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Forget a Train, Schwarzenegger Wants the 405 Fwy to be Double Deckered

Image via KTLA Nevermind that the 30 year vision of regional transportation includes bridging the San Fernando Valley with the L.A. Basin via rail or rapid transit, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is dreaming of a two-story 405 freeway. Speaking yesterday at a press conference celebrating the massive 405 car pool lane project that recently began, he said " hopefully, eventually, we will build on top of the 405 Freeway because I think we need another...
Officials Considering Doubling Number of Red Light Cameras

Photo by TheTruthAbout... via Flickr The city could soon be bringing in more much-needed revenue if they follow through on discussions to expand the current red light camera program, according to the LA Times. Over the next few months LA's motorists could see cameras added to "blocks of eight intersections at a time and eventually doubling the overall reach of the program to 64 intersections." The city's return on investment in the program and...
DNA Rape Kit Backlog, Release of Prisoners to be Hot Topics at City Public Safety Panel Today [Updated]

Photo by seantoyer via Flickr Thousands of rape kits waiting to be DNA tested and the ominous threat that 40,000 prisoners will be released onto the streets are expected to be dominating issues at today's Public Safety Committee of the Los Angeles City Council. Back in the fall of 2008, nearly 7,000 rape kits sat on LAPD evidence shelves waiting to be tested for DNA. The unwieldy backlog gained the public's attention and the...
Schwarzenegger: Balance the Budget with Speed Camera Tickets

As part of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's budget proposal, which includes offshore oil drilling to fund state parks, he included an idea that would enable cameras at intersections not just catch red light violators, but speeders, too. If passed, cities and counties would be able to install a speed sensor, says the LA Times. "Those whizzing by the detectors up to 15 mph above the limit would have to fork over $225 per violation," the...
Schwarzenegger: Fund State Parks via Offshore Oil Money

Prairie Creek Redwood State Park, brought to you by Offshore Drilling? | Photo by andrew davidoff via Flickr For once, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger laid out a budget proposal that does not cut money from state parks. That sounds great, however, it's one of those tricky smoke and mirrors ideas--he'll fund state parks using offshore oil money, says Traci Verardo-Torres of the California State Parks Foundation. "The California State Parks Foundation (CSPF) rejects the Governor’s...
Watch Schwarzenegger's State of the State at 10 a.m. Online

Lame duck Governor Schwarzenegger today will give his last State of the State speech and it won't be sexy. Faced with a $20.7 billion deficit and 12.3% unemployment, he will hopefully lay out plans that will truly put California back on the right track. Here's out the San Francisco Chronicle recaps the past 12 months: "The state issued IOUs to vendors and taxpayers; halted construction of thousands of projects for months..."
Does Schwarzenegger Hate Public Transit?

After the Governor tried to raid public transit funds and was stopped by the courts, he's after the money again, but with a different shell game. As pointed out by Damien Newton at Streestblog LA, the LA Times reports that "the governor would eliminate the sales tax on gas and, at the same time, impose a new per-gallon excise tax. Drivers would pay about 5 cents less per gallon at the pump. The excise...
Again? State Budget Faces $21 Billion Projected Deficit

AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli Billions taken healthcare and education, a 32 percent hike under consideration in the University system, the list could go on. The big question is, after this year, what more is there to cut? It's an especially important question considering a new projected deficit puts California almost back in the same spot when dealing with this year's budget. A report to be released today by the state's chief budget analyst says California's...
More State Budget Drama on the Way

The state is already looking at a $5 to $7 billion budget deficit for this fiscal year. Next year, another $7 billion. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will reveal his solutions in January, but today answered questions from the press, according to the LA Times. “I think there will be across-the-board cuts again. We are not going to go and pick and choose [ between programs]. I think that we always have to go and cut...
Video: Colbert Names Schwarzenegger 'Alpha Dog of the Week'

We're a joke, so it's time to laugh at ourselves, California. Last night the Colbert Report took on Schwarzenegger, making fun of our Governor's adorable breakfast photo on Twitter and his letter to Assemblyman Tom Ammiano that contained a hidden "fuck you."
Secret Message to the Guvernator: Grow Up Girlie Man

