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California high court to hear appeal of measure that would keep primaries closed -- The California Supreme Court refused Monday to keep a measure that would maintain the state's closed election primary system off the November ballot, but agreed to consider whether the Legislature acted improperly when it put Proposition 60 before voters. The court's action was both a vindication and a setback for backers of a competing measure, Proposition 62, which would allow voters to cross party lines in a primary election and put the two top vote-getters for each state and congressional office in a general election runoff. Lisa Leff AP -- 8/9/04

Lawmakers concerned about insurance nominee's potential conflict -- The nominee to head the California department controlling failed insurance company assets is being investigated for a possible conflict of interest for working as a paid consultant to an insurance industry group that often seeks reimbursement from the state agency. AP -- 8/9/04

California removed from credit agency's ``negative watch'' based on new budget -- A Wall Street credit agency on Monday removed California from its negative credit watch, saying the state's financial condition is unlikely to deteriorate further now that it has a budget in place. Don Thompson AP-- 8/9/04

State expands investigation of charter school -- The investigation into the California Charter Academy's operations was expanded Monday to include the assets of the charter school operators and state officials warned parents of students at the targeted school to prepare for more campus closures. Jennifer Coleman AP -- 8/9/04

Schwarzenegger casts long shadow / He skips GOP state convention but is still revered there -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger didn't drop by this weekend's state GOP convention, but no one at the three-day event had any doubts about who has quickly become California's most powerful Republican. From the "Don't Be a Girlie Man'' T-shirts, echoing Schwarzenegger's taunt to state legislators who wouldn't pass his budget, to the sight of veteran California politicians talking up their ties to the movie star turned governor, Schwarzenegger's powerful aura filled the convention hall. John Wildermuth in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/9/04

GOP Takes Stand on State Initiatives -- California Republicans voted Sunday to oppose a November ballot initiative that would fund $3 billion in stem cell medical research and to join Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to work against two ballot measures that would expand gambling at Indian casinos, card rooms and racetracks. Robert Salladay in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

State GOP: No on stem-cell bond -- The California Republican Party wrapped up its three-day state convention Sunday by opposing Proposition 71, the November ballot initiative that would provide $3 billion for embryonic stem-cell research in the state. With a voice vote and little discussion, the party's membership also voted to oppose two gambling-related measures, changes in the state's "three-strikes"law and a tax hike for millionaires that would pay for mental health services. Laura Mecoy in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/9/04

GOP opposes tribe's gaming initiative -- A desert tribe's campaign to expand Indian gambling took a hit Sunday when the California Republican Party voted to oppose the tribe's November ballot initiative on the issue. Michelle DeArmond in the Riverside Press -- 8/9/04

Schwarzenegger, Bush snub California Republicans -- It's not easy being a member of the California Republican Party these days. Not only do they not get any respect nationally -- the most recent polls show Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry carrying the state by 12 points over President George W. Bush -- but they can't even get the governor's attention. Rick Orlov in the Los Angeles Daily News -- 8/9/04

Governor fine-tuning tribal gaming compacts -- A few years ago, New York Gov. George Pataki confided to a visitor that his state had used California's Indian gambling agreement as an example of what not to do as it drafted similar legal bounds for its tribal casinos. The subsequent New York gaming compact was massive and exhaustive, in contrast to the 37-page document that former Gov. Gray Davis negotiated over 16 pressure-packed days in 1999. James P. Sweeney in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 8/9/04

3 Democrats Seeking to Replace Burton as Senate Leader -- Democrats in the state Senate have put out a casting call for someone to go toe-to-toe with "the Terminator." Three veteran lawmakers answered: Sens. Martha Escutia of Whittier, Sheila Kuehl of Santa Monica and Don Perata of Oakland. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

A Part-Time Legislature Won't Solve the Problems -- On reflection, demoting California's Legislature to part-time status sounded like a better idea last summer than it does today. That's probably because there are more signs of potential reform now than there were in the pre-Schwarzenegger era. It may also be because the notion of a part-time Legislature has started to look like a real possibility. And, in the harsh reality of daylight, this picture is not pretty. It's tainted with corruption, for starters. George Skelton in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

Convention could rewrite laws -- With skeptics discounting the Schwarzenegger administration's government streamlining plan as failed ideas of the past, the governor's aides acknowledge a potent but volatile concept has re-emerged for the first time in seven decades: a constitutional convention to implement reforms quickly. Steve Geissinger in the Los Angeles Daily News -- 8/9/04

San Francisco Takes the Lead in New Voting Method -- The city that brought the nation beat poetry, free love and sourdough bread now is taking on election reform. With a quiet nod from the secretary of state, San Francisco will soon let voters rank multiple candidates in citywide elections, a system that proponents say would eliminate the "spoiler" problem if used nationwide. Lee Romney in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

