AM Alert: Legislators discuss declining voter turnout

A record-low 42.2 percent of California voters participated in last November’s statewide general election, five months after a mere 25 percent of them voted in the June 2014 primary.

Lawmakers, political consultants and other experts will discuss the reasons for the growing election apathy and possible solutions at “Understanding California’s Voter Turnout Crisis: The Decline of Civic Participation,” an event hosted by the Leadership California Institute.So far this year, lawmakers have put forward proposals for automatic voter registration and other efforts to help reverse the voter drought.

The lineup of speakers includes state Sen. Ben Allen D-Santa Monica, and Assemblywoman Ling-Ling Chang R-Diamond Bar. Kim Alexander, president and founder of the California Voter Foundation, and Anthony York, editor and publisher of the Grizzly Bear Project, will also contribute to the forum.

The event is at 11 a.m. at the Citizen Hotel, 926 J Street.

FRACKING: Two years ago, Gov. Jerry Brown signed California’s most comprehensive legislation on the controversial oil and gas drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing. The measure mandates permits and groundwater monitoring for energy companies seeking to begin new fracking wells, as well as requiring the state to conduct an independent scientific assessment of well stimulation in California. The second set of those reports is set to be released today. The California Council on Science and Technology will present its findings, including how well stimulation could affect water, atmosphere, seismic activity, wildlife and vegetation, and human health, 3 p.m. at the California Environmental Protection Agency on I Street.

BREAST CANCER SEMINAR: Recent research suggests that women with dense breast tissue may not need the additional cancer screenings often recommended by physicians – well-intentioned caution that can lead to false positives and burdensome costs. Joy Melkinow, director for the Center of Health Policy and Research at UC Davis, will discuss the changing evidence on cancer screenings and prevention, and its effect on public health guidelines, noon at the UC Center Sacramento on K Street.

By: ALEXEI KOSEFF AND CATHERINE DOUGLAS MORAN

Via: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article26824324.html

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article26824324.html#storylink=cpy

Get Out the Vote Tomorrow!

 

Tomorrow, join the thousands that will make their voice heard and Get Out Your Vote!

Polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. You can find your polling place  

here. 

This election Gladys (right) voted for the very first time in her life. After years of incarceration and people making decisions for her she finally had the opportunity to choose for herself and let her voice be heard! 

Take Action California wants you to remember that Your Voice Matters! 

You are NOT Invisible!

Special Election: Morrell wins state Senate seat

Assemblyman Mike Morrell, R-Rancho Cucamonga, won Tuesday's special election in the 23rd Senate District. 

Morrell received 62.6 percent of the vote, with all 811 precincts reporting, according to semi-official results released by the Secretary of State's Office.

Democrat Ronald O'Donnell, an attorney, was second with 15.3 percent, followed by Democrat Ameenah Fuller, a health care policy consultant, with 9.5 percent, Calimesa City Councilman Jeff Hewitt, a Libertarian, with 6.5 percent and San Jacinto Mayor Crystal Ruiz, also a Republican, at 6.1 percent.

Under California's top two primary system, if one candidate captures a majority of the votes, they win outright and there is no run-off in the general election.

The special primary election was necessitated by the resignation of Sen. Bill Emmerson, R-Redlands, who said his "level of commitment'' had waned, and he felt constituents deserved better representation.

In campaign literature, Morrell touted his legislative experience and two decades as a business owner. He said if elected, he would push for a balanced state budget, a reduction in the state bureaucracy and higher academic standards.

California GOP sees role to protect education funds

What's a marginalized minority party to do?

It's a key question for Republican lawmakers staring down a newly enshrined Democratic supermajority. Part of the answer so far seems to be a renewed emphasis on higher education.

Both Sen. Anthony Cannella, R-Ceres, and Assemblyman Jeff Gorell, R-Camarillo, have introduced a pair of bills that would freeze tuition at the University of California andCalifornia State University for the seven-year duration of the higher tax rates mandated by Proposition 30.

