K. Lloyd Billingsley
Business & Economics
Deep Reform, Not Window Dressing, for a Cooler, Cleaner California
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) wants car companies to install metallic reflective windows, which regulators believe will reduce energy use and fight global warming. Though possibly well intentioned this plan amounts only to window dressing. Legislators should pursue deeper environmental reforms with more benefits and fewer disadvantages. CARB believes
Business & Economics
California Dreaming: Money for Nothing in the Golden State
California, a left-coast state, shows its isolation from common sense in many ways, including the latest developments at the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), the state’s taxpayer-funded institute for stem cell research. Created by Proposition 71 in 2004, CIRM is spending $3 billion in bond money on the embryonic
Business & Economics
Old Boss or New Boss, state stem cell agency still a bust
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has chosen financier Jonathan Thomas as its new boss — but it matters little who runs the state stem-cell agency. The focus should be on results, and by that standard, Californians do not get what they paid for. Thomas, an investment banker schooled
California
California Ignores Parents, Empowers Reactionaries
Many states are passing progressive legislation to empower parents and students with choice in education. California, on the other hand, is considering legislation that ignores the needs of students and makes the most powerful anti-choice force in the state even more powerful. In the nation’s capital, Congress has revived the
Commentary
Education theft versus pension theft: lessons for California
In Ohio and Connecticut, two African-American single mothers have been charged with “stealing education” for enrolling their children in a school district where they didn’t live. California can learn from these cases, but must proceed with caution. Tonya McDowell used the address of a baby sitter to register her 6-year-old
Business & Economics
A Case for Affirmative Disclosure of Public Pensions
An appeals court has ruled that a public agency must hand over pension data to a newspaper. This is a welcome development but a recent case confirms that California remains far behind the curve on government transparency. The Sacramento Bee has been conducting investigations into public employee pensions and finds
Commentary
Governor’s Hit List Needs More Diversity
Governor Jerry Brown wants to eliminate dozens of state panels and commissions, a good idea and long overdue. But the governor needs to be more inclusive, and stalk bigger game. His list includes the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board, a typical soft landing spot for ex-legislators. They meet about once a
California
California’s Cover Story
Last month The Economist ran a cover story: “Where it all went wrong: A special report on California’s dysfunctional democracy.” The report blames “direct democracy,” the initiative process, for the state’s woes. The ruling class loves the report, but Californians have good reason to be wary. The initiative process lets
Blackouts
Moonbeams Over California: The 33-percent Non-solution
California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed SB 2x by Joe Simitian, mandating that 33 percent of the state’s energy come from renewable sources by 2020, an increase of 13 percent from the previous mandate of 20 percent. This signals bad news for California but reveals a key dynamic of our
Business & Economics
Recession and Recovery in California
Last month Jerry Nickelsburg, senior economist with the UCLA Anderson Project, held forth at the University of California Sacramento Center on key themes involving recession and recovery. Nickelsburg agrees that we are in a “deep recession,” in contrast to those of 2001 and 1990, which were “very mild recessions.” He
Deep Reform, Not Window Dressing, for a Cooler, Cleaner California
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) wants car companies to install metallic reflective windows, which regulators believe will reduce energy use and fight global warming. Though possibly well intentioned this plan amounts only to window dressing. Legislators should pursue deeper environmental reforms with more benefits and fewer disadvantages. CARB believes
California Dreaming: Money for Nothing in the Golden State
California, a left-coast state, shows its isolation from common sense in many ways, including the latest developments at the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), the state’s taxpayer-funded institute for stem cell research. Created by Proposition 71 in 2004, CIRM is spending $3 billion in bond money on the embryonic
Old Boss or New Boss, state stem cell agency still a bust
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has chosen financier Jonathan Thomas as its new boss — but it matters little who runs the state stem-cell agency. The focus should be on results, and by that standard, Californians do not get what they paid for. Thomas, an investment banker schooled
California Ignores Parents, Empowers Reactionaries
Many states are passing progressive legislation to empower parents and students with choice in education. California, on the other hand, is considering legislation that ignores the needs of students and makes the most powerful anti-choice force in the state even more powerful. In the nation’s capital, Congress has revived the
Education theft versus pension theft: lessons for California
In Ohio and Connecticut, two African-American single mothers have been charged with “stealing education” for enrolling their children in a school district where they didn’t live. California can learn from these cases, but must proceed with caution. Tonya McDowell used the address of a baby sitter to register her 6-year-old
A Case for Affirmative Disclosure of Public Pensions
An appeals court has ruled that a public agency must hand over pension data to a newspaper. This is a welcome development but a recent case confirms that California remains far behind the curve on government transparency. The Sacramento Bee has been conducting investigations into public employee pensions and finds
Governor’s Hit List Needs More Diversity
Governor Jerry Brown wants to eliminate dozens of state panels and commissions, a good idea and long overdue. But the governor needs to be more inclusive, and stalk bigger game. His list includes the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board, a typical soft landing spot for ex-legislators. They meet about once a
California’s Cover Story
Last month The Economist ran a cover story: “Where it all went wrong: A special report on California’s dysfunctional democracy.” The report blames “direct democracy,” the initiative process, for the state’s woes. The ruling class loves the report, but Californians have good reason to be wary. The initiative process lets
Moonbeams Over California: The 33-percent Non-solution
California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed SB 2x by Joe Simitian, mandating that 33 percent of the state’s energy come from renewable sources by 2020, an increase of 13 percent from the previous mandate of 20 percent. This signals bad news for California but reveals a key dynamic of our
Recession and Recovery in California
Last month Jerry Nickelsburg, senior economist with the UCLA Anderson Project, held forth at the University of California Sacramento Center on key themes involving recession and recovery. Nickelsburg agrees that we are in a “deep recession,” in contrast to those of 2001 and 1990, which were “very mild recessions.” He
