Today, the State Legislature will begin a new year of work with plenty of issues to tackle. While we will all take time to visit with the colleagues we haven’t seen in several weeks, there won’t be much time for socializing before we roll up our sleeves and get to work. The state budget, the economy, education, healthcare and public safety will be key issues in 2014. [1]" src="http://www.flashreport.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Conway-Headshot1-240x300.jpg" alt="" width="240" height="300" srcset="https://www.flashreport.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Conway-Headshot1-240x300.jpg 240w, https://www.flashreport.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Conway-Headshot1.jpg 249w" sizes="(max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px" />[/caption]The budget will take center stage this month and will be a concern throughout the year. This Friday, the Governor will unveil his spending blueprint. While the non-partisan Legislative Analyst has predicted growth in revenues this year, this is not a sign that we should revisit the mistakes of the past and fuel spending.

The Governor has signaled that he would like to be prudent with this one-time uptick in unexpected revenues.… Read More

The California Legislature reconvenes this week and the politicians may be on the verge of a major miscalculation because they don’t understand how real people think.

The members of the political class in Washington and our state capitols are certain they know what Americans are thinking. Just ask them. After all, they read polls and this convinces them they know how we view Republicans and Democrats, liberals and conservatives, high-profile politicians and policy issues like… Read More

In the middle of the holiday season, when Americans for more focused on travel plans and gift giving than politics, Gallup released powerful new survey data showing Americans are far more concerned about the threat posed by “big government,” compared to business or labor.

In liberalism’s heyday of the 1960’s, fewer than half of Americans considered big government to be biggest threat to America’s future. Today, it’s an astonishing 72%. To reach such a peak, Americans across the board are concerned about the size, scope and intrusiveness of government, not just Republicans or libertarians (although Republicans are the most concerned).

Not surprisingly, Americans have grown significantly more skeptical of government as it has expanded during the Administration of Democrat Barack Obama. The 2009 stimulus package, Dodd-Frank regulation of finance, Obamacare and revelations concerning NSA surveillance programs all contribute to rising concern about the role of government.

While 92% of Republicans say they see big government as the greatest threat to the country’s future, even a majority of Democrats (56%) say… Read More

Gerawan Farming is fed up.

On Dec. 16, the Gerawan Farming company filed aconstitutional challengeagainst the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board, with the United Farm Workers of America as a “Real Party of Interest.” It was filed with the California Court of Appeal, Fifth District in Fresno, against the ALRB’s invocation of theCalifornia’s Mandatory Mediation and Conciliation Statute. The statute wassigned into law by Gov. Gray Davis in 2002.

This was part of wrangling with the United Farm Workers Union that began in Oct. 2012, when the union insisted that a… Read More

Several of my recent stories about some of Gov. Jerry Brown’s appointees have revealed discrepancies about reports filed on conflicts of interest and financial disclosure.

Form 700 is a Statement of Economic Interests required of “designated” government employees, meaning the governor’s top aides and consultants.Some, but not all, Brown “designated” appointees have filedForm 700s with the Fair Political Practices Commission.

As I detailed in the stories, the FPPC included in its files Form 700 fromFish and Game Commissioner Mike Sutton.

But for newLabor Secretary David Lanier,the FPPC did not comply with CalWatchDog.com’s request for copies of his Form 700.

Because of the discrepancy, I also asked Brown’s… Read More

What will Liberty look like in 2014?

And no, it’s not a car.

Liberty is something we often hear about, but isn’t exactly a topic of discussion at dinner parties. If we don’t really know what liberty is, how will we know when it is taken away, or if it is being taken away? Unfortunately, it often takes tyranny to make liberty more precious.

The purpose of liberty is to allow human life to flourish.Are we flourishing in California and the rest of America in 2013? What will liberty look like in 2014?

Are Americans prepared to fight for liberty?

John Locke, a 17th century English philosopher and physician, regarded as one of the most influential of… Read More

Everybody wants to win.

That’s one reason why Las Vegas and Atlantic City attract people from all over the world, so much so that it utterly consumes some. But while private sector gambling is widely recognized as a risk and a return (if there is one) that is almost always based on pure luck, state lotteries promote the idea that there is “hope” and something almost virtuous in playing the lottery. This has never been more apparent than with the repulsive emotionally manipulative Holiday Scratchers ads the California Lottery is airing on your television today.

The one-minute advertisement softly plays Debussy’s Clair de Lune while depicting an old man, who presumably works at the post office, leaving work to head home. The man rides the elevator and walks past folks on the street completely ignored by his fellow citizens. He rides the bus alone in the rain and shuffles up… Read More

Today marks the end of eight full years of the FlashReport covering politics and policy here in the Golden State. This year alone we published thousands of blog posts and original columns. We published links to tens of thousands of articles and editorials — all with a nexus to what is going on here in California.

I wanted to take the time to express my appreciation to those that make this website possible.

The first shout-out goes to our readers (that’s YOU) for coming to our site day in and day out. Secondly I would like to thank our advertisers, without whom there would literally be no FlashReport to read. Thirdly, I would like to thank all of those people who penned columns and… Read More