Since voters approved the tax measure last fall, the authors say they have a role to play in ensuring that an influx of new money from Proposition 30 is exclusively used for education. They say failing to do so would betray voters to whom the initiative was sold as a vehicle for averting more education cuts.

"A lot of people made a lot of implied promises to college students that everything would be OK if Prop. 30 passes," Cannella said. "If anyone thinks the state of California will just keep that money in a bank account," he added, "it's just not going to happen."

Democrats are more skeptical of Republican lawmakers' motives, given that they resisted putting such a measure on the ballot in the first place. Had it failed to pass, resulting cuts in higher education would likely have spurred a tuition hike.

"They're in a situation where they have been fundamentally irrelevant to most of the public policy discussions in Sacramento for quite a while now, and their first step to have some credibility is to say something in the public policy debate," said Democratic strategist Bill Carrick. "So what they've done, obviously, is say, well, people care about education, let's get out front on this."

The fact that Republicans went from opposing Proposition 30 to casting themselves as responsible stewards of the money it raised is a move born more of expedience than of principle, said Steve Maviglio, a Sacramento political consultant who worked for two Democratic Assembly speakers. He called the emphasis on higher education "a post-election gimmick."

"It's like they woke up the day after the election and decided they have a commitment to education," he said.

The focus on higher education was evident in GOP responses to Gov. Jerry Brown's budget proposal last month, which Brown trumpeted as a testament to the new-found fiscal stability Proposition 30 is set to provide.

While many Republican lawmakers praised Brown's budget, they also exhorted Brown and Democrats to ensure that the influx of new funding goes to schools.

In a written response to the budget, Republican Connie Conway, R-Tulare, called the tuition freeze bills an effort to "ensure that this revenue goes to boost higher education funding and prevent tuition and fee increases at our public colleges and universities, just as the voters intended."

In a follow-up interview, Conway affirmed that "we see our role as a watchdog."

"I believe that promises made should be promises kept, so if you're out there telling people 'if you vote for this to raise taxes then it's going to go to education,' then it should," Conway said.

Assemblyman Dan Logue, R-Marysville, has also introduced a pair of higher education bills. They would create pilot programs enabling students to obtain a degree for $10,000 and $20,000, respectively, an effort to hold down ballooning tuition costs.

"We're pricing kids out of a good education, especially the middle class," Logue said.

Democrats campaigned heavily for Proposition 30 on college campuses, mobilizing student voters by saying the ballot measure would prevent a tuition hike.

Logue is also promoting his measures to the young voter bloc, which had some of the highest turnout rates of any age group in California during the November elections.

In a recent press release, he said students have "some of the most powerful voices when it comes to getting involved in government" and called his bills "the beginning of a revolution to the very pressing issue of the rising costs of education."

The 2012-13 budget promised the University of California and California State University $125 million each in 2013-14 if Proposition 30 passed, and the schools agreed to hold tuition steady for 2012-13. Dianne Klein, a spokeswoman for the University of California, said the funding levels in Brown's budget should be enough to prevent a tuition bump this year.

Pushing to ensure that remains the case is one way for Republicans to exert influence when they otherwise have little room to maneuver, said Aaron McLear, political consultant and former press secretary to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"They have limited leverage, no question about it," McLear said. "So I think they're using what power they have to try and effect change in the state instead of just curling up and moaning about being in the superminority."

Cannella did not publicly take a position on Proposition 30. But now that the voters have spoken, Cannella said, "the equation has changed." New revenues are coming, and that presents a chance for Republicans to make the most of their diminished status.

