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"disqusTitle": "On State Budget, Californians Confused ... But Convinced They Need a Role",
"title": "On State Budget, Californians Confused ... But Convinced They Need a Role",
"headTitle": "Election 2016 | FaultLines | KQED News",
"content": "\u003cp>There aren't many complex tasks where someone would be unsure about how things work but still insist on a decision-making role. After all, you wouldn't tell a mechanic that you wanted to help rebuild the engine of a car when you had no idea how engines work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And yet, there's a bit of a parallel in public opinion about the Golden State's budget, opinion sampled by \u003ca href=\"http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=1125\" target=\"_blank\">the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) in its new poll\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In short: Californians want a say in how tax dollars are spent, but remain largely unaware of how those dollars actually \u003cem>are\u003c/em> spent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before you conclude that it's just a single poll -- a snapshot in time -- and thus somewhat of an unfair conclusion, know this: \u003cem>PPIC has been asking these same questions ... and getting the same answers ... now for 10 straight years\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(\u003ca href=\"http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2010/01/28/we-dont-need-no-budget-education/\" target=\"_blank\">In fact, I first wrote about this very same topic almost exactly five years ago\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We still see very low knowledge,\" says Mark Baldassare, PPIC's president and pollster.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here are the two questions in which Californians seem to keep sending a mixed message. First, the knowledge test:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-10419067\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM-800x292.png\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2015-01-29 at 10.44.34 AM\" width=\"800\" height=\"292\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM-800x292.png 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM-400x146.png 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM-1440x525.png 1440w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM.png 1492w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As has been the case now for every single year the question has been asked, Californians think prisons are the big kahuna of state government spending. But in truth, the answer is actually K-12 schools.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Prisons, per the \u003ca href=\"http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/\" target=\"_blank\">2015-16 state budget\u003c/a> proposed by Gov. Jerry Brown earlier this month, \u003ca href=\"http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/2015-16/StateAgencyBudgets/5210/agency.html\" target=\"_blank\">account for less than 8 cents of every dollar in total state spending\u003c/a> (about 9 cents if you're looking just at the state's general fund). On the other hand, \u003ca href=\"http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/2015-16/StateAgencyBudgets/6010/agency.html\" target=\"_blank\">K-12 schools take up 29 cents of every total state dollar\u003c/a> (and almost 42 cents of every general fund dollar) -- easily the biggest single spending category.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(Note: PPIC groups together \"health and human services,\" which are these days being counted separately in state spending data. Due to some \u003ca href=\"http://blogs.kqed.org/stateofhealth/2015/01/05/brown-on-health-coverage-right-thing-to-do-but-it-isnt-free/\" target=\"_blank\">pretty big growth in state spending on health through the Affordable Care Act\u003c/a>, these two sectors combined are almost 33 cents of every total state dollar -- thus edging out K-12 education. But we digress.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Californians have been consistent in their lowballing of K-12 spending. As PPIC points out, \u003cem>the question has now been asked for almost 10 consecutive years and no more than 30 percent of citizens have ever picked the right answer\u003c/em>. Prisons always seems to come out on top.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Needless to say, one response would be: Hey, we elect lawmakers to keep tabs on tax dollars and make decisions on where they're spent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Which brings us to the follow-up question.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-10419069\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM-800x251.png\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2015-01-29 at 11.07.50 AM\" width=\"800\" height=\"251\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM-800x251.png 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM-400x126.png 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM-1440x452.png 1440w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM.png 1880w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Californians, perhaps because of the state's robust initiative and referendum process, like to get under the hood and tinker with the engine's performance. And as the poll shows, the notion of voters making some of the state's budget decisions is widely popular among partisans and independents alike.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But don't fault the voters, says PPIC's Baldassare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We have a very complex budget system,\" he says, \"and one that is not transparent to the average voter.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And after a decade of asking these questions, both in good and bad economic times, the pollster says it's quite clear that voter education\" is not an area on which we've made great progress.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Needless to say, no one thinks it's an easy thing to fix. If anything, the state's budget has gotten more complicated over the decade in which PPIC has been asking this knowledge-and-power set of questions. And political campaigns, from bonds to rainy day reserve funds and mandates about local versus state expenses, often sell proposals in generalities. No doubt a decade's worth of headlines about the problems in California prisons, from high health care costs to overcrowding, haven't helped either.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the results of the polling are unsettling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"It's a major disconnect between how the state operates,\" says pollster Baldassare, \"and what the state's residents know about it.\"\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>There aren't many complex tasks where someone would be unsure about how things work but still insist on a decision-making role. After all, you wouldn't tell a mechanic that you wanted to help rebuild the engine of a car when you had no idea how engines work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And yet, there's a bit of a parallel in public opinion about the Golden State's budget, opinion sampled by \u003ca href=\"http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=1125\" target=\"_blank\">the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) in its new poll\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In short: Californians want a say in how tax dollars are spent, but remain largely unaware of how those dollars actually \u003cem>are\u003c/em> spent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before you conclude that it's just a single poll -- a snapshot in time -- and thus somewhat of an unfair conclusion, know this: \u003cem>PPIC has been asking these same questions ... and getting the same answers ... now for 10 straight years\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(\u003ca href=\"http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2010/01/28/we-dont-need-no-budget-education/\" target=\"_blank\">In fact, I first wrote about this very same topic almost exactly five years ago\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We still see very low knowledge,\" says Mark Baldassare, PPIC's president and pollster.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here are the two questions in which Californians seem to keep sending a mixed message. First, the knowledge test:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-10419067\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM-800x292.png\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2015-01-29 at 10.44.34 AM\" width=\"800\" height=\"292\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM-800x292.png 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM-400x146.png 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM-1440x525.png 1440w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-10.44.34-AM.png 1492w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As has been the case now for every single year the question has been asked, Californians think prisons are the big kahuna of state government spending. But in truth, the answer is actually K-12 schools.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Prisons, per the \u003ca href=\"http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/\" target=\"_blank\">2015-16 state budget\u003c/a> proposed by Gov. Jerry Brown earlier this month, \u003ca href=\"http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/2015-16/StateAgencyBudgets/5210/agency.html\" target=\"_blank\">account for less than 8 cents of every dollar in total state spending\u003c/a> (about 9 cents if you're looking just at the state's general fund). On the other hand, \u003ca href=\"http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/2015-16/StateAgencyBudgets/6010/agency.html\" target=\"_blank\">K-12 schools take up 29 cents of every total state dollar\u003c/a> (and almost 42 cents of every general fund dollar) -- easily the biggest single spending category.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(Note: PPIC groups together \"health and human services,\" which are these days being counted separately in state spending data. Due to some \u003ca href=\"http://blogs.kqed.org/stateofhealth/2015/01/05/brown-on-health-coverage-right-thing-to-do-but-it-isnt-free/\" target=\"_blank\">pretty big growth in state spending on health through the Affordable Care Act\u003c/a>, these two sectors combined are almost 33 cents of every total state dollar -- thus edging out K-12 education. But we digress.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Californians have been consistent in their lowballing of K-12 spending. As PPIC points out, \u003cem>the question has now been asked for almost 10 consecutive years and no more than 30 percent of citizens have ever picked the right answer\u003c/em>. Prisons always seems to come out on top.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Needless to say, one response would be: Hey, we elect lawmakers to keep tabs on tax dollars and make decisions on where they're spent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Which brings us to the follow-up question.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-10419069\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM-800x251.png\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2015-01-29 at 11.07.50 AM\" width=\"800\" height=\"251\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM-800x251.png 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM-400x126.png 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM-1440x452.png 1440w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-29-at-11.07.50-AM.png 1880w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Californians, perhaps because of the state's robust initiative and referendum process, like to get under the hood and tinker with the engine's performance. And as the poll shows, the notion of voters making some of the state's budget decisions is widely popular among partisans and independents alike.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But don't fault the voters, says PPIC's Baldassare.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We have a very complex budget system,\" he says, \"and one that is not transparent to the average voter.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And after a decade of asking these questions, both in good and bad economic times, the pollster says it's quite clear that voter education\" is not an area on which we've made great progress.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Needless to say, no one thinks it's an easy thing to fix. If anything, the state's budget has gotten more complicated over the decade in which PPIC has been asking this knowledge-and-power set of questions. And political campaigns, from bonds to rainy day reserve funds and mandates about local versus state expenses, often sell proposals in generalities. No doubt a decade's worth of headlines about the problems in California prisons, from high health care costs to overcrowding, haven't helped either.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the results of the polling are unsettling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"It's a major disconnect between how the state operates,\" says pollster Baldassare, \"and what the state's residents know about it.\"\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "Poll: Californians Willing to Extend Prop. 30 Taxes",
"title": "Poll: Californians Willing to Extend Prop. 30 Taxes",
"headTitle": "FaultLines | KQED News",
"content": "\u003cp>Call it the first hint of the debate to come over taxes, perhaps as soon as California's next statewide ballot: A new poll finds a majority of likely voters are willing to extend the life of Gov. Jerry Brown's temporary taxes from 2012.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=1125\" target=\"_blank\">Wednesday night's poll by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California\u003c/a> finds 52 percent of likely voters support the continuation of the taxes enacted by \u003ca href=\"http://www.lao.ca.gov/ballot/2012/30_11_2012.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">Proposition 30\u003c/a>, taxes that otherwise begin to wind down between 2016 and 2018.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Whenever you're talking about taxing the voter, to have majority support is noteworthy,\" said Mark Baldassare, PPIC's president and pollster.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Prop. 30 boosted income taxes for Californians with earnings above $250,000, as well the state's portion of the sales tax by a quarter of a cent. And the measure, approved by 55 percent of voters on Nov. 4, 2012, has had a major impact on the state budget's bottom line.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>How major? Data provided by the state Department of Finance project that Prop. 30 tax revenues \u003cem>will have totaled $23.28 billion\u003c/em> by the summer of 2016.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That's more money than expected when voters went to the polls more than two years ago -- a reflection of both an improved California economy and a governor who has consistently made only conservative predictions about future tax revenue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, lest anyone on the pro-tax extension side start popping those champagne corks, it's important to remember that the historic rule of thumb in California politics has been that early support below 60 percent for potential ballot measures is, at best, a sign of weakness. And regardless of national media narratives, Californians have a long track record of being reluctant to vote for additional taxes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the new data provide an interesting glimpse into how the Prop. 30 taxes are now viewed by Californians. PPIC's polling team provided some details on support by subgroups for a Prop. 30 tax extension.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yes, Democrats and liberals are those who are most inclined for another round of boosting sales tax. But they're not alone. Also supporting a Prop. 30 tax extension:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>53 percent of self-described moderates\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>58 percent of those surveyed between the ages of 18 and 34\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>63 percent of those who say California is headed in the right direction\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>58 percent of those who say the state is in store for \"good times\" economically over the next 12 months\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>32 percent of Republicans who answered the survey (which seems, based on previous tax questions, pretty high)\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>There's also noticeable majority support in the San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego and Orange counties, with much more of a split decision in Los Angeles and the Central Valley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The poll comes \u003ca href=\"http://www.scpr.org/news/2015/01/25/49455/fight-over-taxes-looms-between-democrats-gov-jerry/\" target=\"_blank\">as a number of Democrats and liberal-leaning groups ponder ways to keep the Prop. 30 taxes in place\u003c/a>. And the new poll may give them a potential base of support from which to work. But key to any future debate is something that \u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">PPIC's poll doesn't measure: the level of voter support for making Prop. 30 taxes permanent, not just \"extending\" them as asked here.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">And perhaps even more important: whether \u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">a potential 2016 ballot measure keeps only the inc\u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">ome tax boost on the most wealthy. \u003c/span>Just roll back the calendar to early 2012, when liberal activists and union groups dropped their \"millionaires tax\" proposal in favor of signing on to Brown's Prop. 30, which also boosted sales tax rates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Back then, polling suggested a much higher level of support for a tax only on the high-earner income. Might that still be true now, thus suggesting the PPIC survey is measuring the base -- not the potential peak -- of support?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regardless, the Prop. 30 do-over debate is going to come back to the man in the corner office: the governor. And at this point, he's a tough sell.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I said that's a temporary tax, and that's my position,\" Brown told reporters when unveiling his new state budget on Jan. 9.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor, \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/10/30/long-term-debate-over-Jerry-Brown-temporary-tax-Proposition-30/\" target=\"_blank\">who has gambled a lot on the political and policy success of the Prop. 30 taxes\u003c/a>, \u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">framed the debate over funding a number of government services as part of what he called the \"inevitable pressure\" for additional tax revenues.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I don't know that the people are going to vote for them,\" he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And what the governor thinks, or does, on the issue is important. After all, the new PPIC poll finds his job approval ratings at 61 percent -- its highest level since he returned to the governor's office in 2011.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Fifty-two percent of likely California voters support extending the temporary taxes when they expire.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Call it the first hint of the debate to come over taxes, perhaps as soon as California's next statewide ballot: A new poll finds a majority of likely voters are willing to extend the life of Gov. Jerry Brown's temporary taxes from 2012.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=1125\" target=\"_blank\">Wednesday night's poll by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California\u003c/a> finds 52 percent of likely voters support the continuation of the taxes enacted by \u003ca href=\"http://www.lao.ca.gov/ballot/2012/30_11_2012.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">Proposition 30\u003c/a>, taxes that otherwise begin to wind down between 2016 and 2018.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Whenever you're talking about taxing the voter, to have majority support is noteworthy,\" said Mark Baldassare, PPIC's president and pollster.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Prop. 30 boosted income taxes for Californians with earnings above $250,000, as well the state's portion of the sales tax by a quarter of a cent. And the measure, approved by 55 percent of voters on Nov. 4, 2012, has had a major impact on the state budget's bottom line.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>How major? Data provided by the state Department of Finance project that Prop. 30 tax revenues \u003cem>will have totaled $23.28 billion\u003c/em> by the summer of 2016.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That's more money than expected when voters went to the polls more than two years ago -- a reflection of both an improved California economy and a governor who has consistently made only conservative predictions about future tax revenue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, lest anyone on the pro-tax extension side start popping those champagne corks, it's important to remember that the historic rule of thumb in California politics has been that early support below 60 percent for potential ballot measures is, at best, a sign of weakness. And regardless of national media narratives, Californians have a long track record of being reluctant to vote for additional taxes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the new data provide an interesting glimpse into how the Prop. 30 taxes are now viewed by Californians. PPIC's polling team provided some details on support by subgroups for a Prop. 30 tax extension.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yes, Democrats and liberals are those who are most inclined for another round of boosting sales tax. But they're not alone. Also supporting a Prop. 30 tax extension:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli>53 percent of self-described moderates\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>58 percent of those surveyed between the ages of 18 and 34\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>63 percent of those who say California is headed in the right direction\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>58 percent of those who say the state is in store for \"good times\" economically over the next 12 months\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>32 percent of Republicans who answered the survey (which seems, based on previous tax questions, pretty high)\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>There's also noticeable majority support in the San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego and Orange counties, with much more of a split decision in Los Angeles and the Central Valley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The poll comes \u003ca href=\"http://www.scpr.org/news/2015/01/25/49455/fight-over-taxes-looms-between-democrats-gov-jerry/\" target=\"_blank\">as a number of Democrats and liberal-leaning groups ponder ways to keep the Prop. 30 taxes in place\u003c/a>. And the new poll may give them a potential base of support from which to work. But key to any future debate is something that \u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">PPIC's poll doesn't measure: the level of voter support for making Prop. 30 taxes permanent, not just \"extending\" them as asked here.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">And perhaps even more important: whether \u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">a potential 2016 ballot measure keeps only the inc\u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">ome tax boost on the most wealthy. \u003c/span>Just roll back the calendar to early 2012, when liberal activists and union groups dropped their \"millionaires tax\" proposal in favor of signing on to Brown's Prop. 30, which also boosted sales tax rates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Back then, polling suggested a much higher level of support for a tax only on the high-earner income. Might that still be true now, thus suggesting the PPIC survey is measuring the base -- not the potential peak -- of support?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regardless, the Prop. 30 do-over debate is going to come back to the man in the corner office: the governor. And at this point, he's a tough sell.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I said that's a temporary tax, and that's my position,\" Brown told reporters when unveiling his new state budget on Jan. 9.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor, \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/10/30/long-term-debate-over-Jerry-Brown-temporary-tax-Proposition-30/\" target=\"_blank\">who has gambled a lot on the political and policy success of the Prop. 30 taxes\u003c/a>, \u003cspan style=\"line-height: 1.5\">framed the debate over funding a number of government services as part of what he called the \"inevitable pressure\" for additional tax revenues.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I don't know that the people are going to vote for them,\" he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And what the governor thinks, or does, on the issue is important. After all, the new PPIC poll finds his job approval ratings at 61 percent -- its highest level since he returned to the governor's office in 2011.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "A Gerrymandering Comeback in California ... via Arizona?",
