of a large and powerful political machine financed by California taxpayers.

Recent campaign reports and an internal memo reveals that the League is well on their way to spending millions of dollars on an eminent domain ballot measure that the state’s independent Legislative… Read More

Senator Bob Dutton drafted this piece exclusively for FR readers, where he brings up a good point — the Governor has the power, and the responsibility to declare a state of fiscal emergency — now! Time is “NOW” for Governor and Legislature to Deal with Budget Crisis State Senator Bob Dutton I applaud Governor Schwarzenegger for his recognition that the State of California is in the midst of a financial crisis. According to the LA Times, Governor Schwarzenegger ordered all state departments to identify cuts of at least 10%. California’s… Read More

UPDATE: 12:24 A.M. — WITH ALL OF THE VOTES COUNTED, MIKE WAS THE TOP VOTE GETTER…

UPDATE: 10:00 P.M. – WE’RE CALLING THIS RACE FOR SPENCE, AS THE TOP VOTE GETTER. WITH 10 OF 16 PRINCINCTS REPORTING, IT IS VERY UNLIKELY THAT THIS OUTCOME WILL CHANGE. CONGRATULATIONS, MIKE! – FLASH

Fellow FR Correspondent Mike Spence, who perhaps received more statewide and national attention on conservative blogs than anyone running for re-election to a local school board in the history of mankind — no doubt because of his popularity on these pages and his status as CRA president — appears to easily be outdistancing the field in early West Covina Unified returns….

Vote for no more than three Candidate Votes Percent MIKE SPENCE 965 28.01… Read More

Health care was topic of the day at the State Capitol today. Democrats unveiled their latest “compromise” proposal, which, of course, will lead to billion of dollars in higher taxes. Their new plan (which looks a lot like their old plan) imposes a jobs tax on California businesses, mandates all Californians buy health insurance, raises the tobacco tax by $2 to pay for health care subsidies and imposes a new tax on hospitals. I guess by “compromise” they mean they are proposing one tax increase in lieu of another. Whatever you call it, their plan is bad for California. It would raise taxes, place enormous new burdens on businesses and make the deficit even worse. But would you expect anything less from them?

Alternatively, Assembly Republicans announced our own health care reform plan today. Our plan does not raise taxes or grow government. Instead, it puts people in charge of their health care decisions, not the government. The Assembly Republican plan allows for more choices when it comes to meeting the individual health care needs of families, such as allowing tax deductions for out-of-pocket medical expenses, providing workers and businesses with the more… Read More

The Orange County Board of Supervisors rejected a proposal today to put a charter amendment before the voters that would, if passed, give the board the authority to place county-wide elected officials on administrative leave–effectively remove a district attorney or county clerk for example from office, if 4/5 of them so choose.

It was a bad idea and I applaud the majority for their vote.

One of the most compelling speakers at the board meeting was Assemblyman Todd Spitzer–a former county supervisor and former deputy district attorney. Spitzer is known as a law and order Republican–someone who puts cop and prosecutor on a pedestal (more so than my libertarian sensibilities allow me to).

But Spitzer argued against the proposal because it is inappropriate for the supervisors to serve as judge, jury and executioner. DA Rackauckas also made similar and well put remarks recommending that the board reject the proposal.… Read More

This morning, Steve Poizner made it official – he is now heading up the statewide efforts to oppose Proposition 93, the end-run on California’s Term Limits for State Legislators. Poizner’s opening ante… $1.5 million, matched with another $1.5 from the US Term Limits folks. Given the plummeting poll numbers for 93 when there was no opposition funding… Probably not a good sign for Don Perata and Fabian Nunez, who will have to find employment elsewhere come next December. That is music to the ears of California taxpayers…… Read More

This morning at a conference room across the street from the State Capitol, advocates in the campaign against Proposition 93 (the Nunez-Perata Term Limits Weakening Measure) will hold a press conference — the star attraction? California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner. While nothing "official" has been announced, we are just hours away from a likely formal commitment from Poizner that he has not only signed the official ballot argument against Proposition 93, but that he will be playing a key role in opposing 93, including a starring role for Poizner’s checkbook. For those who are unaware, before his entry into politics, the soft-spoken Poizner was very successful as an entrepreneur and inventor in the Silicon Valley. His company developed some technology that has been incorporated into virtually every cell phone on the planet, and in selling this technology to one of the largest communications firms in the world, Poizner came away with a net worth approaching a billion (with a "b") dollars. Poizner has already shown a willingness in the past, separate from his own campaign for office, to donate from… Read More

This morning at a conference room across the street from the State Capitol, advocates in the campaign against Proposition 93 (the Nunez-Perata Term Limits Weakening Measure) will hold a press conference — the star attraction? California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner. While nothing "official" has been announced, we are just hours away from a likely formal commitment from Poizner that he has not only signed the official ballot argument against Proposition 93, but that he will be playing a key role in opposing 93, including a starring role for Poizner’s checkbook. For those who are unaware, before his entry into politics, the soft-spoken Poizner was very successful as an entrepreneur and inventor in the Silicon Valley. His company developed some technology that has been incorporated into virtually every cell phone on the planet, and in selling this technology to one of the largest communications firms in the world, Poizner came away with a net worth approaching a billion (with a "b") dollars. Poizner has already shown a willingness in the past, separate from his own campaign for office, to donate from… Read More