After Friday’s tragic shootings in Connecticut, all eyes are on President Barack Obama and U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s efforts to introduce federal gun control legislation. But real action is happening on the local and state level, too. As a number of states have Democratic legislatures and governors — including Illinois, Colorado, Massachusetts, Connecticut and, of course, California — look for them to dust off previously shelved gun control laws.
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Just because the state legislature isn’t schedule to meet again until Jan. 7, doesn’t mean our elected elves are not hard at work. In anticipation of opening day, they are giddily churning out proposed Constitutional Amendments in the hope that this might be the magical year for change. Each amendment needs a two-thirds vote in the state senate and assembly in order to appear on a statewide ballot for possible passage.
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Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting was the last for Supervisor Sean Elsbernd, who is sadly termed out. The party for him that night at the Irish Cultural Center was packed with elected leaders and City Hall staffers wishing him well and thanking him for 12 years of service as the voice of reason at the board.
Here are some juicy tidbits of gossip I picked up while mingling at the shindig.
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In November 2007, voters passed Proposition I, creating the Office of Small Business and directing it to issue, by April 2008, a report that recommended possible streamlining and consolidation of regulatory functions supervised by that agency. The idea was to make life easier for The City’s often-beleaguered small business.
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Assembly Speaker John Perez (D-Los Angeles) has opened an account to collect funds for a run to be Lieutenant Governor in 2018. Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) has already collected over $500,000 in contributions to run for the same position, but it’s unlikely that the Democratic Party powerhouses will run against each other.
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At Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, David Campos announced that he is asking the budget and legislative analyst to conduct a performance review of the San Francisco Housing Authority. He repeatedly stated (so you know it’s true) that “the focus is not on individuals or personalities” but “what is happening to address the needs of the residents.”
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Today at 9:30 a.m., lawyer John Mounier will stand in front of Judge Harold Kahn and plead for Charlie’s life. Having assaulted a police horse at Crissy Field, he was sentenced to death even though he is a first offender, with no prior record of aggressive behavior.
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Supervisor Scott Wiener is trying hard to fix Muni, but no one wants to pay for it. With $420 million in deferred maintenance and a $100 million deficit each year, the prospect of getting our public-transportation system on track is getting more remote.
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Straight from the “careful how you defend yourself” file is this insight from the California Department of Education, which recently defended itself from allegations that our kids are receiving a substandard education by arguing that, “There is no constitutional right to a ‘meaningful’ education.”
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Last week, Supervisor David Campos voted against limiting nudity and in favor of spending $1.6 million to fund the first five months of a pilot program giving free Muni passes to low-income youths.
When debating the Muni vote, Campos said that choosing between paying for maintenance on Muni and the free passes is a “false choice.” In response, Supervisor Sean Elsbernd launched one of his signature rants:
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Same-sex couples in California might get an early Christmas present next week — and retailers an unexpected boost in sales — if the U.S. Supreme Court refuses to review the case of Hollingsworth v. Perry.
Back in February of this year, a panel of three justices on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision stating that Proposition 8, the state’s ban on gay marriage passed by voters in 2008, was unconstitutional because it revoked a previously recognized right for same-sex couples to wed.
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I’m enjoying party season in San Francisco, except for the fact that I’m asked routinely about whether Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi is going to be the subject of a recall.
Honestly, I don’t know.
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In this last of a four-part series examining the legislative accomplishments of our local elected officials, we turn to state Sen. Leland Yee.
Like his San Francisco colleagues in the statehouse, Yee was elected to state office after serving on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. In 2002, Yee joined the state Assembly and was elected to the Senate in 2006, where he has served ever since. Yee is termed-out in 2014.
In 2012 the governor signed into law the following legislation authored by Yee:
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The supermajority of Democrats that is shaping up the state Legislature will have the power to do more than just put initiatives before the voters, they will have a veto-proof majority to make other changes.
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Like gossiping and checking one’s iPhone, it’s never good manners to talk politics at the dinner table. But we all do it. And so, in preparation for dinner conversations on this day, when everyone except unfit parents camping out at department stores will be at a table somewhere, I give you a quick primer on what has happened recently in San Francisco politics.
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