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"content": "\u003cp>Several months of quiet whispers have quickly turned into a resounding buzz -- and a nervous buzz, no less -- about a case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court that questions whether it's constitutional for independent state commissions to have the sole power to draw political district maps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The case is centered on Arizona, but the buzz being heard on this side of the Colorado River arises from the fear that if a lower court's ruling is thrown out, California may very well be next in the return to partisan congressional gerrymandering.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignright\">'The Arizona litigation jeopardizes the will of the California electorate and its embrace of fair redistricting and competitive elections.'\u003ccite>Allan Zaremberg, President, California Chamber of Commerce\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>It explains why everyone from legal scholars to three former California governors is asking to be heard before the nation's highest court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The case in question is \u003ca href=\"http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/arizona-state-legislature-v-arizona-independent-redistricting-commission/\" target=\"_blank\">Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission\u003c/a>, now scheduled to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in March. And the argument being made by Arizona's legislative leaders in their quest to outlaw the state's redistricting commission is pretty simple: The U.S. Constitution, they say, vests all power over congressional elections in state legislatures -- and no one else.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The legal fight has been brewing for a long time. Arizona voters approved \u003ca href=\"http://ballotpedia.org/Arizona_Creation_of_a_Redistricting_Commission,_Proposition_106_(2000)\" target=\"_blank\">a ballot initiative\u003c/a> in 2000 that created an independent redistricting commission. A decade later,California voters \u003ca href=\"http://ballotpedia.org/California_Proposition_20,_Congressional_Redistricting_%282010%29\" target=\"_blank\">assigned the drawing of congressional districts\u003c/a> to a similar panel (after giving the panel \u003ca href=\"http://ballotpedia.org/California_Proposition_11,_Creation_of_the_California_Citizens_Redistricting_Commission_%282008%29\" target=\"_blank\">the power to draw legislative districts\u003c/a> in 2008).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Californians Speak Out\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, a swarm of Californians are filing \u003cem>amici curiae\u003c/em> briefs on behalf of the \u003ca href=\"http://azredistricting.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission\u003c/a>, clearly fearing that the fate of the \u003ca href=\"http://wedrawthelines.ca.gov/\" target=\"_blank\">California Citizens Redistricting Commission\u003c/a> depends on what happens in Washington, D.C., before the end of 2015.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While California's commissioners have filed their own \u003ca href=\"http://wedrawthelines.ca.gov/downloads/meeting_handouts_201501/20150123_crc_amicus_13-1314.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">amicus brief\u003c/a> in support of the Arizona panel, their fight was joined on Friday by \u003ca href=\"http://www.calchamber.com/Headlines/Pages/01262015-CalChamberFormerGovsFileAmicusBriefinArizonaRedistrictingCase.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">a similar brief\u003c/a> from three former California governors -- George Deukmejian, Pete Wilson and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Of those, Schwarzenegger has the most to lose in terms of his legacy, as he was a driving force behind \u003ca href=\"http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-03-21/californias-redistricting-shake-up-shakes-out-politicians\" target=\"_blank\">the two initiatives that wrestled control of political map drawing away from the Legislature\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governors were joined in their filing by the California Chamber of Commerce as well as wealthy activists \u003ca href=\"http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2013/10/11/2729083/charles-munger-cal-poly-speaker.html\" target=\"_blank\">Charles Munger Jr.\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"http://billmundell.net/2010/10/12/prop-20-fair-redistricting-empowers-dissenters/\" target=\"_blank\">Bill Mundell\u003c/a> -- two big money backers of the redistricting initiatives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It's fascinating that the California cavalry is rushing in to defend its Arizona compatriots now, given that this effort to kill Arizona's redistricting commission is pretty much down to its last swing of the bat. A U.S. District Court ruled against Arizona's legislative leaders last February, and it's not exactly clear that the Supreme Court justices will even consider all of the arguments made by legislators seeking to regain their redistricting power. Perhaps, but everyone still sees the stakes as high.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The Arizona litigation,\" said California Chamber of Commerce President Allan Zaremberg, \"jeopardizes the will of the California electorate and its embrace of fair redistricting and competitive elections.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Who Can 'Legislate'?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the average observer, the crux of the case may be this: Is the power of Arizona voters to write legislation -- legislation written through the ballot initiative process -- equivalent to the legislative power over elections in Article I, Section IV of the Constitution:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>The times, places and manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing Senators.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>Arizona's legislative leaders say, quite simply: no way. In \u003ca href=\"http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/publications/supreme_court_preview/BriefsV4/13-1314_appnt.authcheckdam.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">their December filing with the U.S. Supreme Court\u003c/a>, they argue the above passage is crystal clear:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"The term 'the Legislature' is clear and explicit and has an unambiguous meaning repeatedly recognized by the Framers and this Court: the representative lawmaking body of a State. In the Constitution, the Framers carefully assigned particular obligations to particular State-level entities, whether the 'people,' the 'legislature,' the 'executive,' or the 'State' generally. That precise division of labor leaves no doubt that they intended that 'the Legislature' -- meaning the representative lawmaking body -- be the entity that 'prescribe[s]...Regulations governing redistricting.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>It's worth noting that \u003ca href=\"http://azredistricting.org/About-IRC/Commissioners.asp\" target=\"_blank\">Arizona's independent redistricting commission\u003c/a> is selected by a different process than the one in California, though Golden State activists and lawmakers may have used parts of the Arizona process to help shape the final details that were drafted in 2007.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Arizona, the independent commission has five members. Four of them are chosen by the state's legislative leaders from a pool vetted by a judicial commission; the chairperson of the commission is then selected (out of the remaining applicants) by the four commissioners.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, the panel is 14 members. Eight commissioners are chosen at random, from a pool of applicants vetted by the state auditor but from which each of the four legislative leaders is able to reject six names. Those eight commissioners then choose six colleagues from the remaining applicants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>If Arizona's System Is Struck Down ...\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From a layman's perspective, if Arizona legislators are successful in convincing the Supreme Court that they been stripped of their right to have a role in crafting congressional maps -- \u003cem>even though the Arizona system allows top lawmakers to pick four-fifths of the commission\u003c/em> -- then it would seem much easier for California's legislators, who have a much smaller role, to argue they, too, have been wronged. Remember, the entire political campaign was about stripping politicians of their power to draw congressional districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(And in case you're confused, the pending Supreme Court case is only about drawing \u003cem>congressional\u003c/em> districts, not those for Arizona's Legislature.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most states across the nation continue to have their political maps drawn by legislators -- a power that's led to countless charges of districts skewed by gerrymandering for partisan gain. And that's what supporters of independent redistricting say will happen again if the high court strips the Arizona commission of its power to craft the state's nine congressional districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The Arizona Legislature's lawsuit is just an effort to get the foxes back in the henhouse,\" said Kathay Feng, executive director of California Common Cause and one of the authors of the California redistricting laws.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, a redistricting process dominated by majority Democrats in the Legislature would undoubtedly produce more Democrats and fewer Republicans in the state's congressional delegation, though leaders of both parties in the state Capitol opted for a map that protected incumbents in 2001, the final once-in-a-decade redrawing before the independent commission took over.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even some members of Congress don't want to go back.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Districts drawn by incumbents to protect their jobs makes politicians less accountable to their constituents,\" says Rep. Julia Brownley, a Ventura County Democrat. She and 19 other incumbents filed their own amicus brief in hopes of blocking the rollback effort by legislators in Arizona.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Several months of quiet whispers have quickly turned into a resounding buzz -- and a nervous buzz, no less -- about a case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court that questions whether it's constitutional for independent state commissions to have the sole power to draw political district maps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The case is centered on Arizona, but the buzz being heard on this side of the Colorado River arises from the fear that if a lower court's ruling is thrown out, California may very well be next in the return to partisan congressional gerrymandering.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignright\">'The Arizona litigation jeopardizes the will of the California electorate and its embrace of fair redistricting and competitive elections.'\u003ccite>Allan Zaremberg, President, California Chamber of Commerce\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>It explains why everyone from legal scholars to three former California governors is asking to be heard before the nation's highest court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The case in question is \u003ca href=\"http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/arizona-state-legislature-v-arizona-independent-redistricting-commission/\" target=\"_blank\">Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission\u003c/a>, now scheduled to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in March. And the argument being made by Arizona's legislative leaders in their quest to outlaw the state's redistricting commission is pretty simple: The U.S. Constitution, they say, vests all power over congressional elections in state legislatures -- and no one else.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The legal fight has been brewing for a long time. Arizona voters approved \u003ca href=\"http://ballotpedia.org/Arizona_Creation_of_a_Redistricting_Commission,_Proposition_106_(2000)\" target=\"_blank\">a ballot initiative\u003c/a> in 2000 that created an independent redistricting commission. A decade later,California voters \u003ca href=\"http://ballotpedia.org/California_Proposition_20,_Congressional_Redistricting_%282010%29\" target=\"_blank\">assigned the drawing of congressional districts\u003c/a> to a similar panel (after giving the panel \u003ca href=\"http://ballotpedia.org/California_Proposition_11,_Creation_of_the_California_Citizens_Redistricting_Commission_%282008%29\" target=\"_blank\">the power to draw legislative districts\u003c/a> in 2008).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Californians Speak Out\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, a swarm of Californians are filing \u003cem>amici curiae\u003c/em> briefs on behalf of the \u003ca href=\"http://azredistricting.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission\u003c/a>, clearly fearing that the fate of the \u003ca href=\"http://wedrawthelines.ca.gov/\" target=\"_blank\">California Citizens Redistricting Commission\u003c/a> depends on what happens in Washington, D.C., before the end of 2015.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While California's commissioners have filed their own \u003ca href=\"http://wedrawthelines.ca.gov/downloads/meeting_handouts_201501/20150123_crc_amicus_13-1314.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">amicus brief\u003c/a> in support of the Arizona panel, their fight was joined on Friday by \u003ca href=\"http://www.calchamber.com/Headlines/Pages/01262015-CalChamberFormerGovsFileAmicusBriefinArizonaRedistrictingCase.aspx\" target=\"_blank\">a similar brief\u003c/a> from three former California governors -- George Deukmejian, Pete Wilson and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Of those, Schwarzenegger has the most to lose in terms of his legacy, as he was a driving force behind \u003ca href=\"http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-03-21/californias-redistricting-shake-up-shakes-out-politicians\" target=\"_blank\">the two initiatives that wrestled control of political map drawing away from the Legislature\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governors were joined in their filing by the California Chamber of Commerce as well as wealthy activists \u003ca href=\"http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2013/10/11/2729083/charles-munger-cal-poly-speaker.html\" target=\"_blank\">Charles Munger Jr.\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"http://billmundell.net/2010/10/12/prop-20-fair-redistricting-empowers-dissenters/\" target=\"_blank\">Bill Mundell\u003c/a> -- two big money backers of the redistricting initiatives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It's fascinating that the California cavalry is rushing in to defend its Arizona compatriots now, given that this effort to kill Arizona's redistricting commission is pretty much down to its last swing of the bat. A U.S. District Court ruled against Arizona's legislative leaders last February, and it's not exactly clear that the Supreme Court justices will even consider all of the arguments made by legislators seeking to regain their redistricting power. Perhaps, but everyone still sees the stakes as high.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The Arizona litigation,\" said California Chamber of Commerce President Allan Zaremberg, \"jeopardizes the will of the California electorate and its embrace of fair redistricting and competitive elections.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Who Can 'Legislate'?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the average observer, the crux of the case may be this: Is the power of Arizona voters to write legislation -- legislation written through the ballot initiative process -- equivalent to the legislative power over elections in Article I, Section IV of the Constitution:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>The times, places and manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing Senators.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>Arizona's legislative leaders say, quite simply: no way. In \u003ca href=\"http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/publications/supreme_court_preview/BriefsV4/13-1314_appnt.authcheckdam.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">their December filing with the U.S. Supreme Court\u003c/a>, they argue the above passage is crystal clear:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"The term 'the Legislature' is clear and explicit and has an unambiguous meaning repeatedly recognized by the Framers and this Court: the representative lawmaking body of a State. In the Constitution, the Framers carefully assigned particular obligations to particular State-level entities, whether the 'people,' the 'legislature,' the 'executive,' or the 'State' generally. That precise division of labor leaves no doubt that they intended that 'the Legislature' -- meaning the representative lawmaking body -- be the entity that 'prescribe[s]...Regulations governing redistricting.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>It's worth noting that \u003ca href=\"http://azredistricting.org/About-IRC/Commissioners.asp\" target=\"_blank\">Arizona's independent redistricting commission\u003c/a> is selected by a different process than the one in California, though Golden State activists and lawmakers may have used parts of the Arizona process to help shape the final details that were drafted in 2007.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Arizona, the independent commission has five members. Four of them are chosen by the state's legislative leaders from a pool vetted by a judicial commission; the chairperson of the commission is then selected (out of the remaining applicants) by the four commissioners.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, the panel is 14 members. Eight commissioners are chosen at random, from a pool of applicants vetted by the state auditor but from which each of the four legislative leaders is able to reject six names. Those eight commissioners then choose six colleagues from the remaining applicants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>If Arizona's System Is Struck Down ...\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From a layman's perspective, if Arizona legislators are successful in convincing the Supreme Court that they been stripped of their right to have a role in crafting congressional maps -- \u003cem>even though the Arizona system allows top lawmakers to pick four-fifths of the commission\u003c/em> -- then it would seem much easier for California's legislators, who have a much smaller role, to argue they, too, have been wronged. Remember, the entire political campaign was about stripping politicians of their power to draw congressional districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(And in case you're confused, the pending Supreme Court case is only about drawing \u003cem>congressional\u003c/em> districts, not those for Arizona's Legislature.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most states across the nation continue to have their political maps drawn by legislators -- a power that's led to countless charges of districts skewed by gerrymandering for partisan gain. And that's what supporters of independent redistricting say will happen again if the high court strips the Arizona commission of its power to craft the state's nine congressional districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The Arizona Legislature's lawsuit is just an effort to get the foxes back in the henhouse,\" said Kathay Feng, executive director of California Common Cause and one of the authors of the California redistricting laws.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In California, a redistricting process dominated by majority Democrats in the Legislature would undoubtedly produce more Democrats and fewer Republicans in the state's congressional delegation, though leaders of both parties in the state Capitol opted for a map that protected incumbents in 2001, the final once-in-a-decade redrawing before the independent commission took over.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even some members of Congress don't want to go back.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Districts drawn by incumbents to protect their jobs makes politicians less accountable to their constituents,\" says Rep. Julia Brownley, a Ventura County Democrat. She and 19 other incumbents filed their own amicus brief in hopes of blocking the rollback effort by legislators in Arizona.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "Showdown Looms Over California's School Construction Needs",
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"headTitle": "Election 2016 | FaultLines | KQED News",
"content": "\u003cp>Big fights in state political and policy circles are usually about what either someone \u003cem>wants\u003c/em> to do ... or what they \u003cem>don't\u003c/em> want to do. Count in that second category the 2015 fight that looms over the future of financing California's school construction and modernization needs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The key question is this: Is it time to rethink the existing system where state and local officials share responsibility for building and improving schools, financed in large part by the state government selling multibillion-dollar general obligation bonds?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yes, says Gov. Jerry Brown; no, says a group of legislators and school district officials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The governor, by his budget presentation, is against it,\" said Joe Dixon, assistant superintendent of the Santa Ana Unified School District.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dixon is also chairman of \u003ca href=\"https://www.cashnet.org/\" target=\"_blank\">the Coalition for Adequate School Housing\u003c/a>, a group formed to help alleviate the delay in funding billions of dollars of waiting school construction projects across California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 1982, school bond measures on statewide ballots have been both frequent and almost always successful. A total of $52.68 billion for school construction needs was approved by voters over a quarter-century, the most recent bond being approved in 2006.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But that was it, and the well is now dry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[soundcloud url=\"https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/187519264\" params=\"color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" iframe=\"true\" /]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"There is currently no bond authority remaining in the state's core school facilities new construction and modernization programs,\" says the January state budget proposal by Brown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown, though, is opposed to simply going back to the ballot. In late 2014, \u003ca href=\"http://www.independentnews.com/news/article_d11654de-1e59-11e4-be1f-0019bb2963f4.html\" target=\"_blank\">as legislators were crafting a new $9 billion school bond for the fall ballot\u003c/a>, the governor quietly squashed the plan before it ever reached a final vote in the Legislature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Observers wondered whether Brown, who had already agreed to a $7.5 billion water bond on the November ballot, simply didn't want any more borrowing proposals at the same time he was reminding voters of how he was leading state government into a more frugal future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now the governor's budget proposes a lengthy \"dialogue on the future of school facilities funding,\" and one thing is clear: He no longer wants to borrow money on the state's credit card for construction and modernization needs at all California schools.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown's budget director, Michael Cohen, said earlier this month that the governor wants to limit state school bonds to only a portion of schools.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Leaving the state role at assisting those [school districts] who don't have the financial wherewithal to build the schools they need,\" said Cohen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor's goals, only broadly outlined in the budget he unveiled on Jan. 9, include some kind of \"means test\" that would push more responsibility to the local level -- including school bonds approved by local voters, which require a 55 percent vote to pass.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I don't know how he thinks that's going to make things better,\" responded Santa Ana USD's Dixon. While historical data show about 80 percent of local school bonds pass, Dixon said those local ballot measures aren't spread out among the schools with the most need for building and improving their facilities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"It's uneven,\" said Dixon. \"There are 1,000 school districts. There's a state role and a partnership to make sure that all kids in California have good school facilities.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And that's why the coalition that Dixon and others -- school officials and members of the state's building industry -- have formed is ready to bypass the state Capitol in 2016.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Three days after Brown unveiled his budget with its call to rethink statewide school bonds, \u003ca href=\"http://laschoolreport.com/group-plans-9-billion-school-construction-bond-2016-ballot/\" target=\"_blank\">the Coalition for Adequate School Housing submitted a statewide ballot initiative for a $9 billion school bond in November 2016\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once cleared for signature-gathering, the group intends to move forward on its own -- a rare rejection of the normal process where legislators put bond measures on the ballot, and a move that could force Brown into the uncomfortable position of accepting something he doesn't want ... or provoking a fight with school officials and others who have often supported his policies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We're not letting off,\" said Dixon. \"We feel we have to go full speed ahead.\"\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Big fights in state political and policy circles are usually about what either someone \u003cem>wants\u003c/em> to do ... or what they \u003cem>don't\u003c/em> want to do. Count in that second category the 2015 fight that looms over the future of financing California's school construction and modernization needs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The key question is this: Is it time to rethink the existing system where state and local officials share responsibility for building and improving schools, financed in large part by the state government selling multibillion-dollar general obligation bonds?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yes, says Gov. Jerry Brown; no, says a group of legislators and school district officials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The governor, by his budget presentation, is against it,\" said Joe Dixon, assistant superintendent of the Santa Ana Unified School District.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dixon is also chairman of \u003ca href=\"https://www.cashnet.org/\" target=\"_blank\">the Coalition for Adequate School Housing\u003c/a>, a group formed to help alleviate the delay in funding billions of dollars of waiting school construction projects across California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 1982, school bond measures on statewide ballots have been both frequent and almost always successful. A total of $52.68 billion for school construction needs was approved by voters over a quarter-century, the most recent bond being approved in 2006.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But that was it, and the well is now dry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cdiv class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__shortcodes__shortcodeWrapper'>\n \u003ciframe width='100%' height='166'\n scrolling='no' frameborder='no'\n src='https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/187519264&visual=true&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false'\n title='https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/187519264'>\n \u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/div>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"There is currently no bond authority remaining in the state's core school facilities new construction and modernization programs,\" says the January state budget proposal by Brown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown, though, is opposed to simply going back to the ballot. In late 2014, \u003ca href=\"http://www.independentnews.com/news/article_d11654de-1e59-11e4-be1f-0019bb2963f4.html\" target=\"_blank\">as legislators were crafting a new $9 billion school bond for the fall ballot\u003c/a>, the governor quietly squashed the plan before it ever reached a final vote in the Legislature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Observers wondered whether Brown, who had already agreed to a $7.5 billion water bond on the November ballot, simply didn't want any more borrowing proposals at the same time he was reminding voters of how he was leading state government into a more frugal future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now the governor's budget proposes a lengthy \"dialogue on the future of school facilities funding,\" and one thing is clear: He no longer wants to borrow money on the state's credit card for construction and modernization needs at all California schools.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown's budget director, Michael Cohen, said earlier this month that the governor wants to limit state school bonds to only a portion of schools.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Leaving the state role at assisting those [school districts] who don't have the financial wherewithal to build the schools they need,\" said Cohen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor's goals, only broadly outlined in the budget he unveiled on Jan. 9, include some kind of \"means test\" that would push more responsibility to the local level -- including school bonds approved by local voters, which require a 55 percent vote to pass.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I don't know how he thinks that's going to make things better,\" responded Santa Ana USD's Dixon. While historical data show about 80 percent of local school bonds pass, Dixon said those local ballot measures aren't spread out among the schools with the most need for building and improving their facilities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"It's uneven,\" said Dixon. \"There are 1,000 school districts. There's a state role and a partnership to make sure that all kids in California have good school facilities.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And that's why the coalition that Dixon and others -- school officials and members of the state's building industry -- have formed is ready to bypass the state Capitol in 2016.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Three days after Brown unveiled his budget with its call to rethink statewide school bonds, \u003ca href=\"http://laschoolreport.com/group-plans-9-billion-school-construction-bond-2016-ballot/\" target=\"_blank\">the Coalition for Adequate School Housing submitted a statewide ballot initiative for a $9 billion school bond in November 2016\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once cleared for signature-gathering, the group intends to move forward on its own -- a rare rejection of the normal process where legislators put bond measures on the ballot, and a move that could force Brown into the uncomfortable position of accepting something he doesn't want ... or provoking a fight with school officials and others who have often supported his policies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We're not letting off,\" said Dixon. \"We feel we have to go full speed ahead.\"\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "Tom Steyer Won't Run For U.S. Senate In 2016",
"title": "Tom Steyer Won't Run For U.S. Senate In 2016",
"headTitle": "FaultLines | KQED News",