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger apparently slipped in an embedded and hidden "fuck you" in a veto message to San Francisco Assemblymember Tom Ammiano and now the San Francisco Chronicle is taking a stab back. A hidden message in their in-print editorial today reads "Grow Up Girlie Man." And maybe the state's frat boy squad can get back to work now. (h/t LAObserved)...
Topanga, Malibu Creek & 5 Other Local State Parks Affected by Service Cuts

When Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger saved state parks from closing, it didn't mean he saved them from service cuts. Today, state park officials announced how they would deal with a $14.2 million budget cut: Superintendents for each district (for example, many of L.A.'s nearby parks are in the Angeles District, beaches in the OC and Ventura County are in the Orange Coast and Channel Coast districts, respectively) had to share the sacrifice and find cuts on a park-by-park basis.
Hello, NFL Stadium: Schwarzenegger Expected to Sign Stadium Bill

Oakland Raiders and the Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday. The Eagles are not coming to L.A. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) Tomorrow, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is expected to sign the bill that will exempt developers of the proposed NFL stadium from some environmental laws, reports James Wagner at the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. Once the law goes into affect, Ed Roski's Majestic Realty will be able to break ground on the 600-acre project, which has been delayed...
New Colloquialism? Driving, Talking on Cell Phone = 'Pulling a Shriver'

Via TMZ TMZ caught pop-singer Brandy yesterday illegally using her cell phone while driving. And then they called it pulling a Shriver, thanks to Califonia's First Lady who last week was caught a number of times breaking the law her hubby signed into law. Shriver apologized, but this may be her legacy, at least in pop culture. We'll see if this phrase actually catches on (Maria should truly be noted for her work on...
Schwarzenegger Expected to Sign Domestic Violence Legislation

After wiping out 100 percent of domestic violence funds in the state budget over the summer, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is expected to sign a bill tomorrow that will restore funding....
Senate Approves Environmental Exemptions for NFL Stadium. Hello, Raiders?

Watch out, Los Angeles. We might be having a Raider Nation soon enough (or hey, maybe even get back the Chargers). In a legislative session yesterday, the state's senate approved a bill that "would grant the 75,000-seat stadium project an exemption from the California Environmental Quality Act, the environmental law that governs development," according to the San Gabriel Valley Tribune.
Maria Shriver Apologizes About Breaking Cell Phone Driving Law

"Breaking News" photo courtesy of TMZ After being caught not once, not twice, but thrice, California's First Lady Maria Shriver apologized today for breaking the cell phone while driving law. Her brief statement: I’m sorry. I will be donating my favorite old cell phone to my Women’s Conference partner Verizon through their HopeLine program that helps domestic violence shelters. I invite anyone else who wants to recycle their old phone to join me. That’s...
Field Poll Says Approval Rating of Legislature at a Sad 13%

AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli That's the lowest approval rating of the Legislature from registered voters in the Field Poll's 26-year history. And that's not the only record broken. He may eat adorable breakfasts, but that's not going to save Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's 27 percent rating, the lowest since he entered office (and a number only found back in 1961 with Pat Brown). But still, he isn't the governor with the worst approval rating, that goes...
Schwarzenegger Approved Gay Rights Bills, But Not Transgender Ones

Although two major gay rights bills were signed by Governor Schwarzenegger this weekend, two dealing with transgender issues were vetoed. One would have aided transgender people to revise their birth certificates and the other would have provided protections for transgender people in prison. "AB 1185 will allow individuals who were born in California but are now living elsewhere and have surgically changed their gender, to obtain a revised birth certificate that indicates their new...
Tougher Anti-Paparazzi Measure Aimed at Media Signed by Schwarzenegger

Photo by adactio via Flickr Among the various laws signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger yesterday was one strengthening an already existing law aimed at paparazzi. "To curtail the potentially harmful situations and other problems created by out of control paparazzi, AB 524 extends the 'invasion of privacy' laws to persons that purchase, publish, and print images or recordings of individuals, if these persons knew that the images or recordings were obtained illegal," according to...
Does Schwarzenegger Eat a Happier Breakfast Than You?

