On May 20, Flashreport posted my open letter to California GOP Chair Jim Brulte.In this letter I urged Mr. Brulte to consider working towards a condemnation of the Common Core Standards (CCS), the Obama administration’s signature education initiative.New CCS academic standards will cost CA $1.6 billion, per the state Dept. of Education, and will do nothing more than replace our current world-class standards.Unless you’re a stockholder of Houghton-Mifflin (new standards require new textbooks) or Educational Testing Service (new standards require new standardized tests) there is no reason to expect a dividend, educational or financial, from the purchase of these new standards.

I pointed out in my letter to Mr. Brulte that Gov. Brown made much show of approving payment for CCS out of Prop. 30 funds (although he understated the CCS cost at $1 billion), meaning that Californian’s have voted to tax themselves to pay a windfall profit to special interests in publishing and testing.On its surface that sounds like a ready target for GOP attack, but no attack… Read More

Following the 2012 elections, many Republican were asking: what is the party going to differently in 2014 and beyond? How can we improve our opportunities for victory?

Out of that discussion, it became clear that we need Republican candidates, staff and activists who are well trained in the most effective techniques in planning, organizing, and executing campaigns in California. In such a competitive environment, our team needs every advantage to make the greatest use of every dollar a donor contributes, or a volunteer spends on a campaign.

Candidates must also learn how to maximize their effectiveness on the campaign trail, including raising money, public speaking and communications, and putting together a winning team. Too many first time candidates don’t make it into office because they lacked the training and education to make the most of their efforts.

This is why we’ve launched a new Republican campaign and training program through the Project for California’s Future, a new initiative to identify, recruit, train, and educate Republican candidates and leaders in California.

The Project’s flagship program is a six month… Read More

SACRAMENTO — A modest rally at the Capitol this morning supporting a state audit of Child Protective Services competed with a humongous rally held by the SEIU.

On the South steps of the Capitol, the CPS audit rally was made up of parents and families who are victims of overly aggressive Child Protective Services divisions.

On the West steps of the Capitol, the SEIU rally was made up of thousands of purple t-shirt-wearing SEIU members demanding raises. Their t-shirts were made up for today’s rally and said “2013 CONTRACT TOUR.” The back of the t-shirt said “YOUR CONTRACT STARTS WITH YOU,” and listed the cities for the SEIU “Townhall Circuit” for 2013 contract negotiations.

Yet what should have overshadowed the small gathering of emotional parents, did not. Although, the contrast was stark.

It was mothers and fathers who said their children had… Read More

[Publisher’s Note: We are pleased to offer this original commentary penned by Assembly GOP Leader Connie Conway. We hope you enjoy it – Flash]

When I am asked to speak to community groups in my district, I often describe the State Capitol as the Disneyland of Northern California. Too many of my colleagues in the majority party are living in a Fantasyland where they think can spend as if there is no tomorrow.

We saw this on full display last week as the Legislature considered literally hundreds of measures before a key deadline. Between May 20 and 31, the Legislature collectively passed 393 bills. To be sure, Sacramento liberals pushed through some very bad legislation that will collectively increase state spending, impose costly new burdens on employers and expand the reach of government into more aspects of our lives.

But as I’ve often said, Republicans are the last line of defense for California taxpayers. By standing together, Republicans were able to prevent some of the worst of the worst measures from passing – legislation that would hurt the economy and wallets of hard-working… Read More

Internal Revenue Service Czarina of Tax Exempt Organizations Lois Lerner was not only targeting religious and conservative organizations, she was also shielding liberal groups from undergoing the exact same scrutiny. This latest disclosure in the spreading IRS scandal comes from Missouri Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer, who in May, 2010 brought his constituents’ complaints against Humane Society abuses directly to the attention of Czarina Lerner.

While the conservative organizations targeted by Lerner were seeking 501c4 tax exempt status (which permits political activity), it turns out the overtly political Humane Society was receiving tax-deductible contributions as a 501c3 organization, a classification that includes foundations and which must strictly limit any political action.

As a result of Luetkemeyer’s diligent pursuit of the matter, Fox News jumped on the case, reporting that not only had Lerner stonewalled Congressional calls for an investigation, but that Lerner was an active supporter of the Humane Society. Fox also discovered that, despite the impression left by the Humane Society’s polished television ads depicting adorable pets for… Read More

One of the most basic responsibilities of government is to maintain law and order. This is especially true for a legislative panel that calls itself the Assembly “Public Safety” Committee. Unfortunately, it seems more concerned about prisoners than the peace and safety of law-abiding Californians.

Recently, I presented two common-sense bills – at least I thought they were common-sense – to the committee for its consideration. But the committee killed them faster than a repeat sex offender is released from prison.

The first bill, Assembly Bill 63, would send parolees who cut off their electronic monitoring device back to state prison. I introduced AB 63 in response to a paroled sex offender accused of raping a Fresno State student, a story that generated much outrage in our community. This criminal had been arrested 23 times over a 22-year period and cut off his monitoring device eight days before he attacked the student.

He cut off his device perhaps knowing he would not face serious consequences. It is an open secret among parolees that cutting or tampering with their tracking devices result in little to no punishment. Governor Brown’s… Read More

You don’t need another example of how the Legislature wastes time and taxpayer dollars, but here’s a great one: AB 667.

This bill is nothing new. A version of it is introduced almost every session. Last go-‘round it was SB 469 by Juan Vargas, and it’s such a bad bill that even Governor Brown vetoed it, saying that “plenty of laws are already on the books” that throw hurdles and roadblocks in front of large retail stores before they can be approved and built. Before that, Schwarzenegger vetoed the same bill, and Governor Davis vetoed it before him.

The bill would make it harder to open a larger retail store — over 90,000 square feet — that also sells groceries.

… Read More

Last week the California Public Policy Center released a compilation ofpublic employee compensation databases. Apart from the CPPC’s own studies that disclose and evaluate compensation for city workers inSan Jose,Anaheim,Costa Mesa, andIrvine, of May 2013, they found nine additional sources of information on California’s state and local government employee compensation, incorporating eleven databases. Here they are:

State Controller,employees of all California Cities and Counties Sacramento Bee,California State workers… Read More