Comments by Ken Johnson

Letter: Why I support Richard Holober for State Assembly

Kathryn,

Thanks, that answered my only concern. I look forward to Gina Papan as our next State Assembly person.

Ken Johnson

AB1991 passes Assembly, moves to the Senate

Leonard,

True, sort of, LAFCo does not have statutory authority to act. But as in:

35700.5.  “Before initiating proceedings to consider any reorganization plan, the county committee on school district organization shall provide written notice of the proposed action to the local agency formation commission for the affected area.”

LAFCO may and should note to the County a request of the CUSD Board to place on the agenda an “action to reorganize districts” including: deunification, to transfer all or part
of a district to another district(s), and to have other district(s) in the County annex all or part of the territory of a district to other district(s).

They should note that CUSD is: one of only two School Districts in the County that is failing; the residential demographics is substantially above average yet academic achievement is below County achievement levels and has resulted in wide spread and precipitous abandonment of the public schools; and that CUSD has acted contrary to its fiduciary responsibility. 

Ken Johnson

AB1991 passes Assembly, moves to the Senate

Kevin,

I think Charles Gardner is on the CUSD Board ONLY for the purpose of supporting Development Schemes - like their vote on next Thursday will be to support Assembly Bill 1991 - even when it would hurt CUSD! This would be a vote to accept less funds for construction than would apply today - he simply is disinterested about our schools.

Ken Johnson

Half Moon Bay Review reporters last about a year on the job

Got the link wrong:
http://hmbreview.com/articles/2007/10/18/news/local_news/story10.txt

Ken Johnson

Half Moon Bay Review reporters last about a year on the job

Barry, useful analysis.

It explains why, when talking to Review reporters about CUSD, it is like “Groundhog Day” (1993 Movie) and that they accept CUSD press releases as if fact - normally an erroneous assumption.

Back on Wednesday, Oct 17, 2007, Lewis Rutherfurd took the CUSD statement that: “Farallone View Elementary School has successfully appealed its status as a “Program Improvement” school under testing guidelines mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind Act.” - as if it was true!

It still doesn’t explain why they so seldom print retractions.

CUSD has finally updated their required, by State Law, “School Accountability Report Card Reported for School Year 2006-07 Published During 2007-08” although SIX Months after required, identifying Farallone View Elementary School as Year 1 Failing. CUSD did succeed at denying students the right to request going to a non-failing school.

I have to wonder how the Review will handle the news that Farallone View Elementary School is entering Year 2 as Failing, when they printed that it had not entered Year 1!

Town Hall is more accurate:
Farallone View Elementary was classified by the State as failing last fall! That status has Never been changed. CUSD lied to the parents of Farallone View Elementary children! 

Ken Johnson

AB1991 passes Assembly, moves to the Senate

Kevin,

I am shocked when they tell the truth!

Ken Johnson

AB1991 passes Assembly, moves to the Senate

As an added benefit - TRUTH! CUSD lied to the parents of Farallone View Elementary children.  Farallone View Elementary was classified by the State as failing last fall! That status has Never been changed.

[clarification to my comment above]
Ken Johnson

AB1991 passes Assembly, moves to the Senate

CUSD Bored Meeting
THURSDAY, June 5, 2008
ACTION ITEMS
Direct the Superintendent, on behalf of the District, to write and submit a letter in support of Assembly Bill 1991.

Sort of a vote for what will hurt CUSD. This would be a vote to accept less funds for construction than would apply today.

I guess if you have already squandered $15,000,000 by waiting all that time on N. Wavecrest, this doesn’t seem so extreme in their support of developers’ schemes! Can’t wait for the announcement of which CUSD property they are selling off to cover up and complete the Cunha Middle School upgrade.

Ken Johnson

P.S. Also on agenda:

Discuss with consideration of action proposed Resolution No. 13-08, in response to the Municipal Service Review for the City of Half Moon Bay and the un-incorporated Midcoast.

