by Jeremy Loudenback Earlier this month, the California Supreme Court disqualified a bid endorsed by Democratic state lawmakers that would have allowed an advisory measure on the 2014 ballot in reaction to the Supreme Court’s Citizen United decision that allows unlimited campaign donations from corporations and unions. Proposition 49 would have Read more…
by Jeremy Loudenback If it were up to Timothy Draper, he would move all of Los Angeles County’s residents to a new state in the name of better government. Draper, a Menlo Park venture capitalist, is behind a much-ballyhooed initiative that would divide California into six states. This week Draper gathered Read more…
Bedrosian Faculty member Sherry Jeffe’s newest post is up on the Reuters‘ blog The Great Debate: Why Hillary Clinton needs to follow a California dream By Sherry Bebitch Jeffe and Douglas Jeffe JUNE 11, 2014 Given the historic enmity between California Governor Jerry Brown and former President Bill Clinton, it is Read more…
California Primary – June 3, 2014 Watching the media, there is a sense that people have forgotten that tomorrow is a Primary Election day in California. Yet, this ballot carries some historic and important decisions with it, that may be especially true in Los Angeles County. A recent poll shows Read more…
Bedrosian Faculty Affiliate, and former Director, Dan Mazmanian discussed the “Fix it with Six” ballot measure in an article in The Sacramento Bee: Via The Sacramento Bee By Jim Miller Published: Saturday, May. 3, 2014 – 12:00 am Last Modified: Sunday, May. 4, 2014 – 10:44 am No one gives Read more…
by Jeremy Loudenback Crowdsourcing is a familiar term in the world of fundraising, where platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo have helped bring to life passion projects and dynamic new businesses. Crowdsourcing has also made its mark on the world of social enterprise and marketing campaigns. And now you can add government to that Read more…
by Jeremy Loudenback The onset of climate change is expected to have a powerful impact on California, from effects on growing seasons in agricultural areas to more frequent forest fires. But one crucial area has been overlooked until recently: governance. As California’s abundant coastline deals with rising sea levels and other Read more…
In a campaign season dominated by Super PACS and a political culture in which money and lobbyists seem to rule, what role do special interests play in our political system? Join a panel of experts including Jack Abramoff, former Republican lobbyist, newly-turned ethics watchdog, and author of Capitol Punishment: The Hard Truth About Washington Corruption from America’s Most Notorious Lobbyist, and Bob Hertzberg, former Speaker of the California State Assembly and Co-Chair of reform group California Forward, to discuss the impact of special interests in politics and the presidential campaign.
Bedrosian Center’s Shifting the Burden event was featured in a USC News post: by Matthew Kredell Representatives of county and city governments joined academic policy scholars on Feb. 10 at USC to begin a yearlong series of panel discussions exploring California’s realignment of services and funds in the areas of Read more…
California led the nation in foreclosures this July, with over 56,000 homes going into foreclosure. While this number is down 16% from last year, it remains high. In fact, filings in the state of California represented over 25% of new filings.
SoCal ASPA forum series Public attention has increasingly focused on mounting public employee retiree costs in California as a significant driver of state and local government expenditures. A panel of public administrators and researchers will discuss the reforms proposed to address the pension crisis, including the state’s bipartisan Little Hoover Read more…
Governance Reform, Accountability, & Transparency October 4, 2010 Co-Sponsored by SoCal ASPA The LA Times reporters who broke the story about the Bell scandal, a USC expert in administrative ethics, the executive director of the state league of cities and a state legislator who introduced reform legislation will gather for Read more…
A Conversation Prompted by Today’s Fiscal Crisis May 3, 2010 The challenges facing local governments in California today have combined in a perfect storm: a half century of growth in state and local government required services and regulatory activities, mirrored by growth in public sector employment, deferred obligations to Read more…