Nominee for State Post Is Scrutinized -- Lawmakers are investigating conflict-of-interest concerns involving Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi's nominee to head a state agency that controls more than $1 billion in failed insurance company assets. Fred A. Buck's nomination as chief executive of the Insurance Department's Conservation and Liquidation Office has been stalled in the Senate since last September, when Garamendi nominated him for the $260,000-a-year post. Marc Lifsher in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

Shelley seeks investigation of contributions / Secretary of state says he doesn't accept inappropriate donations -- Secretary of State Kevin Shelley called for an investigation Sunday and pledged to put $100,000 in questionable campaign contributions into an escrow account, following a report by The Chronicle that a San Francisco nonprofit used state grant money to pay two individuals and two companies who then made donations of nearly identical amounts to Shelley's 2002 campaign. Vanessa Hua, Christian Berthelsen in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/9/04

What Strom Thurmond's illegitimate daughter wants -- The biracial daughter of the onetime segregationist U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond wants to join the United Daughters of the Confederacy to explore her heritage and encourage other African Americans to fully understand their bloodlines. Jason B. Johnson in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/9/04

The buzz: Gun-toting bobbleheads still selling on eBay -- Sure enough, soon after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced last week that he had settled his three-month legal fight over a gun-toting bobblehead, dozens of the controversial dolls surfaced on the auction Web site eBay. As part of the settlement negotiated by Schwarzenegger's personal lawyers, bobblehead firm Ohio Discount Merchandise Inc. can no longer sell a doll that depicts the governor in a business suit while holding a machine gun. Kevin Yamamura in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/9/04

Governor's forays put embattled Democrats on the spot -- When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger staged a series of rallies last month to drum up support for his position in the state budget stalemate, the venues were chosen carefully - communities in which there are seriously contested legislative seats. Dan Walters in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/9/04

Nixon low on favorite son list -- Like other surfers, Steve Pezman was barred from the perfect waves of Trestles whenever Richard M. Nixon returned to the ocean-view Western White House in San Clemente. Pezman was also among those glad to see him resign – 30 years ago today – and not just because it meant that the Secret Service stopped guarding the beach. Martin Wisckol in the Orange County Register -- 8/9/04

A visit off the campaign trail -- Pssst - did you hear the latest? President George W. Bush and Sen. John Kerry are coming to California. Really. They are. Both presidential candidates will actually take a day or two this week away from the so-called battleground states and campaign in California, home to 36 million people – roughly one in seven Americans. AP's Beth Fouhy in the Orange County Register -- 8/9/04

State to be gatekeeper of welfare? -- The California Performance Review is sounding what could be the death knell for county welfare offices as we know them. And that might not be such a bad idea, some advocates for the poor said. The review's authors recommended that one of the county welfare office's main functions -- deciding who is eligible to receive welfare, food stamps and Medi-Cal -- become a state responsibility. Michele R. Marcucci in the Oakland Tribune -- 8/9/04

City manager positions empty for lack of talent -- Richmond is playing a waiting game. Ideal candidates for chief executive are just not turning up. Cities in the county and across the state are grappling with the dearth of qualified contenders, which some blame on the high cost of housing, political instability and tense economic times. Rebecca Rosen Lum in the Contra Costa Times -- 8/9/04

Law students claim they have been had -- Eighteen years ago, San Jose lawyer Michael Narkin surrendered his law license rather than face more than a dozen disciplinary charges for allegedly ripping off his clients and botching their cases. But despite a dubious track record that also includes a litany of malpractice suits against him, California regulators in 1996 licensed Narkin to establish the Saratoga University School of Law, an Internet correspondence program where he served as dean and, from all appearances, faculty and administration. Howard Mintz in the San Jose Mercury -- 8/9/04

Plan to pare California education system / Power would shift from 58 counties to 11 super centers -- Within the vast new blueprint telling Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger how to run state government more efficiently is an idea for axing a system used since the Gold Rush days of 1852 -- and which today serves thousands of California's least-visible students. Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/9/04

Auditor zeroes in on Fresno schools -- The state's fiscal SWAT team's goal this fall when it scrutinizes Fresno Unified's finances will be to determine whether the school district is close to bankruptcy. Tom Henry, chief executive officer of the Fiscal Crisis Management and Assistance Team, said he has not received any paperwork on Fresno Unified but has had informal conversations about the problem. Erin Kennedy in the Fresno Bee -- 8/9/04

Mulling over options in hunt for SJSU chief -- The saga of San Jose State University's quest for a new president to succeed Robert Caret took an unexpected twist last week when Paul Yu resigned two weeks into the job, citing health concerns. The nature of Yu's medical problem has not been disclosed, and he has been unavailable for comment. Becky Bartindale in the San Jose Mercury -- 8/9/04