Seems like Dissolution of CUSD should also be discussed, with K-8 merging to the north and the High School merging to the east. We would no longer be in a Failing School District. More money. Stronger and successful academic programs!

As an added benefit - TRUTH -, unlike the CUSD Board, parents of Farallone View Elementary children would not have been lied to about Farallone View Elementary being classified by the State as failing last fall!

Not certain whether:
Farallone View Elementary
Hatch (Alvin S.) Elementary
Cunha (Manuel F.) Intermediate
Would still be classified as Failing.

Maybe MCC and MWSD could take up the subject of CUSD Dissolution to LAFCO.

AB1991 passes Assembly, moves to the Senate

AB 1991 - Round 2
In Senate.  Read first time. 
To Rules Committee for assignment.
June 2 Committee meetings may resume

Rules Committee
JURISDICTION:  Proposed amendments to the rules and other matters relating to the business of the Legislature.
Members:
Senator Don Perata (Chair)
Senator Jim Battin (Vice-Chair)
Senator Gilbert Cedillo
Senator Robert Dutton
Senator Alex Padilla

Since as AB 1991 states:
“The bill would exempt the specified property and certain
development thereof from (a) certain requirements under the
California Environmental Quality Act; (b) permit requirements under
the California Coastal Act; (c) the Porter-Cologne Water Quality
Control Act; (d) certain permit requirements relating to state
highways; and (e) certain requirements relating to fish and game.”

Should go to: SEN NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER
w/o regard to title since the true subject matter should govern.
Committee on Natural Resources and Water
JURISDICTION:  Bills relating to conservation and management of public resources, fish and wildlife, regulation of oil, mining, geothermal development, acid deposition, wetlands and lakes, global atmospheric effects, ocean and bay pollution, forestry practices, recreation, parks and historical resources and beverage container recycling.
Members:
Senator Darrell Steinberg (Chair)
Senator Dennis Hollingsworth (Vice Chair)
Senator Dave Cogdill
Senator Christine Kehoe
Senator Sheila Kuehl
Senator Michael Machado
Senator Bob Margett
Senator Carole Migden

Committee on Environmental Quality -
JURISDICTION:  Bills relating to environmental quality, air quality, water quality, integrated waste management, toxics, and hazardous waste.
Members:
Senator Joe Simitian (Chair)
Senator George Runner (Vice Chair)
Senator Samuel Aanestad
Senator Ellen Corbett
Senator Dean Florez
Senator Sheila Kuehl
Senator Alan Lowenthal

Probably will go to Committee on Local Government:
JURISDICTION:  Bills relating to local governmental procedure and organization. Bills relating to land use. Bills that have been considered by other committees having jurisdiction of the appropriate subject, for consideration of any questions relating to local government administration.
Members:
Senator Gloria Negrete McLeod (Chair)
Senator Dave Cox (Vice Chair)
Senator Tom Harman
Senator Christine Kehoe
Senator Michael Machado

Ken Johnson

HMB mayor, attorney say Coastal Commission staff is lying to legislature

“AB 1991 Truth Squad”

The “Truth Squad” - what is Truth? Sort of depends on what the meaning of the word “is” is.

Ken Johnson

Local Government Committee passes AB1991—next stop: Appropriations Committee

Should there be a STOP Gina PAPAN campaign Blitz? The election is next week!

I drew back in horror when I read Darin Boville’s comment on “Meet the Democratic assembly candidates tonight” re AB 1991 that: “Hill said he wold oppose it in its current form, ditto for Holober (with even more emphasis), Papan says she supports AB 1991.” If true, it changed my support!

A couple of references to read:

Dems pump up 19th Assembly race”Papan also has received independent contributions - money from outside groups paid to support or oppose a candidate without his or her knowledge. About $321,000 has been spent on mailers supporting her and $56,000 on negative mailers.”

