A Field Poll, created by political scientists from California State University Sacramento, Stanford University and UC Berkeley, asked Californians questions about proposed reforms to state government and constitutional convention scenarios.

The poll found majorities think important changes need to be made to the state constitution and citizens prefer implementing these changes in a package of reforms.

State legislation, in the last few decades, has followed a pattern which reflects that Californians are for radical change. For example, citizens voted to dramatically change taxes in Proposition 13 and recall Gov. Gray Davis with a movie star, according to an article about the report.

Changes such as these, however, have not necessarily improved the state’s legislation.

For instance, approval rates of the legislature have been low following the passing of measures majorities voted for. The poll found that only 13 percent approve of the job the legislature is doing.

Voters ask for a large number of services and expect the Legislature to provide all of them at once. When the Legislature is unable to comply with their wishes, citizens blame legislators for the state’s crises, yet they may not be justified in doing so as experts say the crises are results of former constitutional reforms, like Proposition 13.

Still, the Bay Area Council and a coalition called California Forward are both pursuing a new conventions for the 2010 ballot.

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said in a statement today the Barack Obama administration is ordering authorities not to arrest or charge any medical marijuana users and suppliers who conform to state laws.

During his campaign, President Obama pledged to stop the raids on clinics and numerous arrests, which were rather frequent in California before and after the president’s inauguration.

The new guidelines released by the U.S. Justice Department clarify the position of the Obama administration and reverse the feds’ prior stance on the issue.

Federal agents will continue to prosecute people whose claims of compliance with state and local law are “inconsistent” with the context of those laws, according to Holder and Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden, who issued a three-page memorandum outlining the new guidelines.

“It will not be a priority to use federal resources to prosecute patients with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with state laws on medical marijuana, but we will not tolerate drug traffickers who hide behind claims of compliance with state law to mask activities that are clearly illegal,” Holder said in a statement accompanying the new guidelines.

The guidelines also said the Justice Department reserves the right to file charges in other circumstances.

“Of course, no state can authorize violations of federal law, and the list of factors above is not intended to describe exhaustively when a federal prosecution may be warranted,” guidelines said.

Steph Sherer, executive director of Americans for Safe Access, said the new guidelines are a step toward a national policy on medical marijuana because they will allow states to enforce their own laws without federal interference.

“This is a huge victory for medical-marijuana patients,” Sherer said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. “This indicates that President Obama intends to keep his promise and represents a significant departure from the policies of the Bush administration.”

The head of the UC Berkeley College of Letters and Science stressed the benefits of the UC system in an open letter as state legislators look to resolve a $1.1 billion shortfall.

Acting Executive Dean Janet Broughton highlighted parts of the California economy that crucially depend on quality higher education. She also tied UC contributions to democracy and the betterment of society.

Broughton claimed that one fourth of all California biotech firms were founded by UC graduates or faculty. UC research websites echo that sentiment with their report that one in four US biotech companies are within 35 miles of a UC campus.

Besides business creation, the UCs offer even more important improvement to society, according to Broughton. UC Berkeley, for instance, offers students a multitude of language programs and a library system among the best in the world. The level of schooling available at California public universities has rarely been available to any but the very wealthy.

Broughton goes on to explain how democracy itself is dependent upon a UC style education. She asserts that “tough-minded” yet “open-minded” citizens are needed to properly engage in public service and that the UC system provides these kinds of individuals.

Just meeting the midnight deadline Sunday night, Governor Schwarzenegger worked through a pile of about 7o0 bills, signing at least 230 bills and vetoing at least 221.

A spokesman for Schwarzenegger said the governor did not follow through with his threat of a mass veto on legislation because of the success of the state’s water system discussions.

In his mass bill review, Schwarzenegger signed into law a variety of legislation such as bills allowing Santa Clara to build the proposed 49ers stadium, the killing of birds at airports to protect public safety, the increased penalty for dogfight spectators, the creation of a five-year pilot in counties, including Alameda County, in which an ignition interlock device would be installed on vehicles owned by first-time drunk drivers.

Measures the governor vetoed included several concerning the state’s public education system, such as the bill which would have prohibited California State University (CSU) executives from getting raises or bonuses in years when state funding is cut and the bill which would have made auxiliary organizations at UC and CSU, along with community colleges, come under the state’s public records law.

Harvey Milk Day, a statewide day to honor the San Francisco gay rights advocate, is now official after Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the proposed bill this morning.

The bill marks May 22, Milk’s birthday, as the day the state honors Milk and encourages schools to conduct exercises in remembrance of Milk’s efforts. According to state Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, the bill does not require schools to teach children about Milk and will not have a financial impact on the state.

In Sept. 2008, Schwarzenegger vetoed similar legislation saying Milk should be honored on a local level rather than statewide.

Schwarzenegger did not offer a statement this morning about why he decided to sign the bill this time, but Leno said a lot has happened since last year’s veto.

“In the past year, we’ve seen an Academy Award-winning Hollywood film, the president of the United States posthumously bestowed the highest civilian honor in the land - the Presidential Medal of Freedom - on him, and the governor and first lady announced plans to induct him into the California Hall of Fame,” Leno said in the interview.

With so much news traffic about the California budget, some readers might ask: just how hard is it to balance this deficit?
A new online application from the LA Times, titled “You balance the budget,” gives anyone the opportunity to close the state’s $24 billion shortfall.
You can increase taxes, cut programs, or propose a combination of the two.
To challenge yourself, try balancing the budget without raising taxes. In several statements issued last week, Governor Schwarzenegger said he would not sign off on a budget that includes tax increases. So, see if you can draft a budget that the governor would approve.
Senate democrats, including Pro Tem Darrel Steinberg (D-Sacramento), have been adamant about certain tax increases and protecting programs like CalWORKs and Cal Grants. They have proposed a 9.9 percent oil severance tax and increasing cigarette tax to raise revenue in a budget revision that would have saved the “safety net programs.”
That revision failed in the legislature, and was destined for a veto by the governor should it have passed.