"content": "\u003cp>Scratch another name off the list of prominent Democrats who are taking a pass at a campaign for California's open U.S. Senate seat: billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Steyer \u003ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-steyer/senate-climate-change_b_6525724.html\" target=\"_blank\">made the announcement in a column on Huffington Post Thursday afternoon\u003c/a>, citing the desire to keep his focus on the issue of climate change -- and not an expensive statewide campaign.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The news takes a potentially formidable opponent to Attorney General Kamala Harris out of the mix. Steyer, while never having run for political office before, could have easily self-financed a campaign that could be one of the most expensive ever run in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The former San Francisco hedge fund manager said it came down to how he could best be effective in 2015 and beyond:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"This was a very hard decision. The U.S. Senate offers a unique opportunity to serve, but I also know that we will have excellent candidates. I applaud and respect those running, and am confident that Californians will choose a representative who will serve them well. Given the imperative of electing a Democratic president -- along with my passion for our state -- I believe my work right now should not be in our nation's capital but here at home in California, and in states around the country where we can make a difference.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>The frenzy in the political world in the two weeks since \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/01/08/sen-barbara-boxer-says-she-wont-run-for-fifth-term\" target=\"_blank\">U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California) announced that she won't seek another term\u003c/a> reflects, in part, the fact that it's been more than two decades since California saw an open Senate race -- as well as the fact that so many prominent Democrats have been waiting for a clear shot at higher office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Steyer becomes the second prominent Democrat to take a pass at the race, following Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom's decision the day before Harris launched her campaign. Still considering a run for the Senate seat is Antonio Villaraigosa, the former Los Angeles mayor who many believe would have a strong base of support in Southern California and -- more specifically -- among Latino voters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some Latino activists \u003ca href=\"http://www.politico.com/story/2015/01/hispanics-kamala-harris-2016-california-senate-election-114474.html\" target=\"_blank\">have been critical of what they've called the speedy \"coronation\" of Harris as the successor to Boxer\u003c/a>. Steyer, of course, could have changed that narrative had he launched his own campaign for the job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Orange County) has \u003ca href=\"http://www.ocregister.com/articles/sanchez-648039-vote-pitney.html\" target=\"_blank\">continued to say she may be interested in running for the job\u003c/a>. Another member of the state's House delegation, U.S. Rep. Eric Swallwell (D-San Jose), \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/KamalaHarris/status/558295073700331520\" target=\"_blank\">ended speculation about his interest on Wednesday by endorsing Harris\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No prominent Republicans have yet said whether they would launch a Senate campaign. Political pundits continue to speculate as to whether California's top-two primary might lead to a Democrat versus Democrat general election in November 2016, \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/01/22/dont-bet-on-Democrat-versus-Democrat-in-California-2016-Senate-race/\" target=\"_blank\">though there's a fair amount of historical data and research to suggest it's unlikely\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Billionaire says he'll continue to fight for action on climate change both in California and nationwide.",
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"headline": "Tom Steyer Won't Run For U.S. Senate In 2016",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Scratch another name off the list of prominent Democrats who are taking a pass at a campaign for California's open U.S. Senate seat: billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Steyer \u003ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-steyer/senate-climate-change_b_6525724.html\" target=\"_blank\">made the announcement in a column on Huffington Post Thursday afternoon\u003c/a>, citing the desire to keep his focus on the issue of climate change -- and not an expensive statewide campaign.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The news takes a potentially formidable opponent to Attorney General Kamala Harris out of the mix. Steyer, while never having run for political office before, could have easily self-financed a campaign that could be one of the most expensive ever run in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The former San Francisco hedge fund manager said it came down to how he could best be effective in 2015 and beyond:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"This was a very hard decision. The U.S. Senate offers a unique opportunity to serve, but I also know that we will have excellent candidates. I applaud and respect those running, and am confident that Californians will choose a representative who will serve them well. Given the imperative of electing a Democratic president -- along with my passion for our state -- I believe my work right now should not be in our nation's capital but here at home in California, and in states around the country where we can make a difference.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>The frenzy in the political world in the two weeks since \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/01/08/sen-barbara-boxer-says-she-wont-run-for-fifth-term\" target=\"_blank\">U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California) announced that she won't seek another term\u003c/a> reflects, in part, the fact that it's been more than two decades since California saw an open Senate race -- as well as the fact that so many prominent Democrats have been waiting for a clear shot at higher office.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Steyer becomes the second prominent Democrat to take a pass at the race, following Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom's decision the day before Harris launched her campaign. Still considering a run for the Senate seat is Antonio Villaraigosa, the former Los Angeles mayor who many believe would have a strong base of support in Southern California and -- more specifically -- among Latino voters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some Latino activists \u003ca href=\"http://www.politico.com/story/2015/01/hispanics-kamala-harris-2016-california-senate-election-114474.html\" target=\"_blank\">have been critical of what they've called the speedy \"coronation\" of Harris as the successor to Boxer\u003c/a>. Steyer, of course, could have changed that narrative had he launched his own campaign for the job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>U.S. Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Orange County) has \u003ca href=\"http://www.ocregister.com/articles/sanchez-648039-vote-pitney.html\" target=\"_blank\">continued to say she may be interested in running for the job\u003c/a>. Another member of the state's House delegation, U.S. Rep. Eric Swallwell (D-San Jose), \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/KamalaHarris/status/558295073700331520\" target=\"_blank\">ended speculation about his interest on Wednesday by endorsing Harris\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No prominent Republicans have yet said whether they would launch a Senate campaign. Political pundits continue to speculate as to whether California's top-two primary might lead to a Democrat versus Democrat general election in November 2016, \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/01/22/dont-bet-on-Democrat-versus-Democrat-in-California-2016-Senate-race/\" target=\"_blank\">though there's a fair amount of historical data and research to suggest it's unlikely\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "A Democrats-Only Race for U.S. Senate in 2016? Don't Bet on It",
"title": "A Democrats-Only Race for U.S. Senate in 2016? Don't Bet on It",
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"content": "\u003cp>It's the political punditry flavor of the month: the delectable notion that the Nov. 8, 2016, ballot might feature a United States Senate race in California pitting two Democrats against each other.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Don't bet on it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Granted, it's a tempting scenario. Democrats have a 15-point registration advantage over Republicans in the Golden State; Republicans haven't won a statewide race for any office since 2006; and \u003ca href=\"http://www.kcet.org/news/ballotbrief/election-law/californias-new-top-two-open-primaries-explained.html\" target=\"_blank\">the rules for California's top-two primary election\u003c/a> now allow voters of all stripes to cast a ballot for any candidate of their choosing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And yet, consider the tweet this week -- a heck of a bet -- from one of \u003ca href=\"https://igs.berkeley.edu/people/paul-mitchell-0\" target=\"_blank\">California's most intrepid political data crunchers, Paul Mitchell\u003c/a>:\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10412552\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-medium wp-image-10412552\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-21-at-1.37.50-PM-800x259.png\" alt=\"Political data expert Paul Mitchell's tweet on the chances of a one-party race for the U.S. Senate.\" width=\"800\" height=\"259\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-21-at-1.37.50-PM-800x259.png 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-21-at-1.37.50-PM-400x129.png 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-21-at-1.37.50-PM.png 1210w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Political data expert Paul Mitchell's tweet on the chances of a one-party race for the U.S. Senate.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Mitchell isn't likely to have to make good on his bet (stand down, CHP officers), and here's why.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When you get beyond the excitement of contemplating something that's never happened before, something that might redefine the state's political landscape, what you end up with is historical data and harsh electoral realities that suggest partisan results for 2016's U.S. Senate race that will look a lot like those in days gone by.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And it all starts with the key to any election: turnout.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Does Anyone Vote In Primaries Anymore?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the course of the past 30 years, there's been a generally downward trend for voter participation in California's primary elections. While 2014 saw a new low -- 25 percent of registered voters -- \u003ca href=\"http://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/sov/2014-primary/pdf/04-historical-voter-reg-primary.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">there hasn't been a June statewide primary that's broken the 50 percent turnout threshold since 1982\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The only exception to that trend was when California, desperate for a meaningful role in the presidential races, moved its primary to either February or March (and sometimes split the presidential and state office primaries into separate elections). Twice, in 2000 and again in 2008, these early primaries actually boosted turnout. But it was mounting criticism -- both the cost of these elections and the fact that other states still had more presidential clout -- that doomed the early primary. In 2011, \u003ca href=\"http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/07/29/118687/california-will-move-presidential.html\" target=\"_blank\">state lawmakers rewrote the rules and moved everything back to a single primary in June\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All of this is a long way of saying that history suggests a strong chance of tepid turnout on June 7, 2016.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The presidential race will almost certainly have wrapped up by then; and even if it hasn't, there might be better odds of a nomination fight between Republicans (\u003ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/29/mitt-romney-republican-nomination_n_1554534.html\" target=\"_blank\">like in 2012\u003c/a>) rather than Democrats. If that's true, then the June 2016 primary would almost certainly see low Democratic turnout relative to the party's dominance among the ranks of registered voters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That leads to another part of the story: Republicans are much more reliable voters in primary elections. As political data guru Mitchell pointed out in an email on Wednesday, the state's 15-point registration gap between Democrats and Republicans \u003cem>shrunk to just 9 points in actual voting\u003c/em> in June 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>2016, he thinks, will again \"see larger-than-registration turnout by Republicans.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So either a big field of Democrats vying for the seat being vacated by U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California) ... or even just two or three heavyweights ... could result in a major dilution of what would already be decreased Democratic dominance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Crossover Voters? Not By Republicans, It Seems\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But what about Republican voters? Given that the top-two primary allows anyone to vote for any candidate, might they be tempted to play in the sandbox of a potential Democratic slugfest for the Senate in June 2016?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Probably not, said \u003ca href=\"http://www.ppic.org/main/bio.asp?i=378\" target=\"_blank\">Eric McGhee\u003c/a>, who studies voting and election issues at the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Republican voters tend to stick by their party everywhere,\" said McGhee. \"Democratic voters often cross party lines to support Republican candidates, especially in places like the Central Valley.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>McGhee's take on the top-two (or \"jungle\") primary, which has only been in play for two election cycles, is that it hasn't shifted the behavior of party loyalists.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Party registration predicts outcomes almost as well under the top two as it did under the old primary system,\" said McGhee. \"I'm not saying there aren't voters who take advantage of the top-two system -- just that there aren't enough such voters to change our basic expectations.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, we saw polls showing \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/04/23/poll-jerry-brown-draws-california-republican-votes\" target=\"_blank\">a small but notable number of Republicans in late polling saying they would vote for Gov. Jerry Brown\u003c/a> over GOP challenger Neel Kashkari. There may have also been GOP voting for U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-California) in 2012, when she received more votes in the fall election than did President Barack Obama.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But those were races featuring an \u003cem>incumbent\u003c/em> -- not open seats like the 2016 Senate contest, said PPIC's McGhee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"There won't be an incumbent on the ballot,\" said McGhee. \"That's a huge difference, and one that makes party-line voting much more likely.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>2014: The First Real Test of Top-Two Primary\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Better to look, say observers, at what happened in June 2014 -- the first real test of the top-two primary in statewide elections -- and its impact on two open seats: the races for state controller and secretary of state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the secretary of state's race, 51 percent of the votes were cast for a Democrat but were spread out over four candidates. Republicans received 36 percent of the votes cast -- 8 percentage points higher than their statewide registration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the state controller's race, even more GOP power was exerted: a whopping 46 percent of the votes cast in the race were for one of the two Republicans, \u003cem>18 percentage points above the party's statewide registration\u003c/em>. Democrats split their votes so severely between \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-controller-election-20140612-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">two well-known candidates\u003c/a> that the second (and unknown) Republican almost toppled both of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Might Primary Elections Permanently Be Small Potatoes?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There's also not much out there to suggest that June statewide primaries are going to stop being ho-hum elections anytime soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For starters, the state's major political parties have done a pretty good job of avoiding the kind of public intraparty spats that would generate a lot of intensity the way, say, the 2008 presidential contest did. The California Democratic Party has \u003ca href=\"http://www.cadem.org/admin/miscdocs/files/Post-Primary-Endorsement-Process-Memo-052814.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">an endorsement process\u003c/a> that can help galvanize support behind one Democrat over others (\u003ca href=\"http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/election/article2598092.html\" target=\"_blank\">Republicans are less likely to endorse one candidate over another\u003c/a>).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And already, some Dems are privately hoping there's a way to rally behind either a single candidate -- like the already-running Attorney General Kamala Harris -- or avoid a battle of big names that could include San Francisco billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer or former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Even if there's a Democratic cage fight, it's hard to envision GOP voters breaking ranks for one of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And then there's the fact that June's statewide ballot will be short -- as in, no big ballot measures. Actually, pretty much no ballot measures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Little noticed at the time, but now a big factor in California elections, was the 2011 law signed by Gov. Jerry Brown to move all initiative and referendum fights to fall ballots. Whether \u003ca href=\"http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2011/09/09/good-government-or-political-power-play/\" target=\"_blank\">it was good government or a clever political play\u003c/a> is now irrelevant. What it means is that a high-profile ballot measure campaign -- the only thing other than an intense candidate contest that seems to draw out voters -- won't be a way to boost turnout among Democrats or any other political voting bloc.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And finally, it may have been a different era altogether, but consider this: The last time a primary election in California turned out more than two-thirds of registered voters was June 6, 1978.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not familiar with what was on the ballot in that election? Nothing much ... just an initiative to roll back property taxes called Proposition 13.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Pundits say 2016's U.S. Senate race might end up with dueling Democrats. Here's why it probably won't.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>It's the political punditry flavor of the month: the delectable notion that the Nov. 8, 2016, ballot might feature a United States Senate race in California pitting two Democrats against each other.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Don't bet on it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Granted, it's a tempting scenario. Democrats have a 15-point registration advantage over Republicans in the Golden State; Republicans haven't won a statewide race for any office since 2006; and \u003ca href=\"http://www.kcet.org/news/ballotbrief/election-law/californias-new-top-two-open-primaries-explained.html\" target=\"_blank\">the rules for California's top-two primary election\u003c/a> now allow voters of all stripes to cast a ballot for any candidate of their choosing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And yet, consider the tweet this week -- a heck of a bet -- from one of \u003ca href=\"https://igs.berkeley.edu/people/paul-mitchell-0\" target=\"_blank\">California's most intrepid political data crunchers, Paul Mitchell\u003c/a>:\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10412552\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-medium wp-image-10412552\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-21-at-1.37.50-PM-800x259.png\" alt=\"Political data expert Paul Mitchell's tweet on the chances of a one-party race for the U.S. Senate.\" width=\"800\" height=\"259\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-21-at-1.37.50-PM-800x259.png 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-21-at-1.37.50-PM-400x129.png 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/Screen-Shot-2015-01-21-at-1.37.50-PM.png 1210w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Political data expert Paul Mitchell's tweet on the chances of a one-party race for the U.S. Senate.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Mitchell isn't likely to have to make good on his bet (stand down, CHP officers), and here's why.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When you get beyond the excitement of contemplating something that's never happened before, something that might redefine the state's political landscape, what you end up with is historical data and harsh electoral realities that suggest partisan results for 2016's U.S. Senate race that will look a lot like those in days gone by.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And it all starts with the key to any election: turnout.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Does Anyone Vote In Primaries Anymore?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the course of the past 30 years, there's been a generally downward trend for voter participation in California's primary elections. While 2014 saw a new low -- 25 percent of registered voters -- \u003ca href=\"http://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/sov/2014-primary/pdf/04-historical-voter-reg-primary.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">there hasn't been a June statewide primary that's broken the 50 percent turnout threshold since 1982\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The only exception to that trend was when California, desperate for a meaningful role in the presidential races, moved its primary to either February or March (and sometimes split the presidential and state office primaries into separate elections). Twice, in 2000 and again in 2008, these early primaries actually boosted turnout. But it was mounting criticism -- both the cost of these elections and the fact that other states still had more presidential clout -- that doomed the early primary. In 2011, \u003ca href=\"http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/07/29/118687/california-will-move-presidential.html\" target=\"_blank\">state lawmakers rewrote the rules and moved everything back to a single primary in June\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All of this is a long way of saying that history suggests a strong chance of tepid turnout on June 7, 2016.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The presidential race will almost certainly have wrapped up by then; and even if it hasn't, there might be better odds of a nomination fight between Republicans (\u003ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/29/mitt-romney-republican-nomination_n_1554534.html\" target=\"_blank\">like in 2012\u003c/a>) rather than Democrats. If that's true, then the June 2016 primary would almost certainly see low Democratic turnout relative to the party's dominance among the ranks of registered voters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That leads to another part of the story: Republicans are much more reliable voters in primary elections. As political data guru Mitchell pointed out in an email on Wednesday, the state's 15-point registration gap between Democrats and Republicans \u003cem>shrunk to just 9 points in actual voting\u003c/em> in June 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>2016, he thinks, will again \"see larger-than-registration turnout by Republicans.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So either a big field of Democrats vying for the seat being vacated by U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California) ... or even just two or three heavyweights ... could result in a major dilution of what would already be decreased Democratic dominance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Crossover Voters? Not By Republicans, It Seems\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But what about Republican voters? Given that the top-two primary allows anyone to vote for any candidate, might they be tempted to play in the sandbox of a potential Democratic slugfest for the Senate in June 2016?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Probably not, said \u003ca href=\"http://www.ppic.org/main/bio.asp?i=378\" target=\"_blank\">Eric McGhee\u003c/a>, who studies voting and election issues at the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Republican voters tend to stick by their party everywhere,\" said McGhee. \"Democratic voters often cross party lines to support Republican candidates, especially in places like the Central Valley.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>McGhee's take on the top-two (or \"jungle\") primary, which has only been in play for two election cycles, is that it hasn't shifted the behavior of party loyalists.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Party registration predicts outcomes almost as well under the top two as it did under the old primary system,\" said McGhee. \"I'm not saying there aren't voters who take advantage of the top-two system -- just that there aren't enough such voters to change our basic expectations.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, we saw polls showing \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/04/23/poll-jerry-brown-draws-california-republican-votes\" target=\"_blank\">a small but notable number of Republicans in late polling saying they would vote for Gov. Jerry Brown\u003c/a> over GOP challenger Neel Kashkari. There may have also been GOP voting for U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-California) in 2012, when she received more votes in the fall election than did President Barack Obama.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But those were races featuring an \u003cem>incumbent\u003c/em> -- not open seats like the 2016 Senate contest, said PPIC's McGhee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"There won't be an incumbent on the ballot,\" said McGhee. \"That's a huge difference, and one that makes party-line voting much more likely.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>2014: The First Real Test of Top-Two Primary\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Better to look, say observers, at what happened in June 2014 -- the first real test of the top-two primary in statewide elections -- and its impact on two open seats: the races for state controller and secretary of state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the secretary of state's race, 51 percent of the votes were cast for a Democrat but were spread out over four candidates. Republicans received 36 percent of the votes cast -- 8 percentage points higher than their statewide registration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the state controller's race, even more GOP power was exerted: a whopping 46 percent of the votes cast in the race were for one of the two Republicans, \u003cem>18 percentage points above the party's statewide registration\u003c/em>. Democrats split their votes so severely between \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-controller-election-20140612-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">two well-known candidates\u003c/a> that the second (and unknown) Republican almost toppled both of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Might Primary Elections Permanently Be Small Potatoes?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There's also not much out there to suggest that June statewide primaries are going to stop being ho-hum elections anytime soon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For starters, the state's major political parties have done a pretty good job of avoiding the kind of public intraparty spats that would generate a lot of intensity the way, say, the 2008 presidential contest did. The California Democratic Party has \u003ca href=\"http://www.cadem.org/admin/miscdocs/files/Post-Primary-Endorsement-Process-Memo-052814.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">an endorsement process\u003c/a> that can help galvanize support behind one Democrat over others (\u003ca href=\"http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/election/article2598092.html\" target=\"_blank\">Republicans are less likely to endorse one candidate over another\u003c/a>).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And already, some Dems are privately hoping there's a way to rally behind either a single candidate -- like the already-running Attorney General Kamala Harris -- or avoid a battle of big names that could include San Francisco billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer or former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Even if there's a Democratic cage fight, it's hard to envision GOP voters breaking ranks for one of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And then there's the fact that June's statewide ballot will be short -- as in, no big ballot measures. Actually, pretty much no ballot measures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Little noticed at the time, but now a big factor in California elections, was the 2011 law signed by Gov. Jerry Brown to move all initiative and referendum fights to fall ballots. Whether \u003ca href=\"http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2011/09/09/good-government-or-political-power-play/\" target=\"_blank\">it was good government or a clever political play\u003c/a> is now irrelevant. What it means is that a high-profile ballot measure campaign -- the only thing other than an intense candidate contest that seems to draw out voters -- won't be a way to boost turnout among Democrats or any other political voting bloc.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And finally, it may have been a different era altogether, but consider this: The last time a primary election in California turned out more than two-thirds of registered voters was June 6, 1978.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not familiar with what was on the ballot in that election? Nothing much ... just an initiative to roll back property taxes called Proposition 13.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "The Shrewd Politics of Jerry Brown's New State Budget",