Lobby groups pad Assembly race spending Papan at center of mailings
“Also on Tuesday, the Sierra Club’s Loma Prieta chapter publicly called on Papan to cease using the group’s name in her campaign.” “The club, which endorsed both Holober and Hill,”

The winner is the Presumed winner in the fall.

Ken Johnson

Local Government Committee passes AB1991—next stop: Appropriations Committee

Francis Drouillard,

All true, we have too many RINOs and DINOs - Republican In Name Only and Democrats In Name Only - in the Assembly. 

The California Gubernatorial election showed again that a Republican can win in a Democrat state. I don’t think it was a coincidence that a Republican who was perceived as pro-environment beat a Democrat who was perceived as pro-developer / anti-environment. Admittedly, an over simplification.

I think you meant SB 1295 (Ducheny) Denise Moreno Ducheny D-San Diego Senate District 40 -
who should go.

I believe the anti-environment groups represent a very small minority and too many of our elected officials are simply a comparatively cheap date! The anti-environment groups should be relegated to the influence level of the Flat Earth Society.

Ken Johnson

Trying some new ads on Coastsider

Barry,

I applaud your effort to suppress the obnoxious ads at the start and to remove the effort rapidly when that proved problematic.

Ken Johnson

Trying some new ads on Coastsider

Barry,

What “jittery dialog box” ads? Never saw any! Of course, I NEVER see any!

I thought web site owners and advertisers, like you, who are intelligent enough to know that they are counter productive to their goals, stopped the little buggers. That may, in part, explain the financial success of Google; less for Yahoo; and the flat lined MS.

Since shortly after the first of these slimed out, they have been stoppable to the tech capable. I commonly use Mozilla Firefox not just because I use Apple, Linux/Unix and MS for a common user interface, but also because of the control capabilities designed and built in since the early days of the project.  When MS slimed Netscape, MS IE was targeted for replacement. Mozilla Firefox 3.0 rc1 is available now and working!

Control of the firewalls, etc also helps.

Ken Johnson

Album: Coastside Scouts decorate veterans’ cemetery for Memorial Day

Perfect!

Local Government Committee passes AB1991—next stop: Appropriations Committee

BTW Kevin Barron,

Please explain exactly what your ‘comment’ has to do with AB 1991, if you can.

Ken Johnson

Local Government Committee passes AB1991—next stop: Appropriations Committee

Who voted Yes:

You have to ‘admire’ Republican Assembly Member predictability in just what they will vote for. On the other hand, Democrats…

Local Government Committee passes AB1991—next stop: Appropriations Committee

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
[Staff] BILL ANALYSIS

“Key policy question .
While the specific circumstances leading
up to this settlement are unique, passage of this bill will
nevertheless create an unwanted precedent that may undermine
the state’s legitimate role and responsibility to preserve
land in its coastal zone. This is largely because (a) the
state would be relinquishing all of its authority for
environmental reviews pursuant to an agreement to which it was
not a party, and (b) this extraordinary action would be
occurring as the result of a lower court decision that the
city chose not to appeal.

In view of these concerns, the key policy question is whether
the state should give up its responsibility for all
environmental review, or allow the city to take possession
under the terms of the agreement it signed. Under the latter
option, the Legislature could help the city obtain maximum
value for the land by, for example, requiring expedited
environmental review, establishing a larger footprint for
development, allowing higher density development, and
providing other assistance for wetland preservation and
housing development. While such an alternative may still raise
undesirable precedents, the alternative would involve targeted
changes, as opposed to wholesale environmental exemptions, and
the state would set the terms under which the city would be
receiving special consideration.”

Local Government Committee passes AB1991—next stop: Appropriations Committee

Steven Hyman,

I look forward to it - I’d appreciate it if each person in it signed it.

Ken Johnson

Local Government Committee passes AB1991—next stop: Appropriations Committee

Steven Hyman,

Chapter 9 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. § 901 et seq., is entitled “Adjustments of Debts of a Municipality.”

Ken Johnson

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