Educators support plan to raise kindergarten age -- Linda Means, a kindergarten teacher at Bobier Elementary in Vista, has seen the difference a year makes in a child's development. Two years ago, luck of the draw gave her a classroom full of students who had turned age 5 before the start of the school year. A colleague, with whom she regularly collaborated, received a roster full of 4-year-olds. The difference between the classes was enormous, according to Means. David Fried in the North County Times -- 8/9/04

West Nile buzz often waved off -- As West Nile virus takes hold in Northern California, health officials say their biggest challenge is getting people to take precautions against the disease-carrying mosquitoes. Although the precautionary measures seem simple - wear insect repellent, fix screen doors and windows, drain standing water and stay indoors when mosquitoes are busiest - they are often neglected. Dorsey Griffith in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/9/04

West Nile: A difficult diagnosis -- Shawn Olson had a crushing headache. The emergency room doctors at Riverside Community Hospital thought it might be a migraine. They sent him home with Vicodin. But as days passed, Olson felt worse. "I was literally crying on my bed because it hurt so bad," the Riverside blacksmith said. Douglas Beeman in the Riverside Press -- 8/9/04

Borderline animals don't have saviors in Kern County -- Litters of newborn kittens, timid dogs that might bite out of fear and ill animals in need of healing are euthanized routinely by Kern County Animal Control. With a little bit of time and care they could become adoptable animals. In other California counties, that's what happens. Not here. James Burger in the Bakersfield Californian -- 8/9/04

Dispute imperils habitat accord -- Approval of a state effort to purchase part of the Bolsa Chica mesa for preservation could come this week, even though the seller has threatened to back out of the deal. The three-member Wildlife Conservation Board is expected to vote in Sacramento Thursday on whether to authorize the $65 million purchase of 103 acres with Prop. 50 funds. Pat Brennan in the Orange County Register -- 8/9/04

Nehemiah pushes lower-cost homes -- The Nehemiah Sacramento Valley Fund's infusion of capital into a North Highlands condo conversion marks its third project since the fund's managers began scouring the capital region for investment opportunities early last year. Andrew LePage in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/9/04

Industry Holding a Key to Wildlife Corridor -- The city of Industry has amassed 5,500 acres of undeveloped land in the heart of a wildlife corridor that slices through a densely occupied part of Southern California — and that has some environmentalists worried. Daniel Yi in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

From gravel mine, a park is born -- Freshly planted digger pines and black walnut trees line the banks of Cache Creek in the Capay Valley, where just a few years ago dredgers mined for gravel. Within months, the 41-acre swath of land around the creek will host hikers as well as thriving young plants. Swimmers will cool off in the creek's water, while picnickers grab a bite to eat along the shore. Pamela Martineau in the Sacramento Bee -- 8/9/04

Palmdale On Board With High-Speed Rail Plan -- Up and down the state, people have complained that they don't want the planned bullet train from San Diego to Sacramento thundering through their communities. But not in Palmdale. Jia-Rui Chong in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

Dangerous Fire Season Is Forecast -- Experts say a prolonged drought, tree-killing pests and a century of fire suppression are among the factors that are creating the threat. Eric Malnic in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

White House Intercedes for Gas Project in National Forest -- Overriding the opposition of the U.S. Forest Service and New Mexico state officials, a White House energy task force has interceded on behalf of Houston-based El Paso Corp. in its two-year effort to explore for natural gas in a remote part of a national forest next door to America's largest Boy Scout camp. Julie Cart in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

Governor driving progress at DMV -- "This cash and check stuff," she said, frustration in her voice. "I don't have checks, so it'd be nice if I could use an ATM card so it would come right out of my bank account." It could happen - if recommendations in the California Performance Review, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's 2,500-page plan to overhaul state government, become policy. Included among the 1,000-plus suggestions detailed in the report are several it says would cut waiting times and improve customer satisfaction at the Department of Motor Vehicles. Jason Newell in the Inland Daily Bulletin -- 8/9/04

MWD Fails to Document Deals -- California's largest water agency has paid community leaders and former elected officials millions of dollars in public relations contracts with sparse documentation of how the money was spent, a Times review of the contracts shows. Jason Felch in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

Marine air base on edge -- The Marines who fly out of Miramar north of downtown San Diego know what base realignment and closure means to the military. And not just because a quarter of the nation's military installations have been shut down. The Marines wouldn't be here if it weren't for BRAC, which stands for the base realignment and closure process used by the military. Joe Vargo and Darrell Santschi in the Riverside Press -- 8/9/04

For Well-Armed Citizenry, Handguns Are a Big Issue -- Patricia Cantrall, nicknamed the "Annie Oakley of Modoc County," straps her .38 backward on her left hip. "I prefer the cross draw," said the gregarious 65-year-old county supervisor and part-time cafe waitress. Cantrall and about 270 fellow residents of this sparsely populated corner of northeastern California routinely carry concealed handguns. When it comes to packing heat — at least legally — no other county in the state surpasses Modoc. Rone Tempest in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