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"content": "\u003cp>Politicians, in some ways, are just like everyone else: They rarely like it when faced with explaining their inconsistencies. Especially in the modern era of media messaging and public relations, a \u003cem>mea culpa\u003c/em> is avoided at all costs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Except, it seems, for Gov. Jerry Brown. He may not like those moments, but he pretty much cops to his flip-flops -- perhaps because he realizes they offer the political wiggle room where compromise can be forged.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Case in point: Friday's release of Brown's new state budget -- a $164.7 billion fiscal blueprint that boosts school spending, assumes a continued expansion of health care for the poor, and sets aside $4 billion for either debt repayment or cash reserves.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it's what the budget \u003cem>doesn't\u003c/em> include that opens Brown up to criticism for being inconsistent ... and yet highlights the potential areas for negotiation with legislators and interest groups.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown (sort of) admitted as much in his Q&A with reporters when it comes to continued opposition to a stealth part of the 2014 budget deal: a provision (linked to the state's new rainy day fund, Proposition 2) \u003ca href=\"http://edsource.org/2014/cap-on-district-reserves-passes-despite-lawmakers-reservations/63258\" target=\"_blank\">that would eventually cap how much money local school districts can hold in their reserve funds\u003c/a> -- forcing some districts to one day spend money even if it might be more prudent to stash it away.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And so I asked the governor: How did that deal square with his often proclaimed love for the \u003ca href=\"http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/what_you_need_to_know/?id=84\" target=\"_blank\">principle of subsidiarity\u003c/a> -- the Catholic teaching that the most local, least centralized government should make most decisions?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown paused before he answered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The rule is subsidiarity,\" agreed the governor. \"That particular provision appears to be an exception.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That apparent comfort with his conflicting decisions has been one of the hallmarks of Brown's return in governing California. While sometimes he's held fast and just shrugs it off, other times the governor has come around and changed his mind.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In this instance, he said there's some \"language in the budget\" that agrees to take a closer look at the issue of the state dictating what local school districts do with their savings accounts. And when I asked him to respond to \u003ca href=\"http://www.contracostatimes.com/editorial/ci_26016759/contra-costa-times-editorial-capping-local-school-budget\" target=\"_blank\">criticism that he'd done it only to mollify Prop. 2 concerns voiced by teachers unions\u003c/a>?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We did what we had to do,\" said Brown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor's new budget offers several new places where his public stances may be tested against the realities of political horse trading.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Legislative Democrats will no doubt focus on the lack of sustained growth in funding social \"safety net\" programs. \"The devastating budget cuts from years past have left many of the neediest Californians -- working families, students, children, the disabled and elderly -- without critical assistance,\" said state Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) in a written statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And he's not alone, with others suggesting Brown's approach to poverty has been too timid. In response, the governor has countered by pointing to the expansion of Medi-Cal by 4.3 million people over three fiscal years, and by his new budget proposal to shift money into adult education and career tech.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"There's always someone in need,\" Brown told reporters on Friday. \"And we [California] are doing more than most.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor may also have to win over his traditional friends in public employee unions when it comes to a proposal to asking workers to split the cost of putting money aside for their health care coverage during retirement -- \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/12/16/california-government-retiree-health-care-debt-rises-again/\" target=\"_blank\">a major long-term liability\u003c/a>. But his budget also proposes $560 million in salary and benefits increases for state workers, a sign that there's a deal to be made if union leaders will take it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And there were other places in this proposed budget where Brown seemed to weave back and forth between conflicting ideas. He's \u003ca href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/22/us/brown-seeks-more-electric-cars-in-california.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\">a major advocate of more electric vehicles\u003c/a>, and doubled down on that commitment in \u003ca href=\"http://gov.ca.gov/news.php?id=18828\" target=\"_blank\">Monday's State of the State speech\u003c/a>. But then his budget notes a serious lack of dollars for highway repairs and replacements -- and admits that the \"consequence\" of his clean vehicle campaign is less fuel excise tax dollars, which ... wait for it ... pay for those road repairs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Unlike other governors, who may deny any inconsistency \u003ca href=\"http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2006/01/06/thats-why-theyre-called-fees-2/\" target=\"_blank\">even when it's patently obvious\u003c/a>, Brown seems to have made peace with it all. The larger question is how other players in the annual budget process will see those inconsistencies, and whether they create room for collaboration rather than confrontation.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Politicians, in some ways, are just like everyone else: They rarely like it when faced with explaining their inconsistencies. Especially in the modern era of media messaging and public relations, a \u003cem>mea culpa\u003c/em> is avoided at all costs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Except, it seems, for Gov. Jerry Brown. He may not like those moments, but he pretty much cops to his flip-flops -- perhaps because he realizes they offer the political wiggle room where compromise can be forged.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Case in point: Friday's release of Brown's new state budget -- a $164.7 billion fiscal blueprint that boosts school spending, assumes a continued expansion of health care for the poor, and sets aside $4 billion for either debt repayment or cash reserves.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it's what the budget \u003cem>doesn't\u003c/em> include that opens Brown up to criticism for being inconsistent ... and yet highlights the potential areas for negotiation with legislators and interest groups.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown (sort of) admitted as much in his Q&A with reporters when it comes to continued opposition to a stealth part of the 2014 budget deal: a provision (linked to the state's new rainy day fund, Proposition 2) \u003ca href=\"http://edsource.org/2014/cap-on-district-reserves-passes-despite-lawmakers-reservations/63258\" target=\"_blank\">that would eventually cap how much money local school districts can hold in their reserve funds\u003c/a> -- forcing some districts to one day spend money even if it might be more prudent to stash it away.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And so I asked the governor: How did that deal square with his often proclaimed love for the \u003ca href=\"http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/what_you_need_to_know/?id=84\" target=\"_blank\">principle of subsidiarity\u003c/a> -- the Catholic teaching that the most local, least centralized government should make most decisions?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown paused before he answered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The rule is subsidiarity,\" agreed the governor. \"That particular provision appears to be an exception.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That apparent comfort with his conflicting decisions has been one of the hallmarks of Brown's return in governing California. While sometimes he's held fast and just shrugs it off, other times the governor has come around and changed his mind.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In this instance, he said there's some \"language in the budget\" that agrees to take a closer look at the issue of the state dictating what local school districts do with their savings accounts. And when I asked him to respond to \u003ca href=\"http://www.contracostatimes.com/editorial/ci_26016759/contra-costa-times-editorial-capping-local-school-budget\" target=\"_blank\">criticism that he'd done it only to mollify Prop. 2 concerns voiced by teachers unions\u003c/a>?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We did what we had to do,\" said Brown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor's new budget offers several new places where his public stances may be tested against the realities of political horse trading.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Legislative Democrats will no doubt focus on the lack of sustained growth in funding social \"safety net\" programs. \"The devastating budget cuts from years past have left many of the neediest Californians -- working families, students, children, the disabled and elderly -- without critical assistance,\" said state Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) in a written statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And he's not alone, with others suggesting Brown's approach to poverty has been too timid. In response, the governor has countered by pointing to the expansion of Medi-Cal by 4.3 million people over three fiscal years, and by his new budget proposal to shift money into adult education and career tech.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"There's always someone in need,\" Brown told reporters on Friday. \"And we [California] are doing more than most.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor may also have to win over his traditional friends in public employee unions when it comes to a proposal to asking workers to split the cost of putting money aside for their health care coverage during retirement -- \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/12/16/california-government-retiree-health-care-debt-rises-again/\" target=\"_blank\">a major long-term liability\u003c/a>. But his budget also proposes $560 million in salary and benefits increases for state workers, a sign that there's a deal to be made if union leaders will take it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And there were other places in this proposed budget where Brown seemed to weave back and forth between conflicting ideas. He's \u003ca href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/22/us/brown-seeks-more-electric-cars-in-california.html?_r=0\" target=\"_blank\">a major advocate of more electric vehicles\u003c/a>, and doubled down on that commitment in \u003ca href=\"http://gov.ca.gov/news.php?id=18828\" target=\"_blank\">Monday's State of the State speech\u003c/a>. But then his budget notes a serious lack of dollars for highway repairs and replacements -- and admits that the \"consequence\" of his clean vehicle campaign is less fuel excise tax dollars, which ... wait for it ... pay for those road repairs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Unlike other governors, who may deny any inconsistency \u003ca href=\"http://blogs.kqed.org/capitalnotes/2006/01/06/thats-why-theyre-called-fees-2/\" target=\"_blank\">even when it's patently obvious\u003c/a>, Brown seems to have made peace with it all. The larger question is how other players in the annual budget process will see those inconsistencies, and whether they create room for collaboration rather than confrontation.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "Will California's Next U.S. Senator Please Stand Up?",
"title": "Will California's Next U.S. Senator Please Stand Up?",
"headTitle": "FaultLines | KQED News",
"content": "\u003cp>Write it down: There are exactly 403 days between the formal announcement that Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California) won't seek re-election and the date on which candidates can formally file paperwork to run for her seat. It will be a period of buzz and speculation unlike any in California politics in recent memory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[soundcloud url=\"https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/185148426\" params=\"color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" iframe=\"true\" /]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between now and then, we'll start to get a pretty good sense of who the next United States senator might be, and we may also see the emergence of some long-repressed schisms inside California's dominant Democratic party. An entire generation of young Dems \u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/New-political-generation-on-hold-as-elder-5897425.php\" target=\"_blank\">has been waiting for their elders to step aside\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignright\">'I have to make sure this Senate seat stays progressive -- that is so critical.'\u003ccite>Sen. Barbara Boxer\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>The news -- expected, but probably not this early in 2015 -- that Boxer will step aside when her term ends in two years was a viral media favorite on Thursday. Boxer's scripted Q&A with her grandson, posted on YouTube and ending in a rhyming poem, offered only one hint about the veteran politician's own preferences for a successor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I have to make sure this Senate seat stays progressive -- that is so critical,\" says Boxer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[youtube http://youtu.be/DrhCFGCbPaI?t=1m26s]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a Thursday afternoon conference call with reporters, she said the early announcement was designed to make things clear for those who might want to run.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I think it's only fair to the people who are thinking about this,\" said Boxer, 74.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Of course, Boxer had given the best hint any politician could give about her future plans: S\u003ca href=\"http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDetail.do?candidateCommitteeId=S2CA00286&tabIndex=1\" target=\"_blank\">he hadn't raised much money for a 2016 campaign\u003c/a>. Nonetheless, the news sent \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/anthonyyork49/status/553225165908107264\" target=\"_blank\">California's political cognoscenti into hyperdrive\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The early (and smart) analysis of political observers seems to come down to a few key points:\u003c/p>\n\u003col>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Who really wants to be a United States senator?\u003c/strong> Being a legislator, even in one of the world's most august institutions, is a lot different than being governor, or even a big-city mayor. Yes, a lot more segments on CNN and the time-honored belief that every senator looks in the mirror and thinks they see a president. Still, some of California's most talked-about contenders have \u003ca href=\"http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/article5054877.html\" target=\"_blank\">suggested they're not very interested in being one of 100\u003c/a>, so the actual job is important to consider.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Who's got the name ID or resources?\u003c/strong> Running a statewide campaign in California isn't cheap. Contested campaigns -- especially if there are heated races in both June and November -- could easily cost $50 million. Or more. That's no problem for someone like wealthy activist Tom Steyer or an established statewide official, but it could be a tough tab to pay for even a well-liked member of the state's congressional delegation.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Who are a viable candidate's base voters?\u003c/strong> If you're a wannabe in the Bay Area or Los Angeles, you've got a core constituency that's larger than someone from more rural parts of California. Then again, that constituency gets sliced pretty small if you're not the only candidate from that region -- hence the challenge if, say, both Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Kamala Harris were pondering a run from their base in the Bay Area.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>How will the Top Two primary affect this race?\u003c/strong> This U.S. Senate race may be the first real test of the potential for partisan crossover offered by California's relatively new primary rules. All voters will be able to vote for all candidates, which could spark a very different kind of campaign if multiple prominent Democrats choose to run. Some observers have also mused about two Democrats getting the most votes in June and shutting out Republicans, though it's more likely (if 2014 is any guide) that GOP voters would still stick to the candidate with their party's label -- unless, of course, a more centrist Democrat appeals to them in the vein of Gov. Jerry Brown's support among Republicans last fall.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Who will show up to vote in 2016?\u003c/strong> Most observers believe that California's electorate will be larger and more diverse in the presidential election to come than it was in 2014. Might those voters, especially if more of them are younger Californians, gravitate to a different kind of candidate? Will expected ballot fights over taxes or legal marijuana draw a different kind of turnout? And don't forget that the \u003cem>November\u003c/em> electorate will likely be different from \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/hezaproject/status/553254383312330753\" target=\"_blank\">the \u003cem>June\u003c/em> electorate\u003c/a>.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Is it really a \"free shot\" election?\u003c/strong> Observers in the early hours have focused on the fact that the big names -- from Harris and Newsom to newly elected Treasurer John Chiang and even Secretary of State Alex Padilla -- all have guaranteed jobs through 2018 thanks to their recent victories, making a 2016 campaign a \"free shot' of sorts at higher office. But that won't be true for members of the U.S. House of Representatives, who would have to give up their two-year seat for a jump at the senatorial brass ring.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ol>\n\u003cp>There are no doubt countless other questions that will arise for potential candidates now eyeing this chance at a powerful post. Republicans, for example, need to decide if there's actually a path to victory for one of their own -- and potential GOP candidates may back away if they feel as though they'd be a sacrificial lamb.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the bottom line: This is full of buzz because it's a rare chance to win a job that has proved to be very secure.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Boxer and fellow Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein were both elected in 1992. And even though Boxer's job approval ratings in the nonpartisan Field Poll have \u003cem>never broken the 50 percent threshold\u003c/em> in that period, she won her last three elections by margins of \u003cem>10 to 20 points\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Win in 2016, campaign consultants are no doubt telling their politician dreamers, and you may land a spot on the national stage for a long time.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Sen. Barbara Boxer's decision not to run again raises tough questions for those who might succeed her.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Write it down: There are exactly 403 days between the formal announcement that Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California) won't seek re-election and the date on which candidates can formally file paperwork to run for her seat. It will be a period of buzz and speculation unlike any in California politics in recent memory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cdiv class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__shortcodes__shortcodeWrapper'>\n \u003ciframe width='100%' height='166'\n scrolling='no' frameborder='no'\n src='https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/185148426&visual=true&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false'\n title='https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/185148426'>\n \u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/div>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Between now and then, we'll start to get a pretty good sense of who the next United States senator might be, and we may also see the emergence of some long-repressed schisms inside California's dominant Democratic party. An entire generation of young Dems \u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/New-political-generation-on-hold-as-elder-5897425.php\" target=\"_blank\">has been waiting for their elders to step aside\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignright\">'I have to make sure this Senate seat stays progressive -- that is so critical.'\u003ccite>Sen. Barbara Boxer\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>The news -- expected, but probably not this early in 2015 -- that Boxer will step aside when her term ends in two years was a viral media favorite on Thursday. Boxer's scripted Q&A with her grandson, posted on YouTube and ending in a rhyming poem, offered only one hint about the veteran politician's own preferences for a successor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I have to make sure this Senate seat stays progressive -- that is so critical,\" says Boxer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/DrhCFGCbPaI'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/DrhCFGCbPaI'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a Thursday afternoon conference call with reporters, she said the early announcement was designed to make things clear for those who might want to run.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I think it's only fair to the people who are thinking about this,\" said Boxer, 74.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Of course, Boxer had given the best hint any politician could give about her future plans: S\u003ca href=\"http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDetail.do?candidateCommitteeId=S2CA00286&tabIndex=1\" target=\"_blank\">he hadn't raised much money for a 2016 campaign\u003c/a>. Nonetheless, the news sent \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/anthonyyork49/status/553225165908107264\" target=\"_blank\">California's political cognoscenti into hyperdrive\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The early (and smart) analysis of political observers seems to come down to a few key points:\u003c/p>\n\u003col>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Who really wants to be a United States senator?\u003c/strong> Being a legislator, even in one of the world's most august institutions, is a lot different than being governor, or even a big-city mayor. Yes, a lot more segments on CNN and the time-honored belief that every senator looks in the mirror and thinks they see a president. Still, some of California's most talked-about contenders have \u003ca href=\"http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/article5054877.html\" target=\"_blank\">suggested they're not very interested in being one of 100\u003c/a>, so the actual job is important to consider.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Who's got the name ID or resources?\u003c/strong> Running a statewide campaign in California isn't cheap. Contested campaigns -- especially if there are heated races in both June and November -- could easily cost $50 million. Or more. That's no problem for someone like wealthy activist Tom Steyer or an established statewide official, but it could be a tough tab to pay for even a well-liked member of the state's congressional delegation.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Who are a viable candidate's base voters?\u003c/strong> If you're a wannabe in the Bay Area or Los Angeles, you've got a core constituency that's larger than someone from more rural parts of California. Then again, that constituency gets sliced pretty small if you're not the only candidate from that region -- hence the challenge if, say, both Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Kamala Harris were pondering a run from their base in the Bay Area.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>How will the Top Two primary affect this race?\u003c/strong> This U.S. Senate race may be the first real test of the potential for partisan crossover offered by California's relatively new primary rules. All voters will be able to vote for all candidates, which could spark a very different kind of campaign if multiple prominent Democrats choose to run. Some observers have also mused about two Democrats getting the most votes in June and shutting out Republicans, though it's more likely (if 2014 is any guide) that GOP voters would still stick to the candidate with their party's label -- unless, of course, a more centrist Democrat appeals to them in the vein of Gov. Jerry Brown's support among Republicans last fall.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Who will show up to vote in 2016?\u003c/strong> Most observers believe that California's electorate will be larger and more diverse in the presidential election to come than it was in 2014. Might those voters, especially if more of them are younger Californians, gravitate to a different kind of candidate? Will expected ballot fights over taxes or legal marijuana draw a different kind of turnout? And don't forget that the \u003cem>November\u003c/em> electorate will likely be different from \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/hezaproject/status/553254383312330753\" target=\"_blank\">the \u003cem>June\u003c/em> electorate\u003c/a>.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>\u003cstrong>Is it really a \"free shot\" election?\u003c/strong> Observers in the early hours have focused on the fact that the big names -- from Harris and Newsom to newly elected Treasurer John Chiang and even Secretary of State Alex Padilla -- all have guaranteed jobs through 2018 thanks to their recent victories, making a 2016 campaign a \"free shot' of sorts at higher office. But that won't be true for members of the U.S. House of Representatives, who would have to give up their two-year seat for a jump at the senatorial brass ring.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ol>\n\u003cp>There are no doubt countless other questions that will arise for potential candidates now eyeing this chance at a powerful post. Republicans, for example, need to decide if there's actually a path to victory for one of their own -- and potential GOP candidates may back away if they feel as though they'd be a sacrificial lamb.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the bottom line: This is full of buzz because it's a rare chance to win a job that has proved to be very secure.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Boxer and fellow Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein were both elected in 1992. And even though Boxer's job approval ratings in the nonpartisan Field Poll have \u003cem>never broken the 50 percent threshold\u003c/em> in that period, she won her last three elections by margins of \u003cem>10 to 20 points\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"disqusTitle": "Audit: 'Questionable' Spending by Cash-Strapped Courts",