"On a political landscape in which support for education is measured predominantly by the amount of money you're willing to spend, Republicans don't get many opportunities to play the education issue to their advantage," said Dan Schnur, director of the University of Southern California's Unruh Institute of Politics. "By arguing about how the Prop. 30 money is going to be spent, they get a chance to look like the big guys."

via The Sacramento Bee

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/02/03/5161070/minority-california-republicans.html#storylink=cpy

California Propositions: An Election Night roundup (KPCC Report)

By Julie Small | November 7th, 2012, 4:51am


The results for the 11 propositions on Tuesday's ballot reinforced one thing: California voters remain unpredictable. They softened the Three Strikes law, but kept the death penalty intact; our supposedly health-conscious denizens don't care to know if their food is genetically modified; and they voted for a tax hike, even as the state economy continues to struggle. Go figure.

Prop 30 — Temporary taxes to fund education: The Governor’s initiative rebounded after a precipitous drop late in the polls (54%-46%). The threat of $6 billion in cuts to public schools and universities was the motivation for a majority of voters. (For more, click here.)

Prop 31 —Establishes two-year state budget cycle: This cornucopia of government reforms fell flat with voters, who rejected it by a wide margin (60%-40%). While Californians consistently give state lawmakers low approval ratings, they were not convinced the proposed changes would make much of a difference.  Some politicos think the measure was too confusing for voters.

Prop 32 — Prohibits unions from using payroll-deducted funds for political purposes: A majority of voters disapproved of doing away with the ability of unions to raise money for political contributions (56%-44%).  While many Californians agree that unions hold too much sway over Sacramento, they disliked the idea of giving unions less sway than corporations.

Prop 33 — Auto insurance prices based on driver history: Voters resoundingly rejected the measure funded solely by the Chairman of Mercury General Insurance (55%-45%).  The proposal would have allowed insurance companies to offer discount to new customers who've maintained coverage.  But Consumer Watchdog countered that insurance companies would offset the savings to those drivers by merely increasing rates other drivers pay.

Prop 34 — Repeals death penalty and replaces it with life imprisonment without possibility of parole: Californians aren’t ready to give up the death penalty (53%-47%). Opponents of the measure argued that the state should maintain capital punishment for the most heinous criminals. That message resonated with voters despite a slow appeals process and legal challenges to the state’s methods that have delayed the execution of 3,100 inmates sentenced to death.  California’s has executed just 13 inmates since it reinstated capital punishment.

Prop 35 — Increases criminal penalties for human trafficking: The measure gained an early lead and maintained it through the night (81%-19%). The coalition of victims groups, prosecutors and politicians in support faced no formal opposition.

Prop 36 — Revises three strikes law: Californians overwhelmingly supported easing the Three Strikes law, which is the toughest in the nation (69%-31%).  Until now, anyone convicted of two serious or violent felonies could be sentenced to 25 years to life if they committed a third crime — even if that last crime was relatively minor. Now the third conviction would have to be violent or serious in nature.  The change allows 2,800 three-strikers to apply for a reduction of their sentences.

Prop 37 — Genetically engineered foods labeling: Voters sided with large agriculture companies who warned that forcing growers and food manufacturers to label all genetically modified foods would raise food prices (53%-47%).  Opponents spent $46 million to defeat the measure.  Supporters raised just $9 million, relying heavily on social media to reach voters.

Prop 38 — Tax for education. early childhood programs: The revenues from this sliding scale tax increase would have infused public schools with billions of dollars over more than a decade, but it proved less popular with voters than Prop 30 which raises income tax on just the wealthiest Californians (73%-27%).  The measure's main proponent and funder, civil rights attorney Molly Munger, conceded defeat early in the night.
Prop 39 — Business tax for energy funding: Voters overwhelmingly favored getting rid of a law that allows multi-state companies to choose the most favorable sales tax method (60%-40%).  Removing that option will generate an extra $1 billion annually for California.  That turned out to be a no-brainer for voters.  It also helped that no corporation chose to oppose the change.

Prop 40 — Redistricting, State Senate: Two years ago, voters approved new districts established through a bi-partisan citizen commission.  State Republican lawmakers had challenged the new political maps in court.  But after the California Supreme Court rejected the legal effort, Republicans withdrew their support for Prop 40, which ended up losing by a wide margin (72%-28%).