This might top that knife-yielding video of his from the Summer. On Friday, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger twitpic'd the above image and said "This is how I start my day." He may be part of the major political destruction of California, but he gains at least one adorable point with us. And question... did Maria make that for him? Random Sort-of Related Link: We still prefer our oatmeal cold and raw...
Schwarzenegger Vetoes 710 Freeway Bill

Photo by bossco via Flickr Governor Arnold Scwharzenegger last night vetoed a bill that would have limited the options of completing the 710 Freeway, which is considered the missing link of the regional freeway system, according to the L.A. Times. If signed, the bill would have stopped any possibility of a surface route, therefore increasing chances of a 4.5-mile tunnel under South Pasadena, connecting to the 134/210 freeway exchange. "There is absolutely no need...
Schwarzenegger Signs 2 Gay Rights Bills

Among the hundreds of bills signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger last night, two gay rights ones were authored by San Francisco's Senator Mark Leno. One names May 22nd as Harvey Milk Day and the other recognizes same-sex marriages from other states by providing "the same legal protections that would otherwise be available to couples that enter into civil unions or domestic partnerships out-of-state," according to the bill's language. "In short, this measure honors the...
Are State Parks Actually Saved? There's Spin Behind Schwarzenegger's Announcement, Says Advocates

At the Salton Sea State Recreation Area | Photo by doisneau via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr Elizabeth Goldstein, President of the California State Parks Foundation, is calling bullshit on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's announcement that state parks are saved. No details beyond the announcement have been released since last Friday, but Goldstein says read between the lines: The really damning thing is that all of these "solutions" were things the Department was thinking about...
Schwarzenegger's Budget Cuts to Domestic Violence Has Closed 6 Shelters So Far

Photo by Nathalie_Renaud via Flickr State Parks are not closing after all, but at least six domestic violence shelters around the state have closed due to a small, but devastating budget cut by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger over the summer. That's according to the Domestic Violence Center of the Santa Clarita Valley, which came close to being the seventh such closure. With half of their funding cut, the center asked for the community's help and...
Good News Friday: State Parks Will Not Close!

A surprise announcement from state officials came this afternoon in the form of no state park closures. Wow. A big improvement from the original proposal to close 80 percent of parks last Spring, which eventually was weeded down to 100 park closures in the summer. As state park officials worked on a closure list, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger stepped in with renewed interest this week, offering assistance in the form of experts from the Department of Finance.
Schwarzenegger to Consider 2 Bills that Would Protect State Parks

Walking the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park in Northern California | Photo by paulhami via Flickr Among the many bills approved by the legislature and sent to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's desk for approval are two state parks bills. They have nothing to do with the possible closures and in fact, they were introduced long before any one would have thought that hundreds would be threatened during the budget process. "In the midst of the...
California to Ask for $4.5 Billion in High Speed Rail Stimulus Funds

With the feds yearning to give away $8 billion in Recovery Act money to states for high-speed train development, California officials today prepared to submit an application asking for more than half of that. "California is a leading contender for this federal funding because our true high-speed rail system is further along than any other project in the country," said California High-Speed Rail Authority Chairman Curt Pringle. "Plus, we can double the value of...
Schwarzenegger Takes a Renewed Interest in Saving State Parks

Good news comes today as Governor Arnold Schwarzegger's office announced that that plans to close state parks have changed. Fewer parks will close and plans to release a list of those parks has been dropped. Although the Governor's office is downplaying the shift in direction, the Mercury News juxtaposes it with this point:
Schwarzenegger Vetoes Renewable Energy Bills, but Mandates His Own Plan

Photo by Pink Dispatcher via Flickr Although the legislature last week approved two bills meant to help California obtain 33 percent renewable energy by 2020--a goal provided in legislation from 2006--Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today announced that he will instead sign an executive order mandating the same goal that will use different methods. A fact everyone can agree on is that the state relies too much on coal-fired plants for energy. AB 64 (Krekorian) and...