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"content": "\u003cp>For any part of state government, questions about whether you're wisely spending tax dollars are a bit awkward when they come just 48 hours before the governor unveils his budget.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But they may be especially tough for California's judiciary, given its ongoing plea to lawmakers to fully restore \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/chief-justice-tani-cantil-sakauye-fights-for-increased-court-funding\" target=\"_blank\">hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts made during recent years\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In this case, the questions are being raised by a new independent state audit, one which concludes that court administrators could have done a better job with the money they still had to spend.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We believe significant change is necessary to ensure that the state's courts receive the critical funding they require to provide access to justice to all Californians,\" write the auditors in \u003ca href=\"http://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/summary/2014-107\" target=\"_blank\">the report released Wednesday\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state audit criticizes the fiscal practices of what used to be called the \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/finance.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Administrative Office of the Courts\u003c/a> (AOC), the agency that runs the day-to-day operations of California's judicial system, over a four year-period ending in 2013.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(Last year, the AOC's name was dropped and the agency was officially blended into the \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/policyadmin-jc.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Judicial Council of California\u003c/a>, the governing body led by \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/13330.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The AOC,\" says the new audit, \"engaged in questionable compensation and business practices, and failed to adequately disclose its expenditures to stakeholders and the public.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While the dollars in question are small relative to the overall budget of the judicial branch of government, the audit's findings certainly can't help court supporters in their public relations effort to increase the flow of tax dollars. And the audit may embolden critics, most notably a splinter group of California judges that has long accused court administrators of \u003ca href=\"http://ems.stli.com/create/AllianceJudges.asp?issue_id=1598\" target=\"_blank\">spending money on \"trivial bureaucratic activities.\"\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By late Wednesday afternoon, \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/28341.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Chief Justice Cantil-Sakauye announced the creation of a special panel of judges and officials to examine the audit's findings\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Salaries, Perks, Office Space and More\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From salaries to office space and beyond, the new state audit argues that court officials could have taken a closer look at how they spent a portion of some $386 million in taxpayer dollars over the past four years. The report criticizes the judges that oversee the court bureaucracy -- the Judicial Council -- as too often seeing its management of administrators' spending decisions as \"more ministerial than substantive.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The audit finds that managers of eight court subdivisions are all paid salaries between $179,000 and up to almost $182,000 -- more than Gov. Jerry Brown or other top state officials:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"We question whether the AOC's salary levels are justified. For example, AOC office directors manage a range of 12 to 111 employees. In contrast, the director of the California Department of General Services receives a lesser salary of $167,000 yet manages a state department with more than 3,600 employees.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>The audit also reports on perks that extend beyond those top officials -- like paying an employee's portion of retirement contributions for some workers, free meals and cash payments to some workers for their unused vacation hours at a cost of about $900,000 in each of two recent fiscal years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Auditors also raised a larger question: Does the administrative agency that runs the court system really need to be spread out over offices in Sacramento, San Francisco and Burbank? Why, wonder auditors, shouldn't the agency centralize its staff in the state capital and stop adding an extra stipend (a \"differential\") to the paychecks of those who live in the Bay Area or Los Angeles?\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"We estimate the AOC could save over $5 million in rent alone each year by moving its offices to Sacramento. Further, the AOC could eliminate travel expenses between its offices as well as the regional pay differentials.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>The audit goes on to criticize the court system for not analyzing the cost-benefit of its fleet of state-owned vehicles, or the money spent on outsourcing work to contractors or consultants -- at a total cost in the 2013-14 fiscal year of $55 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Change Is Underway, Say Court Officials\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The reaction to the audit from inside California's court system seems to be criticism about the context mixed with assurances that change is well underway.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We still have work to do,\" wrote Cantil-Sakauye in a memo Wednesday morning to the entire judicial branch. \"This audit, while confined in scope, gives us another useful tool to help us make progress.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The chief administrator of the state court system, Martin Hoshino, has also promised that systemic change is underway. \"I agree with many of the recommendations in the report,\" Hoshino wrote in a recent letter to auditors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Others suggest that the public not miss the context of the total dollars at issue vis-a-vis the overall finances of the courts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"It's about 4 percent of the judicial branch budget,\" said Yolo County Superior Court Judge David Rosenberg, a member of \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/4645.htm\" target=\"_blank\">the governing Judicial Council\u003c/a>. \"It's a bucket of water into the ocean.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, auditors say the Legislature should be stepping in -- not with rules about how the money is spent (after all, these are separate and somewhat autonomous branches of government) but rather with more transparency via independent audits every year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And auditors insist that judicial administrators need to, in laymen's terms, walk the walk.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We are concerned that without significant changes,\" says the audit, \"the Judicial Council and AOC will continue to publicly embrace addressing the weaknesses that we and others have identified but fail to take the steps necessary to actually repair those weaknesses in a meaningful and transparent way.\"\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>For any part of state government, questions about whether you're wisely spending tax dollars are a bit awkward when they come just 48 hours before the governor unveils his budget.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But they may be especially tough for California's judiciary, given its ongoing plea to lawmakers to fully restore \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/chief-justice-tani-cantil-sakauye-fights-for-increased-court-funding\" target=\"_blank\">hundreds of millions of dollars in cuts made during recent years\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In this case, the questions are being raised by a new independent state audit, one which concludes that court administrators could have done a better job with the money they still had to spend.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We believe significant change is necessary to ensure that the state's courts receive the critical funding they require to provide access to justice to all Californians,\" write the auditors in \u003ca href=\"http://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/summary/2014-107\" target=\"_blank\">the report released Wednesday\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state audit criticizes the fiscal practices of what used to be called the \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/finance.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Administrative Office of the Courts\u003c/a> (AOC), the agency that runs the day-to-day operations of California's judicial system, over a four year-period ending in 2013.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(Last year, the AOC's name was dropped and the agency was officially blended into the \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/policyadmin-jc.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Judicial Council of California\u003c/a>, the governing body led by \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/13330.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"The AOC,\" says the new audit, \"engaged in questionable compensation and business practices, and failed to adequately disclose its expenditures to stakeholders and the public.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While the dollars in question are small relative to the overall budget of the judicial branch of government, the audit's findings certainly can't help court supporters in their public relations effort to increase the flow of tax dollars. And the audit may embolden critics, most notably a splinter group of California judges that has long accused court administrators of \u003ca href=\"http://ems.stli.com/create/AllianceJudges.asp?issue_id=1598\" target=\"_blank\">spending money on \"trivial bureaucratic activities.\"\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By late Wednesday afternoon, \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/28341.htm\" target=\"_blank\">Chief Justice Cantil-Sakauye announced the creation of a special panel of judges and officials to examine the audit's findings\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Salaries, Perks, Office Space and More\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From salaries to office space and beyond, the new state audit argues that court officials could have taken a closer look at how they spent a portion of some $386 million in taxpayer dollars over the past four years. The report criticizes the judges that oversee the court bureaucracy -- the Judicial Council -- as too often seeing its management of administrators' spending decisions as \"more ministerial than substantive.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The audit finds that managers of eight court subdivisions are all paid salaries between $179,000 and up to almost $182,000 -- more than Gov. Jerry Brown or other top state officials:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"We question whether the AOC's salary levels are justified. For example, AOC office directors manage a range of 12 to 111 employees. In contrast, the director of the California Department of General Services receives a lesser salary of $167,000 yet manages a state department with more than 3,600 employees.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>The audit also reports on perks that extend beyond those top officials -- like paying an employee's portion of retirement contributions for some workers, free meals and cash payments to some workers for their unused vacation hours at a cost of about $900,000 in each of two recent fiscal years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Auditors also raised a larger question: Does the administrative agency that runs the court system really need to be spread out over offices in Sacramento, San Francisco and Burbank? Why, wonder auditors, shouldn't the agency centralize its staff in the state capital and stop adding an extra stipend (a \"differential\") to the paychecks of those who live in the Bay Area or Los Angeles?\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"We estimate the AOC could save over $5 million in rent alone each year by moving its offices to Sacramento. Further, the AOC could eliminate travel expenses between its offices as well as the regional pay differentials.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>The audit goes on to criticize the court system for not analyzing the cost-benefit of its fleet of state-owned vehicles, or the money spent on outsourcing work to contractors or consultants -- at a total cost in the 2013-14 fiscal year of $55 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Change Is Underway, Say Court Officials\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The reaction to the audit from inside California's court system seems to be criticism about the context mixed with assurances that change is well underway.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We still have work to do,\" wrote Cantil-Sakauye in a memo Wednesday morning to the entire judicial branch. \"This audit, while confined in scope, gives us another useful tool to help us make progress.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The chief administrator of the state court system, Martin Hoshino, has also promised that systemic change is underway. \"I agree with many of the recommendations in the report,\" Hoshino wrote in a recent letter to auditors.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Others suggest that the public not miss the context of the total dollars at issue vis-a-vis the overall finances of the courts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"It's about 4 percent of the judicial branch budget,\" said Yolo County Superior Court Judge David Rosenberg, a member of \u003ca href=\"http://www.courts.ca.gov/4645.htm\" target=\"_blank\">the governing Judicial Council\u003c/a>. \"It's a bucket of water into the ocean.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, auditors say the Legislature should be stepping in -- not with rules about how the money is spent (after all, these are separate and somewhat autonomous branches of government) but rather with more transparency via independent audits every year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And auditors insist that judicial administrators need to, in laymen's terms, walk the walk.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"We are concerned that without significant changes,\" says the audit, \"the Judicial Council and AOC will continue to publicly embrace addressing the weaknesses that we and others have identified but fail to take the steps necessary to actually repair those weaknesses in a meaningful and transparent way.\"\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "Analysis: Governor's Inaugural Tackles Legacy Head-On",
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"content": "\u003cp>For Gov. Jerry Brown, there's no way around the big asterisk next to his name in California history books: He'll always be the the only person to ever serve four terms as governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And to listen to his remarks just minutes after taking the oath of office a fourth time, that asterisk suits him just fine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"While we have not reached the promised land,\" \u003ca href=\"http://gov.ca.gov/news.php?id=18828\" target=\"_blank\">Brown said in his opening remarks on Monday\u003c/a>, \"we have much to be proud of.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And to hear him tell it, there's much more to do. The subtext of this kickoff to his final term seemed to be ensuring a legacy that's in line with the one his father left as governor almost five decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In fact, this mashup inaugural and State of the State (two events, one speech) seemed to be the most substantive since his return to Sacramento in 2011: less feisty rambling, more specific policy objectives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most notable was the governor's upping of the ante on California's already ambitious efforts to combat or mitigate climate change: a larger percentage of renewable energy on the state’s power grid, new goals for clean-burning vehicles and energy-efficient buildings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"This is exciting, it is bold and it is absolutely necessary,\" Brown told the assembled audience of legislators and \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/01/05/brown-to-be-sworn-in-for-record-fourth-term\" target=\"_blank\">our live statewide radio audience\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It's an issue on which some of those close to the 76-year-old Democrat think the governor can channel the remnants of his youthful hunger for the White House.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"He really sees California as a nation-state,\" said journalist Orville Schell, who has remained close to the governor since penning a 1978 biography. \"The national stage has gotten so corrupted, he's less interested in playing there.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Time and again in recent years, Brown has lamented the slow pace of action in Washington, D.C. From climate change to immigration, he's joined a chorus of those who think California can get on with the big issues even when others won't.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Befitting a state of dreamers, builders and immigrants,\" he said in his address, \"we have not hesitated to attempt what our detractors have called impossible or foolish.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Brown also seemed to use the event to send messages -- some explicit, some only hinted at -- to others in state government about what he's \u003cem>not\u003c/em> prepared to do.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown referred to the importance of health and human services, but he framed the issue -- as he's done in previous comments -- around California’s embrace of the federal Affordable Care Act. He did not, as some legislative Democrats want, discuss boosting state benefits for those who receive in-home care, the disabled, or broader changes (and expansion) of welfare-to-work assistance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"He's extremely prudent,\" said Cassandra Pye, a Sacramento-based government affairs consultant who was deputy chief of staff to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And yet, the governor's challenge is to correctly predict how long in this final term in office he can maintain his political leverage ... and avoid the onset of the \"\u003ca href=\"http://www.denverpost.com/quillen/ci_11351363\" target=\"_blank\">lame-duck\u003c/a>\" effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Leaving some vagueness around health and human services [funding],\" said Pye, \"might be that leverage point.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown's most forceful rebuke in his inaugural address seemed to be directed toward the leadership of the University of California and Cal State University systems. The recent debate over potential tuition hikes has been especially heated with UC officials, including the system's president, Janet Napolitano.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I will not make the students of California the default financiers of our colleges and universities,\" said the governor to bipartisan applause in the Assembly chamber. \"To meet our goals, everyone has to do their part.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor's call for new efforts on funding infrastructure -- roads and bridges -- was embraced by transportation groups. And Brown's suggestion of renewed discussion about the causes of crimes seemed rooted in his unique blend of faith and frugality.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"All these changes attempt to find less expensive, more compassionate and more effective ways to deal with crime,\" Brown said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And then, this instant classic: \"Since time immemorial, humankind has known covetousness, envy and violence.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The long view of events, of history, of government was the real message in Brown's kickoff of this final term -- one, thanks to term limits that were enacted after he first served -- no one will ever have again in California history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>How he blends that long view with the immediacy of today's politics ... that may be the legacy on which observers will muse in the years to come.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>For Gov. Jerry Brown, there's no way around the big asterisk next to his name in California history books: He'll always be the the only person to ever serve four terms as governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And to listen to his remarks just minutes after taking the oath of office a fourth time, that asterisk suits him just fine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"While we have not reached the promised land,\" \u003ca href=\"http://gov.ca.gov/news.php?id=18828\" target=\"_blank\">Brown said in his opening remarks on Monday\u003c/a>, \"we have much to be proud of.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And to hear him tell it, there's much more to do. The subtext of this kickoff to his final term seemed to be ensuring a legacy that's in line with the one his father left as governor almost five decades ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In fact, this mashup inaugural and State of the State (two events, one speech) seemed to be the most substantive since his return to Sacramento in 2011: less feisty rambling, more specific policy objectives.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most notable was the governor's upping of the ante on California's already ambitious efforts to combat or mitigate climate change: a larger percentage of renewable energy on the state’s power grid, new goals for clean-burning vehicles and energy-efficient buildings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"This is exciting, it is bold and it is absolutely necessary,\" Brown told the assembled audience of legislators and \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/01/05/brown-to-be-sworn-in-for-record-fourth-term\" target=\"_blank\">our live statewide radio audience\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It's an issue on which some of those close to the 76-year-old Democrat think the governor can channel the remnants of his youthful hunger for the White House.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"He really sees California as a nation-state,\" said journalist Orville Schell, who has remained close to the governor since penning a 1978 biography. \"The national stage has gotten so corrupted, he's less interested in playing there.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Time and again in recent years, Brown has lamented the slow pace of action in Washington, D.C. From climate change to immigration, he's joined a chorus of those who think California can get on with the big issues even when others won't.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Befitting a state of dreamers, builders and immigrants,\" he said in his address, \"we have not hesitated to attempt what our detractors have called impossible or foolish.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Brown also seemed to use the event to send messages -- some explicit, some only hinted at -- to others in state government about what he's \u003cem>not\u003c/em> prepared to do.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown referred to the importance of health and human services, but he framed the issue -- as he's done in previous comments -- around California’s embrace of the federal Affordable Care Act. He did not, as some legislative Democrats want, discuss boosting state benefits for those who receive in-home care, the disabled, or broader changes (and expansion) of welfare-to-work assistance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"He's extremely prudent,\" said Cassandra Pye, a Sacramento-based government affairs consultant who was deputy chief of staff to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And yet, the governor's challenge is to correctly predict how long in this final term in office he can maintain his political leverage ... and avoid the onset of the \"\u003ca href=\"http://www.denverpost.com/quillen/ci_11351363\" target=\"_blank\">lame-duck\u003c/a>\" effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"Leaving some vagueness around health and human services [funding],\" said Pye, \"might be that leverage point.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown's most forceful rebuke in his inaugural address seemed to be directed toward the leadership of the University of California and Cal State University systems. The recent debate over potential tuition hikes has been especially heated with UC officials, including the system's president, Janet Napolitano.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"I will not make the students of California the default financiers of our colleges and universities,\" said the governor to bipartisan applause in the Assembly chamber. \"To meet our goals, everyone has to do their part.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor's call for new efforts on funding infrastructure -- roads and bridges -- was embraced by transportation groups. And Brown's suggestion of renewed discussion about the causes of crimes seemed rooted in his unique blend of faith and frugality.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\"All these changes attempt to find less expensive, more compassionate and more effective ways to deal with crime,\" Brown said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And then, this instant classic: \"Since time immemorial, humankind has known covetousness, envy and violence.\"\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The long view of events, of history, of government was the real message in Brown's kickoff of this final term -- one, thanks to term limits that were enacted after he first served -- no one will ever have again in California history.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>How he blends that long view with the immediacy of today's politics ... that may be the legacy on which observers will muse in the years to come.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"disqusTitle": "Viewer's Guide to California Politics in 2015",
"title": "Viewer's Guide to California Politics in 2015",
"headTitle": "FaultLines | KQED News",
