Where is the Money Going?
1,300 Bay Area Nursing Home Workers Cheated out of Millions
Although workers who manage to prove they were ripped off by their employers rarely collect their money, the U.S. Labor Department had some successes to crow about. For example, the owners of Retirement Plus of San Carlos and four other Bay Area retirement facilities paid caregivers as little as $5 an hour. They were forced to pony up $630,000. read more
Marin Is Only County Court System Not Projecting Double-Digit Funding Shortfall
Kern County is the worst. The council calculates that the Central Valley county will receive enough funding to meet just 52% of its needs. The $32.9-million shortfall will impact 10 facilities serving 873,092 people. The county is due a 5% increase in the budget, which will just cover its increased operating costs. One courthouse will remain closed indefinitely and another will stay open just one day a week. read more
Wealthy Get a Big Chunk of State’s Electric-Car Rebates, but That Might Change
Republican state Senator Ted Gaines was a big Tesla booster when he was trying to get the company to build a $5-billion battery "gigafactory" in his district. Tesla opted for Nevada. Two months later, Gaines introduced Senate Bill 40 to slash incentives for electric vehicles with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $40,000 or more. That’s pretty much the market Tesla owns. read more
California Oligopoly Gasoline Price-Spiking: Same as It Ever Was
Last week, two state Senate committees held a hearing to have a discussion with oil industry executives about February's $1 spike in gasoline prices and the current 80-cent pump price difference with the rest of the country. But they declined to attend. The committee members could just as easily have pulled a copy of Attorney General Bill Lockyer’s 2000 report on gasoline pricing, because not a whole lot has changed. read more
Audits: The OC Great Park Doomed by “Hubris,” Politics and Mismanagement
An audit of the legal aspects of the project said the park was a mess from the start. Politicians put a $410 price tag on the project in 2006, based on available funding, and hired a design firm. Ten years later, more than $359 million has been spent to develop just 88 acres, or 6.5% of the park. “It was fiction all the time,” the 157-page audit said, read more
7 Reasons Why State Technology Projects Are at “High Risk”
The state agency CalTech (not the school) currently oversees 45 IT projects conducted by various agencies worth $4 billion. That’s four times as much money as the auditor says the state has wasted on failed projects between 1994 and 2013. The auditor said six of the ongoing projects, worth $575 million, have problems that could lead to delays and cost overruns. read more
Couple Accused of Using Migrant Workers, Bogus IDs to Rip Off Jobless Benefits
A contracting foreman in the heart of the Central Valley used his job to obtain names, Social Security numbers and other personal information about legal residents and U.S. citizens, and then gave the identities to undocumented workers. When the workers were invariably laid off after the growing season, he and his wife allegedly filed unemployment insurance claims in their names, picking up $1.8 million on 520 claims over a six-year period, read more
$1-Billion “Band-Aid” for Future Drought Catches Up on Old Business
The money will be spent on old ideas that were never properly funded in a state with intermittent bouts of water shortage. It won’t do much to address concerns that California’s world has changed and four years of drought are not the end of it. The governor acknowledged that: “When you're piloting a huge battleship, it turns slowly in the water. It takes a long time for people to grasp an unprecedented change.” read more
New PUC Chief Wants to Up the PG&E Penalty for San Bruno and Add Some Pipeline Repair
Picker’s $1.6-billion plan, which he detailed last week, is $200 million larger than one recommended by two administrative law judges, and shifts some future pipeline upgrade costs from ratepayers to PG&E shareholders. It received guarded support from San Bruno officials. Mayor Jim Ruane asked the Chronicle, “What, after all, does this do to revamp the PUC, PG&E and their relationship?” read more
University’s Computer System Loses Its Way and Millions of Dollars
The University of California payroll/benefits system of the future is two years overdue and at least $45 million over budget. “You have a project that is out of control, poorly planned and lacks basic governance,” Michael Krigsman, an IT industry analyst, told the Sacramento Bee. The “critical” UCPath is meant to replace a 35-year-old system with a “single payroll, benefits, HR and academic personnel solution for all UC employees.” Last week, its rollout was pushed back to September. read more
Crummy Computer System Cost L.A.’s DWP over $88 Million in Lost Commercial Billings
The screwed-up rollout of the Los Angeles Department of Power and Water’s (DWP) new computer billing system in September 2013 caused a world of hurt for residential customers, who suffered incorrect bills, delayed bills and threats of disconnection. Lawsuits are pending. Commercial customers were affected, too, but in a different way. The DWP said 10% of its 400,000 commercial users didn’t get billed. read more
Schwarzenegger's Bid to Sell 11 Government Complexes Cost State $24 Million
The independent Legislative Analyst’s Office said the deal could cost the state $1.5 billion over 35 years. When Jerry Brown was elected governor in November 2010, he cancelled the “short-sighted” sale that “would have cost taxpayers billions of dollars in the long-run.” When California First sued, the state added a claim that the group had missed a payment. read more
State Hasn’t Spent $1 Billion in Federal Funds for Housing Crash Victims
The Hardest Hit Fund doled out $7.6 billion and earmarked $2 billion for California. Although the money was a tad belated, Keep Your Home California, as the program was called in the state, was still desperately needed by underwater borrowers. Five years later, California has spent less than half of its allocation. read more
L.A. Schools Chief Derides $1.3-Billion “Gimmick of the Year” iPads for All
The 82-year-old, three-time LAUSD superintendent completed his U-turn last week when he told a gaggle of reporters, “I don't believe we can afford a device for every student.” Cortines said the district really never had a solid plan for how the computers would be integrated into the school system and how the district would pay for them. He advocated a more balanced spending approach and said he wanted a $1 billion in bond money to fix up dilapidated campuses. read more
Water-Main Burst Highlights L.A.’s $1.3-Billion Problem
About one-fifth of the city’s 6,730 miles of pipe date back to 1930 or earlier. Those should all be toast by 2030. About 6% of the city’s pipes are graded “D” or “F” by the DWP. More than 40% of those pipes are at least 85 years old. The city spends $44 million a year to replace about 21 miles of pipe but needs to spend about three times that much for the next 10 years to replace 435 miles. read more
Comcast Welcomes Merger Nod from PUC Judge, but Not Rules Against Ignoring the Poor
While the company hailed the “important step” in the regulatory process, it was not enamored of the suggested conditions attached to the approval by the judge. Essentially, they are an order that Comcast fix a laundry list of problems that critics and the company’s Internet customers have complained about for a decade. Many of them have to do with providing better broadband service to poorer communities. read more