by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Well, that didn't take long.  Yesterday, we pointed out a Capitol Weekly story indicating that Sen. Steinberg was planning to run to be the Senate Leader. Today, it appears to be a done deal.  The CA Majority Report is now citing "several legislative sources" that Senator Perata has "orchestrated" a smooth transition to Senator Steinberg, a fairly progressive Sacramentan. Sen. Steinberg will take over as leader on August 21, a few months before Perata is termed out of office.

Now, I guess we're left with watching the Assembly for all the "palace intrigue."

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Gary A. Patton
Executive Director
Planning and Conservation League

This week the Senate rejected SB 3XX (Cogdill), the $9 billion water bond with $5 billion for new, environmentally damaging dams. We applaud the Senate, and in particular Senator Perata and Senator Steinberg for their leadership in rejecting that wasteful proposal.

However, late yesterday the Governor's office sent a new proposal to key legislators, offering a "compromise" water package that would provide $3.5 billion for environmentally damaging dams.

While the legislative leadership has held strong in its opposition to dam funding thus far, the Governor's office is applying increased pressure to key legislators to accept his proposal and deliver a dam funding package in the next week.

Directing billions for dams will not address the crisis in the Delta, or provide increased water supply reliability to California. If advanced, this proposal threatens to derail the continued collaboration by all stakeholders in addressing these critical problems.

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

In a noisy Capitol rotunda on Friday, Governor Schwarzenegger signed the state budget with a sign plastered to his desk for the TV cameras that read: "California Priorities, California Values." Minutes later, when the Department of Finance issued the Governor's blue pencil vetoes to pander to Senate Republicans, it was clear that Schwarzenegger's values are wildly out of sync with those of most Californians.
 
Cases in point:

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Patricia Ryan
Executive Director
California Mental Health Directors Association

Nearly 5,000 Californians with a serious mental illness may wind up back on the streets—homeless—if Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s proposal to eliminate funds for the nationally recognized AB 2034 program is included in the final 2007-08 budget act.

Established first as a pilot program to serve homeless adults with serious mental illness, the outcomes on the individual and program levels were so impressive that the Legislature passed AB 2034 (Steinberg) to expand the program in 34 counties throughout the state. Approximately $55 million is allocated each year to California counties to serve individuals in their community with a serious mental illness who have a history or are “at risk” of homelessness, hospitalization, or incarceration. Considered a “best practice,” the program was recently cited as a model program for other communities to emulate in the President’s New Freedom Commission Report.