"content": "\u003cp>There's no crystal ball that can predict the best and biggest political stories in California for the new year, but there are some signs out there of what's ahead -- from Capitol clashes to the chess match of 2016 campaigns and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And so consider this a viewer's guide of sorts to what seems to be on the state's political horizon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396027\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396027\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS4469_106397071-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Jerry Brown begins his final run as governor on Jan. 5.\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jerry Brown begins his final run as governor on Jan. 5. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>The Legacy\u003c/strong>: It seems fair to start with the guy in charge, who enters 2015 with perhaps the biggest question he's ever faced.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What does Gov. Jerry Brown want to be his lasting legacy? And as he enters the homestretch of his long political career, what will he do in hopes of creating that legacy?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown, 76, takes the oath of office on Monday as California's longest-serving governor. By the end of the first week, he will have made headlines on two contenders for the role of a legacy project: the ceremonial groundbreaking for high-speed rail in Fresno on Tuesday, and the release of his new state budget on Friday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neither will ever fully bear his imprint, though; budgets are the tedious work of every governor and a lot of legislators, and high-speed rail was in the works long before Brown returned to Sacramento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But this governor has done more than any of his predecessors to get the train project on target, and 2015 may prove to be the most pivotal year yet. The \u003ca href=\"http://www.fresnobee.com/2015/01/01/4310556/symbolic-groundbreaking-tuesday.html\" target=\"_blank\">Jan. 6 shovels-in-the-dirt ceremony\u003c/a> certainly may raise the public expectations of success, and it also highlights the impending deadline -- now just two years away -- \u003ca href=\"http://articles.latimes.com/2012/may/14/local/la-me-bullet-risks-20120514\" target=\"_blank\">for spending existing federal dollars for the first phase of construction\u003c/a>. And no, there's been no more federal money committed for the $68 billion San Francisco-to-Los Angeles train. That's Brown's biggest challenge, even if much of the cash isn't expected until after he leaves office. High-speed rail seems to be just the kind of \"high-risk, high-reward\" thing on which a legacy can be built ... or hobbled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor will no doubt also continue his quest for budget prudence in 2015, even as state tax revenues are expected to again beat expectations. Will he insist on more debt repayment, and on \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/12/16/california-government-retiree-health-care-debt-rises-again/\" target=\"_blank\">launching new efforts to tackle long-term debt\u003c/a>? Will he change course from 2013 and 2014 (even slightly) and allow Democratic legislators to expand funding for some safety-net social services programs?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And what about \u003ca href=\"http://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1333789&session=2013\" target=\"_blank\">the $21 million in campaign cash Brown is sitting on\u003c/a>, unspent in his re-election bid last year? Does he have a ballot measure idea up his sleeve that we will see in 2015?\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396037\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396037\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS13675_JV0A0519-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Protesters take to the streets of San Francisco on Dec. 14, 2014. (Jeremy Raff/KQED)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS13675_JV0A0519-400x266.jpg 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS13675_JV0A0519-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS13675_JV0A0519-1440x959.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Protesters take to the streets of San Francisco on Dec. 14, 2014. (Jeremy Raff/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>From Ferguson to Staten Island ... to Sacramento?\u003c/strong> Legislators always react to headlines, and they were no doubt watching, along with everyone else, at the late 2014 intense debate over policing and communities of color. With Bay Area protests over the incidents in Missouri and New York gaining national exposure, you can count on legislative proposals in Sacramento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Already we've seen \u003ca href=\"http://asmdc.org/members/a79/news-room/press-releases/weber-introduces-body-camera-bill\" target=\"_blank\">a San Diego assemblymember introduce legislation to examine how police use body cameras in recording their work\u003c/a> ... and we'll no doubt see much more. Of particular interest: How will Brown and Attorney General Kamala Harris engage in -- or retreat -- from the discussion? Both have \u003ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/16/jerry-brown-protests-silent_n_6337414.html\" target=\"_blank\">carefully avoided commenting on the protests\u003c/a> or the underlying issues for weeks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396071\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396071\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS8749_467264079-400x258.jpg\" alt=\"Is 2015 the year Barbara Boxer decides to step aside? (Mandel Ngan/Getty)\" width=\"400\" height=\"258\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Is 2015 the year Barbara Boxer decides to step aside? (Mandel Ngan/Getty)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Boxer Watch\u003c/strong>: No incumbent in California will be more watched for subtle body language hints about her future in 2015 than U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer. The 74-year old Democrat, now completing her third term in the U.S. Senate, has left a trail of hints that she may not seek another six-year term in 2016 -- the biggest being her relatively small campaign war chest compared with previous pre-election periods. \u003ca href=\"http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/sep/18/boxer-points-to-early-next-year-for-big-decision/\" target=\"_blank\">Observers expect some kind of decision \"early\" this year\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Should Boxer decide to step aside, \u003ca href=\"http://atr.rollcall.com/races-to-watch-2016-california-senate-barbara-boxer/\" target=\"_blank\">there's no shortage of high-profile California Democrats who may step forward\u003c/a>. None have officially declared their interest (because none actually know what Boxer will do), but politicos have long buzzed about everyone from Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom to Attorney General Kamala Harris, former Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, even wealthy environmental activist Tom Steyer. Let's face it: This could be a heck of a battle, and it would all begin in 2015.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_143483\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-full wp-image-143483\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/07/GettyLegis2009-budget.jpg\" alt=\"California's state Senate is under new leadership in 2015. (Justin Sullivan/Getty)\" width=\"400\" height=\"258\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">California's state Senate is under new leadership in 2015. (Justin Sullivan/Getty)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>A New Era For Sacramento Leadership\u003c/strong>: 2015 marks the first year in power for the new leader of the Legislature's upper house, Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles). The veteran legislator has played a high-profile role in several big political debates over the past few years, from the \u003ca href=\"http://sd24.senate.ca.gov/news/2014-10-28-release-governor-brown-pro-tem-de-le%C3%B3n-and-tom-steyer-visit-first-lausd-prop-39\" target=\"_blank\">Proposition 39 tax-and-clean-energy effort\u003c/a> to the legislative push for issuing driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So what will De León focus on leading the state Senate? And what will his relationship with the governor look like, given Brown's penchant for rejecting boosts to some of the social service programs on which De León has led the charge? The L.A. Democrat also must successfully deal with financial challenges in the Senate that led to the laying off of staff in late 2014. And those ethics cases facing two ex-senators may still leave a residue of scandal in Sacramento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396086\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396086\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS5736_028-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"UC President Janet Napolitano has upped the ante on 2015's UC funding debate. (Deborah Svoboda/KQED)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS5736_028-400x266.jpg 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS5736_028-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS5736_028-1440x960.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">UC President Janet Napolitano has upped the ante on 2015's UC funding debate. (Deborah Svoboda/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jerry vs. Janet\u003c/strong>: There's never been a president of the University of California with a more politically powerful resume than Janet Napolitano ... and (probably) never a governor more unwilling to cede his role in the UC's governance. That alone would make things interesting, but it's what happened at the end of 2014 that really qualifies the Jerry and Janet Chronicles as must-see political drama.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Napolitano used her political savvy to attempt a shift in the tuition hikes/state budget funding debate. Rather than simply asking for more money, she convinced UC regents to up the ante by pre-approving five years of tuition hikes \u003cem>if\u003c/em> the money does't materialize from Sacramento. In some ways, it was a version of Brown's successful campaign for tax increases under Prop. 30. In the way that the governor told voters that Prop. 30's defeat would automatically trigger big spending cuts, Napolitano has told lawmakers their refusal to boost state spending on UC will trigger a big tuition hike.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the former Arizona governor and U.S. Department of Homeland Security secretary is likely to find a pretty strong adversary in Brown -- if, of course, it gets that far. (And there are a number of people seeking to privately turn down the heat on this fight.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown attends more UC regent meetings than he skips in his role as president of the board. He's also tapped two new regents in recent weeks, \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/johnmyers/status/551119134738501633\" target=\"_blank\">including his top legislative aide on Friday\u003c/a>. And his proposed 2015-2016 state budget -- which will be released this coming Friday -- will offer the first big clues as to how he intends to respond to Napolitano's challenge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396090\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396090\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS6260_76754171-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Will legislators address a court ruling that says California's teacher tenure system is illegal? (Getty)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS6260_76754171-400x266.jpg 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS6260_76754171-800x532.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS6260_76754171-1440x957.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Will legislators address a court ruling that says California's teacher tenure system is illegal? (Getty)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Will Legislature Tackle Tenure?\u003c/strong> In \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/a-toast-to-top-california-politics-news-of-2014/\" target=\"_blank\">our look back at the top political stories of 2014\u003c/a>, we noted how the potential landmark ruling in \u003cem>Vergara v. California\u003c/em> found a role in several candidate campaigns, but never really ignited a larger public discussion. And so, the question begs to be asked: Will lawmakers tinker with the state's teacher tenure rules before the courts consider whether to throw them out altogether?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California's top three elected officials on the subject -- the governor, the attorney general and the superintendent of public instruction -- all decided to formally appeal the June 10, 2014, ruling that found tenure laws violate the constitutional equal protection rights of students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But at the end of \u003ca href=\"http://studentsmatter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Tenative-Decision.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">his 16-page decision\u003c/a>, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu made clear what he thinks is the real solution:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"All this court may do is apply constitutional principles of law to the challenged statutes as it has done here and trust the legislature to fulfill its mandated duty to enact legislation on the issues herein discussed that passes constitutional muster, thus providing each child in this state with a basically equal opportunity to achieve a quality education.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>While critics of the ruling -- that is, defenders of the existing tenure rules -- believe the case will be overturned by an appellate court, it will be worth watching to see if legislators don't take action on their own to revamp the system and avoid a showdown in court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Budget Brickbats or Bouquets in Sacramento?\u003c/strong> And finally, a time-honored sure bet for political news: state budget fights. The past few years have made it clear that while times of fiscal stability produce fewer fights than times of crisis, there are still intense debates over how to spend money.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In November, the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office predicted another better-than-expected year of tax revenues -- \u003ca href=\"http://www.lao.ca.gov/Infographics/2015-16-californias-fiscal-outlook\" target=\"_blank\">$2 billion more than the enacted budget predicted through this July\u003c/a>. Brown's own budget team has traditionally been more conservative than the LAO forecasters, which no doubt reflects their boss's interest in tamping down the spending expectations of Democratic legislators.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, there will be demands to spend money that's not legally promised to schools or to the new rainy day reserve fund. Welfare assistance, grants to the blind and disabled, and reimbursement rates for doctors who see Medi-Cal patients are all areas where spending has not been restored to formulas that existed prior to the Great Recession.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor pretty much held all the cards in his hands when dealing with the Legislature in his now completed third term in office. 2015 may still see him as the dominant player, but ever so slowly the tide could turn. Governors who no longer can run for election -- like presidents on the national level -- tend to see their power ebb, and no one knows when the \"lame duck\" phenomenon will kick in.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So ... get set ... 2015 is going to be a fun year to watch.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>There's no crystal ball that can predict the best and biggest political stories in California for the new year, but there are some signs out there of what's ahead -- from Capitol clashes to the chess match of 2016 campaigns and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And so consider this a viewer's guide of sorts to what seems to be on the state's political horizon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396027\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396027\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS4469_106397071-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Jerry Brown begins his final run as governor on Jan. 5.\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jerry Brown begins his final run as governor on Jan. 5. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>The Legacy\u003c/strong>: It seems fair to start with the guy in charge, who enters 2015 with perhaps the biggest question he's ever faced.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What does Gov. Jerry Brown want to be his lasting legacy? And as he enters the homestretch of his long political career, what will he do in hopes of creating that legacy?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown, 76, takes the oath of office on Monday as California's longest-serving governor. By the end of the first week, he will have made headlines on two contenders for the role of a legacy project: the ceremonial groundbreaking for high-speed rail in Fresno on Tuesday, and the release of his new state budget on Friday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Neither will ever fully bear his imprint, though; budgets are the tedious work of every governor and a lot of legislators, and high-speed rail was in the works long before Brown returned to Sacramento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But this governor has done more than any of his predecessors to get the train project on target, and 2015 may prove to be the most pivotal year yet. The \u003ca href=\"http://www.fresnobee.com/2015/01/01/4310556/symbolic-groundbreaking-tuesday.html\" target=\"_blank\">Jan. 6 shovels-in-the-dirt ceremony\u003c/a> certainly may raise the public expectations of success, and it also highlights the impending deadline -- now just two years away -- \u003ca href=\"http://articles.latimes.com/2012/may/14/local/la-me-bullet-risks-20120514\" target=\"_blank\">for spending existing federal dollars for the first phase of construction\u003c/a>. And no, there's been no more federal money committed for the $68 billion San Francisco-to-Los Angeles train. That's Brown's biggest challenge, even if much of the cash isn't expected until after he leaves office. High-speed rail seems to be just the kind of \"high-risk, high-reward\" thing on which a legacy can be built ... or hobbled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor will no doubt also continue his quest for budget prudence in 2015, even as state tax revenues are expected to again beat expectations. Will he insist on more debt repayment, and on \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/12/16/california-government-retiree-health-care-debt-rises-again/\" target=\"_blank\">launching new efforts to tackle long-term debt\u003c/a>? Will he change course from 2013 and 2014 (even slightly) and allow Democratic legislators to expand funding for some safety-net social services programs?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And what about \u003ca href=\"http://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1333789&session=2013\" target=\"_blank\">the $21 million in campaign cash Brown is sitting on\u003c/a>, unspent in his re-election bid last year? Does he have a ballot measure idea up his sleeve that we will see in 2015?\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396037\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396037\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS13675_JV0A0519-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Protesters take to the streets of San Francisco on Dec. 14, 2014. (Jeremy Raff/KQED)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS13675_JV0A0519-400x266.jpg 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS13675_JV0A0519-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS13675_JV0A0519-1440x959.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Protesters take to the streets of San Francisco on Dec. 14, 2014. (Jeremy Raff/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>From Ferguson to Staten Island ... to Sacramento?\u003c/strong> Legislators always react to headlines, and they were no doubt watching, along with everyone else, at the late 2014 intense debate over policing and communities of color. With Bay Area protests over the incidents in Missouri and New York gaining national exposure, you can count on legislative proposals in Sacramento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Already we've seen \u003ca href=\"http://asmdc.org/members/a79/news-room/press-releases/weber-introduces-body-camera-bill\" target=\"_blank\">a San Diego assemblymember introduce legislation to examine how police use body cameras in recording their work\u003c/a> ... and we'll no doubt see much more. Of particular interest: How will Brown and Attorney General Kamala Harris engage in -- or retreat -- from the discussion? Both have \u003ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/16/jerry-brown-protests-silent_n_6337414.html\" target=\"_blank\">carefully avoided commenting on the protests\u003c/a> or the underlying issues for weeks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396071\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396071\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS8749_467264079-400x258.jpg\" alt=\"Is 2015 the year Barbara Boxer decides to step aside? (Mandel Ngan/Getty)\" width=\"400\" height=\"258\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Is 2015 the year Barbara Boxer decides to step aside? (Mandel Ngan/Getty)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Boxer Watch\u003c/strong>: No incumbent in California will be more watched for subtle body language hints about her future in 2015 than U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer. The 74-year old Democrat, now completing her third term in the U.S. Senate, has left a trail of hints that she may not seek another six-year term in 2016 -- the biggest being her relatively small campaign war chest compared with previous pre-election periods. \u003ca href=\"http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/sep/18/boxer-points-to-early-next-year-for-big-decision/\" target=\"_blank\">Observers expect some kind of decision \"early\" this year\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Should Boxer decide to step aside, \u003ca href=\"http://atr.rollcall.com/races-to-watch-2016-california-senate-barbara-boxer/\" target=\"_blank\">there's no shortage of high-profile California Democrats who may step forward\u003c/a>. None have officially declared their interest (because none actually know what Boxer will do), but politicos have long buzzed about everyone from Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom to Attorney General Kamala Harris, former Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, even wealthy environmental activist Tom Steyer. Let's face it: This could be a heck of a battle, and it would all begin in 2015.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_143483\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-full wp-image-143483\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/07/GettyLegis2009-budget.jpg\" alt=\"California's state Senate is under new leadership in 2015. (Justin Sullivan/Getty)\" width=\"400\" height=\"258\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">California's state Senate is under new leadership in 2015. (Justin Sullivan/Getty)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>A New Era For Sacramento Leadership\u003c/strong>: 2015 marks the first year in power for the new leader of the Legislature's upper house, Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles). The veteran legislator has played a high-profile role in several big political debates over the past few years, from the \u003ca href=\"http://sd24.senate.ca.gov/news/2014-10-28-release-governor-brown-pro-tem-de-le%C3%B3n-and-tom-steyer-visit-first-lausd-prop-39\" target=\"_blank\">Proposition 39 tax-and-clean-energy effort\u003c/a> to the legislative push for issuing driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So what will De León focus on leading the state Senate? And what will his relationship with the governor look like, given Brown's penchant for rejecting boosts to some of the social service programs on which De León has led the charge? The L.A. Democrat also must successfully deal with financial challenges in the Senate that led to the laying off of staff in late 2014. And those ethics cases facing two ex-senators may still leave a residue of scandal in Sacramento.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396086\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396086\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS5736_028-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"UC President Janet Napolitano has upped the ante on 2015's UC funding debate. (Deborah Svoboda/KQED)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS5736_028-400x266.jpg 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS5736_028-800x533.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS5736_028-1440x960.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">UC President Janet Napolitano has upped the ante on 2015's UC funding debate. (Deborah Svoboda/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jerry vs. Janet\u003c/strong>: There's never been a president of the University of California with a more politically powerful resume than Janet Napolitano ... and (probably) never a governor more unwilling to cede his role in the UC's governance. That alone would make things interesting, but it's what happened at the end of 2014 that really qualifies the Jerry and Janet Chronicles as must-see political drama.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Napolitano used her political savvy to attempt a shift in the tuition hikes/state budget funding debate. Rather than simply asking for more money, she convinced UC regents to up the ante by pre-approving five years of tuition hikes \u003cem>if\u003c/em> the money does't materialize from Sacramento. In some ways, it was a version of Brown's successful campaign for tax increases under Prop. 30. In the way that the governor told voters that Prop. 30's defeat would automatically trigger big spending cuts, Napolitano has told lawmakers their refusal to boost state spending on UC will trigger a big tuition hike.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the former Arizona governor and U.S. Department of Homeland Security secretary is likely to find a pretty strong adversary in Brown -- if, of course, it gets that far. (And there are a number of people seeking to privately turn down the heat on this fight.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown attends more UC regent meetings than he skips in his role as president of the board. He's also tapped two new regents in recent weeks, \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/johnmyers/status/551119134738501633\" target=\"_blank\">including his top legislative aide on Friday\u003c/a>. And his proposed 2015-2016 state budget -- which will be released this coming Friday -- will offer the first big clues as to how he intends to respond to Napolitano's challenge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10396090\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10396090\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS6260_76754171-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Will legislators address a court ruling that says California's teacher tenure system is illegal? (Getty)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS6260_76754171-400x266.jpg 400w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS6260_76754171-800x532.jpg 800w, https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2015/01/RS6260_76754171-1440x957.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Will legislators address a court ruling that says California's teacher tenure system is illegal? (Getty)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Will Legislature Tackle Tenure?\u003c/strong> In \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/a-toast-to-top-california-politics-news-of-2014/\" target=\"_blank\">our look back at the top political stories of 2014\u003c/a>, we noted how the potential landmark ruling in \u003cem>Vergara v. California\u003c/em> found a role in several candidate campaigns, but never really ignited a larger public discussion. And so, the question begs to be asked: Will lawmakers tinker with the state's teacher tenure rules before the courts consider whether to throw them out altogether?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California's top three elected officials on the subject -- the governor, the attorney general and the superintendent of public instruction -- all decided to formally appeal the June 10, 2014, ruling that found tenure laws violate the constitutional equal protection rights of students.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But at the end of \u003ca href=\"http://studentsmatter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Tenative-Decision.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">his 16-page decision\u003c/a>, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu made clear what he thinks is the real solution:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>\"All this court may do is apply constitutional principles of law to the challenged statutes as it has done here and trust the legislature to fulfill its mandated duty to enact legislation on the issues herein discussed that passes constitutional muster, thus providing each child in this state with a basically equal opportunity to achieve a quality education.\"\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>While critics of the ruling -- that is, defenders of the existing tenure rules -- believe the case will be overturned by an appellate court, it will be worth watching to see if legislators don't take action on their own to revamp the system and avoid a showdown in court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Budget Brickbats or Bouquets in Sacramento?\u003c/strong> And finally, a time-honored sure bet for political news: state budget fights. The past few years have made it clear that while times of fiscal stability produce fewer fights than times of crisis, there are still intense debates over how to spend money.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In November, the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office predicted another better-than-expected year of tax revenues -- \u003ca href=\"http://www.lao.ca.gov/Infographics/2015-16-californias-fiscal-outlook\" target=\"_blank\">$2 billion more than the enacted budget predicted through this July\u003c/a>. Brown's own budget team has traditionally been more conservative than the LAO forecasters, which no doubt reflects their boss's interest in tamping down the spending expectations of Democratic legislators.