They Told Charter Schools to Innovate
They told them to innovate. They told them to do things differently. They told them to take chances. They told them to be bold. They told them to increase expectations. They told them to reinvent education. That’s exactly what charter schools did and now they are being punished for it. As an early supporter of […]
Welcome to the Affluent Central Coast, California’s Child Poverty Capital
Californians used to envy residents of our beautiful, wine-and-wealth-drenched Central Coast. Now we have reason to pity them. And not just because Nicole Kidman has thrown her star power into producing a TV series based on the premise that Monterey’s women might be murderers. The past year has brought one calamity after another. Last summer’s […]
Scientific Study Contradicts Basis for State Water Board’s River Flow Mandates
A new environmental study, published in in the prestigious North American Journal of Fisheries Management, reveals that Governor Jerry Brown’s State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) imposed so-called pulse-flow release requirements on water rights holders affecting several California rivers, operating from unproven beliefs the study now shows were without sufficient scientific basis. (http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02755947.2016.1240120) Pulse flows, […]
A Post Mortem on Measure S
In the aftermath of Measure S, it seems everyone is offering their post mortem observations about this giant struggle over land-use and development in Los Angeles. I’d like to add my “two cents”. First, the voters made the right choice in sinking Measure S. We can breathe a sigh of relief that a blanket moratorium […]
Don’t Tax Teachers?
It seems those pushing a bill to eliminate state income taxes for teachers have a large strategic hurdle to clear. Teachers through their unions frequently campaign for more taxes. How would it look if teachers are campaigning for more taxes and they no longer have to pay income taxes? Bad optics, as they say in […]
Contradiction in Water Policy
In 2016, annual precipitation was average for the Central Valley and above average for northern California. But the allocation of Central Valley Project water to public water agencies that serve farmers south of the Delta was only 5%. The federal government blamed the low allocation of water on hydrological conditions, rather than environmental regulations that limited pumping of water and prevented […]
Governor’s Budget Cuts Force Talented Future Doctors Out of California
In June 2016, Governor Jerry Brown’s administration announced the historic allocation of a three-year, $100 million fund to address the drastic shortage of primary care physicians, and therefore critical health care, for our state’s residents. Specifically, the money would have backfilled expiring funds for primary care residency programs across the state, as well as increased […]
Will California Become a Sanctuary State?
State Senate President Kevin De León, who recently made headlines by announcing that he has relatives in California who are here in violation of U.S. immigration laws, is pushing legislation to make California a “Sanctuary State” – i.e. prohibiting state law enforcement agencies in California from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. De León is pressing the […]
Haven’t We Learned Yet? More Legislation that Adds to Housing Costs
Housing costs too much in California. But, while legislators wring their hands over the housing crisis they often pass laws that boost the cost of housing. The latest proposal that would increase housing costs is AB 199 by Assemblyman Kansen Chu. The proposed law would end an exemption on prevailing wage rates for private residential developments. […]