[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Natasha Minsker

A panel of experts, including 10 law enforcement officers and prosecutors, unanimously agrees that California’s death penalty is utterly broken. To fix it, we’ll need to spend over $200 million per year. The current failed system already costs over $137 million more each year than our alternative of permanent imprisonment. Today’s report forces all Californians to ask: how much we are willing to pay for our death penalty when we have an alternative that punishes criminals and protects our communities without making us bankrupt?

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Mark Franco
Headman
Winnemem Wintu Tribe

For the Winnemem Wintu time seemed to stand still then move in reverse.

At the end of the day, The Winnemem Wintu Tribe drew one step closer to righting years of historic wrongs Tuesday. The California Senate Governmental Organizations Committee passed a Joint Resolution in support of restoring the Winnemem Wintu Tribe's federal recognition status. Assembly Joint Resolution 39 (AJR 39), authored by Assemblyman Jared Huffman which passed with no opposition, will now head to the Senate Floor for a vote in August. The resolution, authored by Assembly Member Huffman, urges the Federal Government to restore federal recognition status to the Tribe.

The Senate Government and Organization Committee met on Tuesday to decide the fate of numerous bills and actions set before it including the future of AJR 39. As we sat in the hallway before the resolution came up for discussion, the mood of the tribal members was optimistic and hopeful. We had spent a full day the week before meeting with Senators and staffers to discuss the resolution and left that “Lobby day” with the impression that we would be able to see our resolution head to the full Senate for a floor vote in August.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Frank D. Russo

There’s something amiss in the state of Sacramento—and it has something to do with the state’s banking and lending institutions and the stacking of committees that deal with them with legislators that are either weak kneed or just a bit overfriendly with the industry that they should be protecting us from.

What else is new?

Well, this afternoon, the Senate Committee on Banking, Finance, and Insurance, Chaired by Senator Michael Machado of Stockton, will be hearing two bills that have been gutted down behind a closed door process such that today’s public proceedings on them may amount to little more than a sham.

Much of this committee’s work deals with an issue in the headlines of newspapers and critically affecting California’s economy, including ripple effects on the state budget, and putting a lot of Californians in a lot of pain. One would think that Machado, given how his district is one that has been hammered by mortgage foreclosures and is referenced in dozens of news articles on the subprime mortgage mess, would be a bit more willing to curb some of the abuses of the industry.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Elizabeth (Betsy) Imholz
Director of Special Projects
Consumers Union

[Editor’s note: SB 1096 (Calderon) will be voted on by the California Senate tomorrow, the deadline for passage. It failed 17-17 last Thursday, but was granted reconsideration, amended, and is being heavily lobbied by the pharmaceutical industry and opposed by consumer groups.]

This bill would promote direct-to-consumer advertising which has been shown to be counterproductive for consumer well being; interfere with the doctor-patient relationship; undermine patient trust of pharmacists; and confuse rather than enlighten health care consumers about the safest medical care. Consumers Union opposes this bill because it would:

Increase confusing direct-to-consumer drug ads, changing the role of the pharmacist from independent professional to pharmaceutical company agent. Studies have shown pharmacists to be the most trusted source of information on quality and costs of prescription drugs, and pharmaceutical companies the least trusted source. Consumer confidence in pharmacists is essential to patients trust in the information they provide on possible side effects of prescribed drugs, appropriate dosage, and potential drug interactions.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

I am an attorney and small winery owner seeking the Democratic Nomination for the California State Senate race in the 15th District, a District that comprises five counties spanning from Santa Maria to Santa Cruz.

I am running because I believe every political race should have at least two candidates so that the freer and broader flow of ideas and perspectives are afforded to the People. Seeing there was no Democratic contender for this race, I immediately contacted my local Democratic Party, filed the necessary papers, and formally announced my intention to become California's next State Senator for the 15th District on May 22, 2008.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Leland Yee, Ph.D.
Assistant President pro Tem
California State Senate

Recently newspapers, broadcasters, online media outlets, schools, libraries, and civic groups across the country celebrated open government with Sunshine Week 2008. Here in California, I am working with First Amendment and public access advocates, teachers, students, and labor unions on a series of bills to provide greater transparency of government and increase public access to records that rightfully belong to the people. These bills range from protecting state whistleblowers and student speech rights to allowing public access of government contracts and reviewing of audits.

Protecting Journalism Teachers and Student Speech

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

Insurance take more in profits than benefits provided
Bill to restore disability benefits passes Senate committee

By Frank D. Russo

When the legislature passed Governor Schwarzenegger’s workers’ compensation bill in April of 2004, the Governor said it was not his intention to take away benefits from seriously injured workers—those with lifelong permanent disabilities. Although he has repeatedly promised to make sure that those workers do not fall between the cracks--often saying this in his veto messages of bills the legislature has passed to do so—no action has been taken and California stands fourth from the bottom in what we pay permanently disabled workers.