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, there will be demands to spend money that's not legally promised to schools or to the new rainy day reserve fund. Welfare assistance, grants to the blind and disabled, and reimbursement rates for doctors who see Medi-Cal patients are all areas where spending has not been restored to formulas that existed prior to the Great Recession.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The governor pretty much held all the cards in his hands when dealing with the Legislature in his now completed third term in office. 2015 may still see him as the dominant player, but ever so slowly the tide could turn. Governors who no longer can run for election -- like presidents on the national level -- tend to see their power ebb, and no one knows when the \"lame duck\" phenomenon will kick in.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So ... get set ... 2015 is going to be a fun year to watch.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"headTitle": "A Toast To 2014’s Top California Political Stories | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>Let’s be honest: Who doesn’t like a good old-fashioned annual rite of passage? Spring cleaning. The Fall Classic. Swallows returning to Capistrano. (Well, \u003ca href=\"http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/stories/bringing-back-the-famous-swallows-of-mission-san-juan-capistrano\" target=\"_blank\">maybe not that one these days, it seems\u003c/a>).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And a list of top news stories to wrap up a year. Which brings us to this list covering California politics in 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was, well, an odd even-numbered year. Statewide elections usually spark some big stories and important debates, but 2014 was rather tepid compared with previous electoral cycles. Even so, there were a few big moments that won’t be soon forgotten.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So without further ado…\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393263\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393263\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS9444_leelandyee-20140326a-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Leland Yee was accused of corruption in March 2014 as part of an FBI investigation.\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Leland Yee was accused of corruption in March 2014 as part of an FBI investigation. (Justin Sullivan/Getty) \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Political Quote of the Year: “People Need Certain Things”\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you were casting a movie about a political scandal and you needed a legislator on whom to base a character accused of corruption … Leland Yee wouldn’t have been your guy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Democrat was a fairly high-profile member of the California Legislature, but not a flamboyant one or one who was the subject of gossip and rumor. And that’s probably why \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/03/26/u/Leland-Yee-Firearms-Trafficking-FBI\" target=\"_blank\">the news in March landed with such a bombshell\u003c/a>, when the 66-year old former psychologist was arrested and charged with not only corruption, but also with allegedly participating in a scheme to smuggle illegal weapons into the United States.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The irony was impossible to miss: gun trafficking charges against a Democrat who made a name for himself \u003ca href=\"http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/03/26/leland-yee-crusaded-for-gun-control-before-indictment-on-gun-charges/\" target=\"_blank\">as a fierce advocate of gun control\u003c/a>, a politician who championed \u003ca href=\"http://articles.latimes.com/2010/apr/29/business/la-fi-ct-facetime-20100429\" target=\"_blank\">a nationally debated California law to ban children from buying violent video games\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And now, that infamous quote contained in the FBI affidavit, one attributed by investigators to Yee during a secret meeting that focused on the potential smuggling of weapons:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>“People want to get whatever they want to get. Do I care? No, I don’t care. People need certain things.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>Yee’s political career pretty much ended the same day the detailed allegations were made public, part of a bigger FBI investigation into the Chinese immigrant community of San Francisco. 2014 also saw \u003ca href=\"http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_25440366/state-senate-vote-suspend-yee-calderon-and-wright\" target=\"_blank\">Yee and two other state senators suspended over ethics charges\u003c/a>: Ron Calderon, the focus of \u003ca href=\"http://www.news10.net/story/news/politics/john-myers/2014/02/21/ron-calderon-indicted-by-feds-for-bribery/5704253/\" target=\"_blank\">his own FBI corruption sting\u003c/a>, and Rod Wright, \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-rod-wright-20140913-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">convicted of perjury in a case involving whether he actually lived in his legislative district\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Only Wright’s case was closed in 2014. We’re still waiting to see what happens to Calderon and Yee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393266\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393266\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8399_465639979-400x258.jpg\" alt=\"The historic drought helped loosen opposition to long-running political debates.\" width=\"400\" height=\"258\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8399_465639979-400x258.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8399_465639979-800x516.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8399_465639979-1440x928.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The historic drought helped loosen opposition to long-running political debates. (Justin Sullivan/Getty) \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Top Political Actor in a Dramatic Role: California’s Drought\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Let’s leave it to Gov. Jerry Brown to explain this one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve got a drought,” said Brown in September. “And that’s got everybody’s attention.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And so it was in 2014, where California’s unquenched thirst helped break the logjam on several water policy fights that had been dragging on for years. Brown’s quip came \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/09/16/drought-becomes-powerful-political-tool-for-jerry-brown-and-lawmakers\" target=\"_blank\">just after he signed the state’s first-ever regulations on the use of groundwater\u003c/a>, something unthinkable in years past. The year also saw lawmakers negotiate, and voters approve, \u003ca href=\"http://www.voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/propositions/1/\" target=\"_blank\">a $7.5 billion bond package\u003c/a> for water reliability and storage — a package where politicos had long fretted about the public’s distaste for new borrowing but one that \u003ca href=\"http://vote2014.sos.ca.gov/returns/maps/ballot-measures/prop/1/\" target=\"_blank\">ultimately received a ”yes” vote from 67 percent of the voters who cast ballots on Nov. 4\u003c/a>. Campaign strategists say it’s simple: The drought was a huge motivating factor, something voters didn’t need a political campaign to explain to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393504\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393504\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4633_HarryMendez_Milpitas_6-e1419988578986-400x278.jpg\" alt=\"Randall Elementary School in Milpitas, Calif.\" width=\"400\" height=\"278\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4633_HarryMendez_Milpitas_6-e1419988578986-400x278.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4633_HarryMendez_Milpitas_6-e1419988578986-800x557.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4633_HarryMendez_Milpitas_6-e1419988578986-1440x1002.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Randall Elementary School in Milpitas. (Charla Bear/KQED) \u003ccite>(Charla Bear/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong> Simmering Fight Over Teacher Tenure\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The decision made by a Los Angeles judge on June 10 had the potential for huge political impact: California’s tenure rules for K-12 teachers were found to violate the constitutional rights of students to equal protection.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A huge ruling, yes, but one that surprisingly caused only a small series of political rumbles in 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 16 pages of findings in \u003ca href=\"http://studentsmatter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Tenative-Decision.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Vergara v. California\u003c/a> by Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu handed down a scathing indictment of the system of tenure — one that Treu said unfairly disadvantages students from communities of color or from low-income families:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>“It therefore cannot be gainsaid that the number of grossly ineffective teachers has a direct, real, appreciable, and negative impact on a significant number of California students, now and well into the future for as long as said teachers hold their positions.”\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>The ruling was immediately praised by critics of the tenure system and self-described reform groups, but panned by teachers unions and state officials who argued the judge overstated the number of “bad” teachers on the job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But why \u003cem>Vergara\u003c/em> didn’t land a more powerful political punch in 2014 is hard to say. While it did play \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/10/27/how-teacher-tenure-figures-into-the-november-election/\" target=\"_blank\">a real role in one statewide race — the contest for superintendent of public instruction — and a few legislative races\u003c/a>, there was no groundswell of action or outrage. Even the decision by Gov. Jerry Brown to \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-governor-appeals-vergara-20140829-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">appeal the ruling\u003c/a> (a decision he tried to defend on legal grounds during the political season’s only gubernatorial debate) extracted no real political price. Nonetheless, \u003cem>Vergara\u003c/em> resonated in education and government circles and could continue to make news depending on the outcome of the appeals process in 2015.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Box Office Sleeper: The Kashkari Kid\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No candidate made a bigger bet on public outcry over the \u003cem>Vergara\u003c/em> ruling than Neel Kashkari, the Republican newcomer hoping to topple a sitting governor with a household name.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393606\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393606\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12018_CAJC115_Governor-California-Debate12891-e1419997708127-400x366.jpg\" alt=\"Kashkari, the longshot candidate for governor, during the Sept. 4 gubernatorial debate.\" width=\"400\" height=\"366\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12018_CAJC115_Governor-California-Debate12891-e1419997708127-400x366.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12018_CAJC115_Governor-California-Debate12891-e1419997708127-800x732.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12018_CAJC115_Governor-California-Debate12891-e1419997708127.jpg 855w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kashkari, the long-shot candidate for governor, during the Sept. 4 gubernatorial debate. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP) \u003ccite>(Rich Pedroncelli/AP)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Kashkari, \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/10/21/why-kashkari-is-proud-of-tarp-doesnt-trumpet-it\" target=\"_blank\">the former U.S. Treasury official\u003c/a> who bested a more conservative Republican to win the second of two spots on the fall ballot, had always insisted that education would be one of only two priorities should he somehow win the race for governor (the other being job creation). But he didn’t seem to talk much \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-kashkari-schools-20140422-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">about his education agenda\u003c/a>, as he seemed to be much more energized about schools after \u003cem>Vergara\u003c/em> swept into the news.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the only debate between the two men, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKjuxVjPbMk\" target=\"_blank\">held on Sept. 4 and sponsored by KQED along with three other media organizations\u003c/a>, Kashkari unloaded on Gov. Jerry Brown’s decision to appeal the ruling. One month later, he released a television ad that never mentioned the tenure court case by name — opting instead for the shock value of a drowning kid and his GOP rescuer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEZFdmwqG3Q?rel=0&w=560&h=315]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The ad also highlighted the challenge for the Kashkari campaign team: finding something … anything … that would stick to Jerry Brown. The candidate began the race in January talking about poverty; then he lampooned \u003ca href=\"http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2014/03/13/kashkari-hits-jerry-brown-s-crazy-train/\" target=\"_blank\">Brown’s support for the “crazy train”\u003c/a> of high-speed rail; then he went back to poverty by \u003ca href=\"Neel%20Kashkari%20takes%20campaign%20to%20the%20streets,%20literally%20-%20LA%20...\" target=\"_blank\">posing as a homeless man on the streets of Fresno\u003c/a>; then a series of \u003ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/22/kashkari-brown-coddled-pr_n_5863100.html\" target=\"_blank\">attacks on the Brown political dynasty\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And on it went, even though polls suggested either that \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/04/23/poll-jerry-brown-draws-california-republican-votes\" target=\"_blank\">voters weren’t impressed\u003c/a> or were simply \u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/matier-ross/article/40-of-voters-unaware-Jerry-Brown-is-seeking-5865196.php\" target=\"_blank\">oblivious to the entire campaign\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lingering question: Does Neel Kashkari, a man with now at least a modicum of statewide name ID, run for something else in 2016 or 2018?\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393612\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393612\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4645_101564736-400x277.jpg\" alt=\"California's new law banning plastic bags may be on hold until a statewide referendum in 2016.\" width=\"400\" height=\"277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4645_101564736-400x277.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4645_101564736-800x555.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4645_101564736-1440x999.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">California’s new law banning plastic bags may be on hold until a statewide referendum in 2016. (Justin Sullivan/Getty) \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>The Ban That May End Up Getting Banned Itself\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are more than 100 communities across California that have imposed some kind of limit or ban on single-use plastic bags in recent years. So, it’s not surprising that a statewide effort would be launched in Sacramento. Still, few legislative fights in 2014 were more intense, or more chock-full of backroom wheeling and dealing, as the one that ended with legislation signed by Gov. Jerry Brown to impose a statewide plastic bag ban starting in July. When enacted, the ban will be \u003ca href=\"http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/sep/29/plastic-bag-ban-california/\" target=\"_blank\">the first of its kind in the nation\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Or will it? The plastic bag industry \u003ca href=\"http://www.bagtheban.com/news/item/statement-from-the-american-progressive-bag-alliance-on-intent-to-repeal-se\" target=\"_blank\">quickly ponied up $3 million to gather signatures for a referendum\u003c/a> asking voters to overturn the law — and they appear to have enough to make that happen in November 2016. That would also mean the new law is on hold, allowing the plastic bag industry to keep selling its products for at least an additional 16 months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Five separate versions of \u003ca href=\"http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=sb_270&sess=PREV&house=B&author=padilla_%3Cpadilla%3E\" target=\"_blank\">Senate Bill 270\u003c/a> were considered before all was said and done at the state Capitol. Grocers were given a concession of 10 cents for every paper bag, and \u003ca href=\"http://www.scpr.org/blogs/politics/2014/01/24/15676/onetime-foes-now-back-statewide-plastic-bag-ban/\" target=\"_blank\">Latino Democrats (who helped kill a similar effort in 2013) signed on\u003c/a> after efforts were promised to help mitigate any job losses at plastic bag manufacturing plants. The governor played the final card, surprising at least a few political watchers by agreeing to sign the bill. Now, its fate is unclear — as even more cities across California prepare to enact their own bag bans in 2015.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393691\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393691\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12918__MG_4249-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Voter turnout in 2014: historically low. (Katie Brigham/KQED)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12918__MG_4249-400x266.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12918__MG_4249-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12918__MG_4249-1440x959.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Voter turnout in 2014: historically low. (Katie Brigham/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Suppose We Held An Election … And No One Showed Up?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For a state where it’s become common to watch millions of voters skip elections, it wasn’t surprising that 2014 — a year without a presidential race and not a lot of widely anticipated ballot propositions — was going to end with low turnout.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But boy, who knew it would be this bad.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The June and November elections each set records for voter apathy: Only 25.17 percent of registered voters cast ballots in June, 42.2 percent in November. Never have any regular primary or gubernatorial elections in California seen such tepid interest from the voters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/11/28/California-politicians-picked-by-few-voters/\" target=\"_blank\">turnout was even worse in a number of individual legislative and congressional districts\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393723\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393723\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM-400x280.png\" alt=\"No on Prop. 46 television ad\" width=\"400\" height=\"280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM-400x280.png 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM-800x560.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM-1440x1008.png 1440w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM.png 1990w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">No on Prop. 46 Television Ad\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>The Political Power of No\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The low turnout didn’t do much to help backers of any of \u003ca href=\"http://vote2014.sos.ca.gov/returns/ballot-measures/\" target=\"_blank\">the six propositions on November’s ballot\u003c/a>. In fact, the 2014 election cycle proved once again how much easier it is to \u003cem>kill\u003c/em> a ballot measure than it is to \u003cem>pass\u003c/em> one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most-talked-about initiatives, \u003ca href=\"http://www.voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/propositions/45/\" target=\"_blank\">Proposition 45\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"http://www.voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/propositions/46/\" target=\"_blank\">Proposition 46\u003c/a>, were a textbook case of death by a thousand cuts. Opponents had more money and an easier message: The measures were too complicated, poorly drafted, clever Trojan horses that really had an ulterior motive. Prop. 45, the measure to boost the regulatory power of the state insurance commissioner over health care rates, was a rebuke to Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, who championed the proposal. Prop. 46, the fight over doctor drug testing and medical malpractice awards, was a lawyers-versus-doctors smackdown that landed on the ballot after \u003ca href=\"http://www.news10.net/story/news/politics/john-myers/2014/01/22/4758601/\" target=\"_blank\">the two sides failed to reach any kind of deal in the Legislature\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mark DiCamillo, the longtime director of the nonpartisan Field Poll, has long joked that if he ever hung up his pollster badge and became a political campaign consultant, he’d only take on clients who wanted to defeat initiatives. “No” is where the easy money is, it seems. And combined, the Prop. 45/Prop. 46 opposition campaigns raised more than $111 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393727\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393727\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8168_127726920-e1420007401985-400x352.jpg\" alt=\"Tim Draper, the author of the Six Californias initiative. (Max Morse/Getty)\" width=\"400\" height=\"352\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8168_127726920-e1420007401985-400x352.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8168_127726920-e1420007401985-800x705.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8168_127726920-e1420007401985-1440x1269.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tim Draper, the author of the Six Californias initiative. (Max Morse/Getty)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Let’s Stay Together, Loving You Whether …\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some day years from now, you’ll see it at an auction: \u003ca href=\"http://blog.sfgate.com/techchron/files/2014/07/states16_04.jpg\" target=\"_blank\">a bright crimson-colored, custom tie — one with a multi-colored map of California sliced into six new state configurations\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And you’ll say to yourself, “Oh yeah, that Six Californias thing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It wasn’t meant to be, at least not in 2014. The owner of that tie, Silicon Valley investor Tim Draper, came up short in his quirky quest to ask Californians to go their separate ways. \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/09/12/plan-to-split-california-six-ways-fails-to-make-ballot\" target=\"_blank\">Not only did his split-it-six-ways plan fail to make the fall ballot\u003c/a>, but Draper’s hired guns failed to even collect enough valid signatures to get it on the ballot in 2016. And that’s after he sank almost $5.3 million of his own cash into the endeavor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Skeptics doubted Draper was serious. Politicos mused that he was trying to get his name out there for a future run for statewide office. (But which state? Ah, the jokes). And \u003ca href=\"http://verdict.justia.com/2014/01/03/political-constitutional-questions-raised-tim-drapers-six-californias-plan-split-california\" target=\"_blank\">legal scholars said the initiative was absolutely unworkable and likely unconstitutional\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But hey, at least he’s still got that tie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393729\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393729\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting-400x266.jpeg\" alt=\"Gov. Jerry Brown may have had the best year in politics of anyone in California. (Jeremy Raff/KQED)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting-400x266.jpeg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting-800x533.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting-1440x960.jpeg 1440w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gov. Jerry Brown may have had the best year in politics of anyone in California. (Jeremy Raff/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>The Tao of Jerry\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And finally, the hard-to-deny consensus big political winner in a year where Californians didn’t even seem to want to \u003cem>think\u003c/em> about politics: Edmund Gerald Brown Jr.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jerry Brown’s 45-year political career is best left to biographies rather than end-of-the-year lists. But suffice it to say, in an year when the electorate didn’t seem to want to embrace politics, the low-key style of Brown’s third term as governor seemed to suit Californians just fine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, it would be unfair to imply that Brown wasn’t working hard behind the scenes to secure a fourth term. From beating back legislation at the state Capitol that didn’t suit his finely honed persona of frugality … to \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/10/04/jerry-brown-re-election-bid-quiet-just-like-he-wants-it\" target=\"_blank\">the non-campaign campaign\u003c/a> that saw him preach propositions rather than himself … Jerry Brown found a way to successfully match his political message to the electoral mood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He has an impeccable sense of timing,” said the governor’s top aide, Nancy McFadden, to a business group in November.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(Yes, but perhaps he learned it from having a lousy sense of timing in \u003ca href=\"http://www.thenewerworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/people.jpg\" target=\"_blank\">1976\u003c/a> … and \u003ca href=\"http://www.npr.org/blogs/politicaljunkie/2009/04/on_this_day_in_1980_jerry_brow.html\" target=\"_blank\">1980\u003c/a> … and \u003ca href=\"http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1982/10/24/page/30/article/jerry-brown-has-met-the-enemy-its-himself\" target=\"_blank\">1982\u003c/a> … and \u003ca href=\"http://www.newrepublic.com/article/117695/sidney-blumenthal-jerry-browns-campaign\" target=\"_blank\">1992\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Where Jerry Brown chooses to steer his governorship in the new year and beyond remains to be seen. But for now, he seems to like the course that he — and California — are on.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here’s hoping he and the state’s other political players make 2015 an interesting one to watch.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"title": "A Toast To 2014's Top California Political Stories | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Let’s be honest: Who doesn’t like a good old-fashioned annual rite of passage? Spring cleaning. The Fall Classic. Swallows returning to Capistrano. (Well, \u003ca href=\"http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/stories/bringing-back-the-famous-swallows-of-mission-san-juan-capistrano\" target=\"_blank\">maybe not that one these days, it seems\u003c/a>).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And a list of top news stories to wrap up a year. Which brings us to this list covering California politics in 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was, well, an odd even-numbered year. Statewide elections usually spark some big stories and important debates, but 2014 was rather tepid compared with previous electoral cycles. Even so, there were a few big moments that won’t be soon forgotten.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So without further ado…\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393263\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393263\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS9444_leelandyee-20140326a-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Leland Yee was accused of corruption in March 2014 as part of an FBI investigation.