California Forward
Mostly Latino civic leaders and grassroots organizers from across Southern California came together over the weekend for the 2011 Latino Congreso Conference to debate, network at Pitzer College over the weekend.
read moreSan Ramon Fire Chief Richard Price was eating lunch with members of his team one day, when they heard sirens and saw a team of medics pulling up to the grocery store next door. Someone had gone into cardiac arrest. Not realizing there were trained responders nearby, store managers had called 911, but by the time medics arrived, it was too late to administer CPR. A life could have been saved if only there had been a way to ask for help.
read moreCalifornia Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom has a plan to fix California’s broken governance system, and it begins with government investment in the future and innovation from Californians all over the state.
read moreOne of the reasons California faces chronic multibillion-dollar budget shortfalls is that we use a broken budget system that leads to automatic increases in state spending each year. The only way to solve our long-term budget problems is by adopting true budget reform.
read moreThe words “government of the people, by the people, for the people” were first uttered in 1863 when Abraham Lincoln consecrated the battlefield at Gettysburg. They’ve resonated to varying degrees throughout U.S. history, at times loudly and at other times with barely a whimper.
read morePerhaps not surprisingly, the state of California announced this week it is $705 million short of first quarter revenue estimates, meaning so-called “trigger cuts” to the budget will go into effect. The only glimmer of hope – though dim – is word that school districts and Cal State and UC campuses have already been making plans to cover the automatic cuts triggered by this shortfall.
read moreCalifornia faces enormous challenges – making essential public programs work with fewer dollars, helping young people prepare for an uncertain future, and reviving our sick economy. That’s why we are so disappointed that Governor Brown vetoed SB 14 (Wolk), a critical cornerstone to the kind of governance changes that could restore opportunities for Californians — and maybe even confidence and trust in their elected officials.
read moreNo birthday candles or cake, but there were a few fireworks at the 100th Anniversary Celebration of California’s Initiative & Referendum hosted by the Citizens in Charge Foundation and co-sponsored by California Forward and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
read moreShrinking budgets and bipartisan politics have not shaken the trust Americans have in local governments–finds a recent Gallup Poll. However, in western states such as California, that trust is a little less bulletproof.
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