Politics in the Zeros

The problem is California state pay for water workers is so much lower than industry standards that state employees with experience immediately get hired for substantially more pay at private utilities. The result is a growing California water worker shortage This costs the California tens of millions, not just in lost training money, but also [...]

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When there’s not enough water to supply everyone, water cutbacks to farms mean unemployment in agricultural areas of California. Central Valley allotments from the Sacramento Delta to the Central Valley were cut to 20%. This does not meant a 20% cut to 80% of allotment. They are receiving 20% of their total allotment, an 80% cut, this [...]

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Solar and wind power is variable by nature. To meet the California goal of 33% renewable energy by 2020, backup power is needed, primarily natural gas. But California doesn’t have the right mix of power now, a situation that will worsen because of new federal rules banning use of ocean water for cooling steam turbines. [...]

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Gov. Jerry Brown is expected to sign AB 340, a bill enacting landmark California public pension reform. In a rare show of bipartisan cooperation, the bill passed overwhelmingly on Friday with major support from both parties. The Senate vote was 38-1 and the Assembly cleared it by 66-9. Some conservatives felt the bill did not [...]

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California’s Workers’ Compensation is facing major changes if a bill scheduled for this week comes up for debate and then passes. Veteran Sacramento Bee columnist Dan Walters says renegotiating of workers’ comp benefits for injured workers happens about every ten years with the current battle no different from the divisive fight in 2004. However, this [...]

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The Sacramento Delta is ground zero for California water wars. California Gov. Jerry Brown will soon announce plans to build massive tunnels to siphon water away from the Delta and to Central Valley cropland and the ever-thirsty Southland. The tunnels would siphon water using three intakes on the Sacramento River below Freeport, carry it some [...]

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KQED links to a 2005 State of California report and has a wonderful and informative infographic about how 19% percent of power in California is involved in using water. Plus, water is heavily used in generating electricity by steam and also for cooling. Seems a bit of a vicious circle, doesn’t it?

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Voters in San Jose and San Diego Tuesday overwhelmingly approved public pension reform for their cities. It was beyond a landslide. These results send a clear and unmistakable message to municipalities everywhere that are struggling to meet pension obligations. If pension reform can pass in major California cities, it can pass anywhere. Cities and counties [...]

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In early counts in closely watched contests, pension reform is ahead by huge margins in both San Jose and San Diego. Both are major cities. San Jose is liberal, San Diego less so. Thus these votes indicate an emerging bipartisan consensus and will encourage other municipalities to put pension reform on the ballot too.

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On Tuesday, Californians vote in their first ever open primary. Voters can vote for any candidate. They are no longer bound to vote solely for a candidate of their party. Here’s the kicker. The top two vote getters regardless of party affiliation face off in the general election. The idea here is that this will [...]

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