\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Leland Yee was accused of corruption in March 2014 as part of an FBI investigation. (Justin Sullivan/Getty) \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Political Quote of the Year: “People Need Certain Things”\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you were casting a movie about a political scandal and you needed a legislator on whom to base a character accused of corruption … Leland Yee wouldn’t have been your guy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Democrat was a fairly high-profile member of the California Legislature, but not a flamboyant one or one who was the subject of gossip and rumor. And that’s probably why \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/03/26/u/Leland-Yee-Firearms-Trafficking-FBI\" target=\"_blank\">the news in March landed with such a bombshell\u003c/a>, when the 66-year old former psychologist was arrested and charged with not only corruption, but also with allegedly participating in a scheme to smuggle illegal weapons into the United States.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The irony was impossible to miss: gun trafficking charges against a Democrat who made a name for himself \u003ca href=\"http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/03/26/leland-yee-crusaded-for-gun-control-before-indictment-on-gun-charges/\" target=\"_blank\">as a fierce advocate of gun control\u003c/a>, a politician who championed \u003ca href=\"http://articles.latimes.com/2010/apr/29/business/la-fi-ct-facetime-20100429\" target=\"_blank\">a nationally debated California law to ban children from buying violent video games\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And now, that infamous quote contained in the FBI affidavit, one attributed by investigators to Yee during a secret meeting that focused on the potential smuggling of weapons:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>\u003cem>“People want to get whatever they want to get. Do I care? No, I don’t care. People need certain things.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>Yee’s political career pretty much ended the same day the detailed allegations were made public, part of a bigger FBI investigation into the Chinese immigrant community of San Francisco. 2014 also saw \u003ca href=\"http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_25440366/state-senate-vote-suspend-yee-calderon-and-wright\" target=\"_blank\">Yee and two other state senators suspended over ethics charges\u003c/a>: Ron Calderon, the focus of \u003ca href=\"http://www.news10.net/story/news/politics/john-myers/2014/02/21/ron-calderon-indicted-by-feds-for-bribery/5704253/\" target=\"_blank\">his own FBI corruption sting\u003c/a>, and Rod Wright, \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-pol-rod-wright-20140913-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">convicted of perjury in a case involving whether he actually lived in his legislative district\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Only Wright’s case was closed in 2014. We’re still waiting to see what happens to Calderon and Yee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393266\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393266\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8399_465639979-400x258.jpg\" alt=\"The historic drought helped loosen opposition to long-running political debates.\" width=\"400\" height=\"258\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8399_465639979-400x258.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8399_465639979-800x516.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8399_465639979-1440x928.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The historic drought helped loosen opposition to long-running political debates. (Justin Sullivan/Getty) \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Top Political Actor in a Dramatic Role: California’s Drought\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Let’s leave it to Gov. Jerry Brown to explain this one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve got a drought,” said Brown in September. “And that’s got everybody’s attention.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And so it was in 2014, where California’s unquenched thirst helped break the logjam on several water policy fights that had been dragging on for years. Brown’s quip came \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/09/16/drought-becomes-powerful-political-tool-for-jerry-brown-and-lawmakers\" target=\"_blank\">just after he signed the state’s first-ever regulations on the use of groundwater\u003c/a>, something unthinkable in years past. The year also saw lawmakers negotiate, and voters approve, \u003ca href=\"http://www.voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/propositions/1/\" target=\"_blank\">a $7.5 billion bond package\u003c/a> for water reliability and storage — a package where politicos had long fretted about the public’s distaste for new borrowing but one that \u003ca href=\"http://vote2014.sos.ca.gov/returns/maps/ballot-measures/prop/1/\" target=\"_blank\">ultimately received a ”yes” vote from 67 percent of the voters who cast ballots on Nov. 4\u003c/a>. Campaign strategists say it’s simple: The drought was a huge motivating factor, something voters didn’t need a political campaign to explain to them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393504\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393504\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4633_HarryMendez_Milpitas_6-e1419988578986-400x278.jpg\" alt=\"Randall Elementary School in Milpitas, Calif.\" width=\"400\" height=\"278\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4633_HarryMendez_Milpitas_6-e1419988578986-400x278.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4633_HarryMendez_Milpitas_6-e1419988578986-800x557.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4633_HarryMendez_Milpitas_6-e1419988578986-1440x1002.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Randall Elementary School in Milpitas. (Charla Bear/KQED) \u003ccite>(Charla Bear/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong> Simmering Fight Over Teacher Tenure\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The decision made by a Los Angeles judge on June 10 had the potential for huge political impact: California’s tenure rules for K-12 teachers were found to violate the constitutional rights of students to equal protection.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A huge ruling, yes, but one that surprisingly caused only a small series of political rumbles in 2014.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 16 pages of findings in \u003ca href=\"http://studentsmatter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Tenative-Decision.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Vergara v. California\u003c/a> by Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu handed down a scathing indictment of the system of tenure — one that Treu said unfairly disadvantages students from communities of color or from low-income families:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>“It therefore cannot be gainsaid that the number of grossly ineffective teachers has a direct, real, appreciable, and negative impact on a significant number of California students, now and well into the future for as long as said teachers hold their positions.”\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>The ruling was immediately praised by critics of the tenure system and self-described reform groups, but panned by teachers unions and state officials who argued the judge overstated the number of “bad” teachers on the job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But why \u003cem>Vergara\u003c/em> didn’t land a more powerful political punch in 2014 is hard to say. While it did play \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/10/27/how-teacher-tenure-figures-into-the-november-election/\" target=\"_blank\">a real role in one statewide race — the contest for superintendent of public instruction — and a few legislative races\u003c/a>, there was no groundswell of action or outrage. Even the decision by Gov. Jerry Brown to \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-governor-appeals-vergara-20140829-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">appeal the ruling\u003c/a> (a decision he tried to defend on legal grounds during the political season’s only gubernatorial debate) extracted no real political price. Nonetheless, \u003cem>Vergara\u003c/em> resonated in education and government circles and could continue to make news depending on the outcome of the appeals process in 2015.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Box Office Sleeper: The Kashkari Kid\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No candidate made a bigger bet on public outcry over the \u003cem>Vergara\u003c/em> ruling than Neel Kashkari, the Republican newcomer hoping to topple a sitting governor with a household name.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393606\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393606\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12018_CAJC115_Governor-California-Debate12891-e1419997708127-400x366.jpg\" alt=\"Kashkari, the longshot candidate for governor, during the Sept. 4 gubernatorial debate.\" width=\"400\" height=\"366\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12018_CAJC115_Governor-California-Debate12891-e1419997708127-400x366.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12018_CAJC115_Governor-California-Debate12891-e1419997708127-800x732.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12018_CAJC115_Governor-California-Debate12891-e1419997708127.jpg 855w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kashkari, the long-shot candidate for governor, during the Sept. 4 gubernatorial debate. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP) \u003ccite>(Rich Pedroncelli/AP)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Kashkari, \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/10/21/why-kashkari-is-proud-of-tarp-doesnt-trumpet-it\" target=\"_blank\">the former U.S. Treasury official\u003c/a> who bested a more conservative Republican to win the second of two spots on the fall ballot, had always insisted that education would be one of only two priorities should he somehow win the race for governor (the other being job creation). But he didn’t seem to talk much \u003ca href=\"http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-kashkari-schools-20140422-story.html\" target=\"_blank\">about his education agenda\u003c/a>, as he seemed to be much more energized about schools after \u003cem>Vergara\u003c/em> swept into the news.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the only debate between the two men, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKjuxVjPbMk\" target=\"_blank\">held on Sept. 4 and sponsored by KQED along with three other media organizations\u003c/a>, Kashkari unloaded on Gov. Jerry Brown’s decision to appeal the ruling. One month later, he released a television ad that never mentioned the tenure court case by name — opting instead for the shock value of a drowning kid and his GOP rescuer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/pEZFdmwqG3Q?rel=0'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/pEZFdmwqG3Q?rel=0'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The ad also highlighted the challenge for the Kashkari campaign team: finding something … anything … that would stick to Jerry Brown. The candidate began the race in January talking about poverty; then he lampooned \u003ca href=\"http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2014/03/13/kashkari-hits-jerry-brown-s-crazy-train/\" target=\"_blank\">Brown’s support for the “crazy train”\u003c/a> of high-speed rail; then he went back to poverty by \u003ca href=\"Neel%20Kashkari%20takes%20campaign%20to%20the%20streets,%20literally%20-%20LA%20...\" target=\"_blank\">posing as a homeless man on the streets of Fresno\u003c/a>; then a series of \u003ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/22/kashkari-brown-coddled-pr_n_5863100.html\" target=\"_blank\">attacks on the Brown political dynasty\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And on it went, even though polls suggested either that \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/04/23/poll-jerry-brown-draws-california-republican-votes\" target=\"_blank\">voters weren’t impressed\u003c/a> or were simply \u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/matier-ross/article/40-of-voters-unaware-Jerry-Brown-is-seeking-5865196.php\" target=\"_blank\">oblivious to the entire campaign\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lingering question: Does Neel Kashkari, a man with now at least a modicum of statewide name ID, run for something else in 2016 or 2018?\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393612\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393612\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4645_101564736-400x277.jpg\" alt=\"California's new law banning plastic bags may be on hold until a statewide referendum in 2016.\" width=\"400\" height=\"277\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4645_101564736-400x277.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4645_101564736-800x555.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS4645_101564736-1440x999.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">California’s new law banning plastic bags may be on hold until a statewide referendum in 2016. (Justin Sullivan/Getty) \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>The Ban That May End Up Getting Banned Itself\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are more than 100 communities across California that have imposed some kind of limit or ban on single-use plastic bags in recent years. So, it’s not surprising that a statewide effort would be launched in Sacramento. Still, few legislative fights in 2014 were more intense, or more chock-full of backroom wheeling and dealing, as the one that ended with legislation signed by Gov. Jerry Brown to impose a statewide plastic bag ban starting in July. When enacted, the ban will be \u003ca href=\"http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/sep/29/plastic-bag-ban-california/\" target=\"_blank\">the first of its kind in the nation\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Or will it? The plastic bag industry \u003ca href=\"http://www.bagtheban.com/news/item/statement-from-the-american-progressive-bag-alliance-on-intent-to-repeal-se\" target=\"_blank\">quickly ponied up $3 million to gather signatures for a referendum\u003c/a> asking voters to overturn the law — and they appear to have enough to make that happen in November 2016. That would also mean the new law is on hold, allowing the plastic bag industry to keep selling its products for at least an additional 16 months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Five separate versions of \u003ca href=\"http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=sb_270&sess=PREV&house=B&author=padilla_%3Cpadilla%3E\" target=\"_blank\">Senate Bill 270\u003c/a> were considered before all was said and done at the state Capitol. Grocers were given a concession of 10 cents for every paper bag, and \u003ca href=\"http://www.scpr.org/blogs/politics/2014/01/24/15676/onetime-foes-now-back-statewide-plastic-bag-ban/\" target=\"_blank\">Latino Democrats (who helped kill a similar effort in 2013) signed on\u003c/a> after efforts were promised to help mitigate any job losses at plastic bag manufacturing plants. The governor played the final card, surprising at least a few political watchers by agreeing to sign the bill. Now, its fate is unclear — as even more cities across California prepare to enact their own bag bans in 2015.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393691\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393691\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12918__MG_4249-400x266.jpg\" alt=\"Voter turnout in 2014: historically low. (Katie Brigham/KQED)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12918__MG_4249-400x266.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12918__MG_4249-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS12918__MG_4249-1440x959.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Voter turnout in 2014: historically low. (Katie Brigham/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Suppose We Held An Election … And No One Showed Up?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For a state where it’s become common to watch millions of voters skip elections, it wasn’t surprising that 2014 — a year without a presidential race and not a lot of widely anticipated ballot propositions — was going to end with low turnout.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But boy, who knew it would be this bad.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The June and November elections each set records for voter apathy: Only 25.17 percent of registered voters cast ballots in June, 42.2 percent in November. Never have any regular primary or gubernatorial elections in California seen such tepid interest from the voters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/11/28/California-politicians-picked-by-few-voters/\" target=\"_blank\">turnout was even worse in a number of individual legislative and congressional districts\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393723\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393723\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM-400x280.png\" alt=\"No on Prop. 46 television ad\" width=\"400\" height=\"280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM-400x280.png 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM-800x560.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM-1440x1008.png 1440w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/Screen-Shot-2014-12-30-at-10.19.30-PM.png 1990w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">No on Prop. 46 Television Ad\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>The Political Power of No\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The low turnout didn’t do much to help backers of any of \u003ca href=\"http://vote2014.sos.ca.gov/returns/ballot-measures/\" target=\"_blank\">the six propositions on November’s ballot\u003c/a>. In fact, the 2014 election cycle proved once again how much easier it is to \u003cem>kill\u003c/em> a ballot measure than it is to \u003cem>pass\u003c/em> one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most-talked-about initiatives, \u003ca href=\"http://www.voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/propositions/45/\" target=\"_blank\">Proposition 45\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"http://www.voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/propositions/46/\" target=\"_blank\">Proposition 46\u003c/a>, were a textbook case of death by a thousand cuts. Opponents had more money and an easier message: The measures were too complicated, poorly drafted, clever Trojan horses that really had an ulterior motive. Prop. 45, the measure to boost the regulatory power of the state insurance commissioner over health care rates, was a rebuke to Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, who championed the proposal. Prop. 46, the fight over doctor drug testing and medical malpractice awards, was a lawyers-versus-doctors smackdown that landed on the ballot after \u003ca href=\"http://www.news10.net/story/news/politics/john-myers/2014/01/22/4758601/\" target=\"_blank\">the two sides failed to reach any kind of deal in the Legislature\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mark DiCamillo, the longtime director of the nonpartisan Field Poll, has long joked that if he ever hung up his pollster badge and became a political campaign consultant, he’d only take on clients who wanted to defeat initiatives. “No” is where the easy money is, it seems. And combined, the Prop. 45/Prop. 46 opposition campaigns raised more than $111 million.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393727\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393727\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8168_127726920-e1420007401985-400x352.jpg\" alt=\"Tim Draper, the author of the Six Californias initiative. (Max Morse/Getty)\" width=\"400\" height=\"352\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8168_127726920-e1420007401985-400x352.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8168_127726920-e1420007401985-800x705.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS8168_127726920-e1420007401985-1440x1269.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tim Draper, the author of the Six Californias initiative. (Max Morse/Getty)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Let’s Stay Together, Loving You Whether …\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some day years from now, you’ll see it at an auction: \u003ca href=\"http://blog.sfgate.com/techchron/files/2014/07/states16_04.jpg\" target=\"_blank\">a bright crimson-colored, custom tie — one with a multi-colored map of California sliced into six new state configurations\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And you’ll say to yourself, “Oh yeah, that Six Californias thing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It wasn’t meant to be, at least not in 2014. The owner of that tie, Silicon Valley investor Tim Draper, came up short in his quirky quest to ask Californians to go their separate ways. \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/09/12/plan-to-split-california-six-ways-fails-to-make-ballot\" target=\"_blank\">Not only did his split-it-six-ways plan fail to make the fall ballot\u003c/a>, but Draper’s hired guns failed to even collect enough valid signatures to get it on the ballot in 2016. And that’s after he sank almost $5.3 million of his own cash into the endeavor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Skeptics doubted Draper was serious. Politicos mused that he was trying to get his name out there for a future run for statewide office. (But which state? Ah, the jokes). And \u003ca href=\"http://verdict.justia.com/2014/01/03/political-constitutional-questions-raised-tim-drapers-six-californias-plan-split-california\" target=\"_blank\">legal scholars said the initiative was absolutely unworkable and likely unconstitutional\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But hey, at least he’s still got that tie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_10393729\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 400px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-10393729\" src=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting-400x266.jpeg\" alt=\"Gov. Jerry Brown may have had the best year in politics of anyone in California. (Jeremy Raff/KQED)\" width=\"400\" height=\"266\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting-400x266.jpeg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting-800x533.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting-1440x960.jpeg 1440w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2014/12/RS10597_brownvoting.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gov. Jerry Brown may have had the best year in politics of anyone in California. (Jeremy Raff/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>The Tao of Jerry\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And finally, the hard-to-deny consensus big political winner in a year where Californians didn’t even seem to want to \u003cem>think\u003c/em> about politics: Edmund Gerald Brown Jr.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jerry Brown’s 45-year political career is best left to biographies rather than end-of-the-year lists. But suffice it to say, in an year when the electorate didn’t seem to want to embrace politics, the low-key style of Brown’s third term as governor seemed to suit Californians just fine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, it would be unfair to imply that Brown wasn’t working hard behind the scenes to secure a fourth term. From beating back legislation at the state Capitol that didn’t suit his finely honed persona of frugality … to \u003ca href=\"http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2014/10/04/jerry-brown-re-election-bid-quiet-just-like-he-wants-it\" target=\"_blank\">the non-campaign campaign\u003c/a> that saw him preach propositions rather than himself … Jerry Brown found a way to successfully match his political message to the electoral mood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He has an impeccable sense of timing,” said the governor’s top aide, Nancy McFadden, to a business group in November.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(Yes, but perhaps he learned it from having a lousy sense of timing in \u003ca href=\"http://www.thenewerworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/people.jpg\" target=\"_blank\">1976\u003c/a> … and \u003ca href=\"http://www.npr.org/blogs/politicaljunkie/2009/04/on_this_day_in_1980_jerry_brow.html\" target=\"_blank\">1980\u003c/a> … and \u003ca href=\"http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1982/10/24/page/30/article/jerry-brown-has-met-the-enemy-its-himself\" target=\"_blank\">1982\u003c/a> … and \u003ca href=\"http://www.newrepublic.com/article/117695/sidney-blumenthal-jerry-browns-campaign\" target=\"_blank\">1992\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Where Jerry Brown chooses to steer his governorship in the new year and beyond remains to be seen. But for now, he seems to like the course that he — and California — are on.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here’s hoping he and the state’s other political players make 2015 an interesting one to watch.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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},
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"info": "The day's top stories from BBC News compiled twice daily in the week, once at weekends.",
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},
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},
"californiareport": {
"id": "californiareport",
"title": "The California Report",
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"info": "KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareport",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 8
},
"link": "/californiareport",
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},
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"title": "The California Report Magazine",
"tagline": "Your state, your stories",
"info": "Every week, The California Report Magazine takes you on a road trip for the ears: to visit the places and meet the people who make California unique. The in-depth storytelling podcast from the California Report.",
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"order": 10
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz",
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"info": "A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available",
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"airtime": "SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am",
"meta": {
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"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
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},
"closealltabs": {
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"order": 1
},
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"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
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"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
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"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"order": 9
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"freakonomics-radio": {
"id": "freakonomics-radio",
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"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
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"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
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},
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"id": "fresh-air",
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"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
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"hidden-brain": {
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"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
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"meta": {
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"source": "NPR"
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"how-i-built-this": {
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"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
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"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
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"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
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"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
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"order": 15
},
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},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"order": 18
},
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},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
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},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
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"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
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},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
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"source": "WaitWhat"
},
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"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
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"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/stories-teachers-share",
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}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
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"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
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