governor

In case you are wondering where things are concerning the state budget, the Sacramento Bee reports that, “…famed primatologist Jane Goodall paid a visit to the Senate floor during a short floor session Thursday, greeting lawmakers with the call of a wild chimpanzee…” Full report at: http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2011/03/herbie-hancock-jane-goodall-wo.html#ixzz1FjzoJO6q No invitation has been extended yet to Goodall from the Academic Senate so the audio – enhanced from the Bee website – is below: More seriously, there are rumors about deals being cut with selected Republicans to obtain the 2/3 vote necessary to put the governor’s proposed tax extensions on the ballot. Exactly…

A complex game is playing out over whether a simple majority or a super-majority of the legislature could place Governor Brown’s proposed tax extensions on the ballot. You might think that the Democrats, who have a majority but not a 2/3 majority, would be eager for a ruling that only a simple majority is required. But, in fact, it is the Republicans who have sought such an opinion and now have one from the legislature’s legislative counsel. There appear to be two advantages to the Republicans of an opinion that suggests a simple majority would do the trick. First, none…

California voters last November approved a change in the state constitution allowing budgets to be passed with a simple majority vote. As prior posts noted, it appears that Gov. Brown’s budget, while it can be passed with a simple majority, is linked to a ballot proposition that will likely need a 2/3 vote. But put aside the 2/3 problem for a moment. As of now, it is not clear that Brown can get a majority vote for the budget itself, even though both houses of the legislature are controlled by Democrats. The TV ad below is a good illustration of…