[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

They definitely know how to party at the state's Lottery Department,but unfortunately, taxpayers have to pick up the bill, the SacramentoBee reports. Democratic Controller John Chiang is pushing the LotteryDirector to repay the costs of some of the exorbitant activities.

Assembly Republicans are "working" on a plan to give more funding to schools without raising taxes, the San DiegoUnion Tribune. Whether this plan will make any sense policy-wise, andwhether it fulfills the spending minimums currently in place, remain tobe seen.

Right-wing crusader Tom McClintock, always the under-dog, may get a boost in his carpet-bagging Congressional bid if wealthy GOP opponent Doug Ose's personal spending triggers the "millionaire's amendment,"allowing McClintock to triple his contributions, the Bee reports. Someare taking to calling Ose a "liberal millionaire" for his somewhatmoderate record last time he was in Congress.

There's more... 

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

By 2050, Hispanics are projected to make up 52 percent of the state's population,and their setbacks and successes will mold California's economy,according to a Department of Finance study reported in the SacramentoBee. The state will add 25 million people to its ranks, bringing themid-century population to 60 million. Among the challenges associated with this population surgeare lowering the achievement gap between white and minority students,and pursuing development in a responsible way, according to columnistDan Walters

The brunt of this growth will be felt in Southern California, where Riverside County is projected to rise in population by more than 200 percent and surpass its neighbors as the second largest county in the state,according to the Los Angeles Times. Riverside residents are probablygoing to have to accept higher density, lest we lose the decliningrural areas the area has left. A 200 percent increase is, as LosAngeles economist Jack Kyser put it, "opportunity with baggage."