Bay Area activism to infuse N.Y. West Coast artists travel to Big Apple for GOP convention -- Over the next few weeks, more than 1,000 Bay Area activists and artists will head to New York to raise a ruckus around the upcoming Republican National Convention. And already they've been given a fashion tip for Big Apple protesting. Even though it's chic in Manhattan to wear black, protesters are being told to forget it. Instead, try khaki. Or as one convention protest Web site put it, "business casual" to blend in better with the Republican protest targets. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/9/04

Shirek barred from running for re-election / Procedural error by aide eliminates her from council race -- A 93-year-old member of the Berkeley City Council who has served eight consecutive terms in office will not be allowed to run for a ninth term due to a staff member's error, city officials said Sunday. Maudelle Shirek, currently Berkeley's vice mayor, has held office for 20 years and intended to run for re-election on the November ballot to represent District 3 in south Berkeley. Patrick Hoge in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/9/04

Rally marks bombing date -- Hundreds of protesters marched Sunday afternoon to Lawrence Livermore Laboratory to mark the 59th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and to protest the development of newer and more devastating nuclear weapons. Mike Adamick in the Contra Costa Times -- 8/9/04

Despite increases, money doesn't seem to help LAPD solve crimes -- Sixteen days after Naif "Nick" Sahoum was gunned down in a stickup at the Lankershim Mini Market in North Hollywood, police posted a $50,000 reward for information leading to his killer. There have been no takers in the three weeks since it was offered. This comes as no surprise to Los Angeles officials, who in the last five years have offered nearly $8.4 million for help in solving 337 crimes, but paid only $533,500 as rewards in just 21 cases -- most of them homicides. Jason Kandel in the Los Angeles Daily News -- 8/9/04

Help for homeless vets is near / Volunteers for East Bay group to hold event at Camp Parks -- By all accounts, Dale Peery is a successful professional and a decorated hero who has defended his country and helped save lives. The 52-year-old Concord resident repairs sensitive hospital equipment for Kaiser Permanente. He's also a war veteran who served in Vietnam, the Persian Gulf War and recently finished a year in Iraq as a reservist helping maintain field hospitals and emergency rooms. But few people know Peery was also homeless in the late 1970s. He knows what's it's like to sleep for days in a car and scrounge for meals and showers. Jim Herron Zamora in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 8/9/04

Risk part of life on streets -- Ricardo, whose last name is being withheld to protect him from possible deportation, crossed the U.S-Mexico border more than six months ago. Now he confronts other frontiers -- hazy lines that separate danger and safety, poverty and betterment, and isolation and comfort in a place he said seems sometimes foreign, sometimes familiar. Late in January Ricardo and three friends left their homes in Mexico City -- a place they call the Federal District,el Distrito Federal. They took a plane to Tijuana and then rode to California in the back of a truck. Jennifer Torres in the Stockton Record -- 8/9/04

Immigrants Raise Call for Right to Be Voters -- For months, the would-be revolutionaries plotted strategy and lobbied local politicians here with the age-old plea, "No taxation without representation!" Last month, some of the unlikely insurgents - Ethiopian-born restaurateurs, travel agents and real estate developers in sober business suits - declared that victory finally seemed within reach. Five City Council members announced their support for a bill that would allow thousands of immigrants to vote in local elections here, placing the nation's capital among a handful of cities across the country in the forefront of efforts to offer voting rights to noncitizens. Rachel Swarns in the New York Times -- 8/9/04

San Diego Councilman Lewis dies -- San Diego Councilman Charles Lewis, the soft-spoken representative of the city's most racially diverse council district, died yesterday of apparent natural causes. For nearly a year, he had battled federal corruption charges along with two colleagues. Philip J. LaVelle and Matthew T. Hall in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 8/9/04

Anthropologists dig into business -- For a summer, Dev Patnaik and his team of researchers hung out with teens preparing to go away to college. Trained in anthropology and sociology, they observed while the teens and their parents shopped for the essentials of college life. Some of the students struggled with doing their own laundry and worried about dorm living. The strategists took it all in. Then they came up with a line of products for dorm rooms. Now items like a kitchen-in-a-box kit and a hamper with laundry instructions are marketed to the back-to-school crowds at the chain store Target. K. Oanh Ha in the San Jose Mercury -- 8/9/04

A Renewed Rodeo Drive, a New Appetite for Luxury -- A surge of spending on luxury goods is sending ripples down Rodeo Drive, where rents have reached a new level and landlords are burnishing their jewels. Several luxury boutiques have opened in the year since Beverly Hills completed an overhaul that widened the sidewalks and medians of the opulent thoroughfare and added new palm trees, street lights and crosswalks. Roger Vincent in the Los Angeles Times -- 8/9/04

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