California Legislature

Drivers with disabled placards may have to pay at meters in SF

By: Will Reisman 05/19/13 4:00 AM

Under a new proposal backed by city leaders, motorists with disabled placards would have to pay for parking and be subject to time limits at meters. Read More

Bill would add distracted driving question to driver's license application

By: Mike Billings 04/12/13 4:53 PM

State Assemblyman Tom Ammiano wants the state’s drivers to be aware of the dangers of distracted driving — and to swear to it. The San Francisco Democrat’s legislation, Assembly Bill 840, would require that people who are applying for or renewing a driver’s license sign a statement to acknowledge “that he or she knows the dangers of distracted driving,” according to the bill. Read More

It is time for San Francisco to act on CEQA reform

By: Bob Linscheid 04/03/13 6:38 PM

San Francisco’s planning approval process is notoriously difficult, often taking months — and sometimes a decade or more — to approve a project. The City’s lengthy process can add significantly to a developer’s costs. These costs are impacting the pace of development and the type of projects that get built in The City. Read More

Jerry Brown’s proposed fees for public information are a dreadful idea

By: SF Examiner Editorial 04/03/13 6:36 PM

A few ideas in Gov. Jerry Brown’s recent budget proposal would be so damaging to the free flow of information in California that they should be scrapped immediately. Read More

High-speed rail plan has sped away from oversight

By: Melissa Griffin 03/24/13 1:14 AM

The Public Policy Institute of California released a poll Wednesday showing that likely voters are opposed to spending $68 billion on high-speed rail by a margin of 54 to 43 percent. And who could blame them? They voted in 2008 to endorse a $42.6 billion plan that would require $9.95 billion in state bonds and the rest from the federal government and private funding. Read More

Governments should not tax the health premiums paid by gay couples

By: SF Examiner Editorial 02/21/13 10:10 PM

Much is said about marriage equality for same-sex couples, and this paper fully supports the right of gay couples to wed. But at a broader level, there is vast inequality in other ways in which the government treats same-sex couples. Consider health insurance. Read More

Environmental law has the potential to derail projects

By: Melissa Griffin 02/16/13 8:30 PM

The term “CEQA reform” is one heard a lot these days, with Gov. Jerry Brown referring to it in his State of the State address and groups already lining up to prevent changes to the law. But what is CEQA? And does it need to be reformed? Read More

Pension fixes are false hope of real reform

By: Melissa Griffin 02/07/13 11:27 PM

At the Jan. 24 meeting of the state Senate Budget Committee, Sen. Bill Emmerson, R-Redlands, began by pointing out, “The governor has identified $180 billion of unfunded retirement liabilities, and the pension changes that we made last year did nothing to address these pension liabilities.” Read More

California doing well, but can do better

By: SF Examiner Editorial 01/14/13 10:00 PM

It is not often that the phrases “California budget” and “good” are spoken in the same conversation, let alone the same sentence. And though the Golden State’s budget looks rosier these days, it is not time to stop working toward a stronger fiscal future. Read More

San Francisco legislators are eager to reform Proposition 13 and related tax policies

By: Mike Billings 12/13/12 9:41 PM

It is easy to spark a lively debate in California with just six syllables: Proposition 13. Arguments over the voter-approved 1978 tax reform initiative have reverberated through the state capital for decades. Politicians — even the many who opposed it — have generally avoided the measure like unfavorable publicity. But the political winds are shifting. Talk of Prop. 13 reform is all the rage, with several San Francisco state legislators taking up the cause. Read More