The Independent

Senate Republican Leader Dennis Hollingsworth (R-Murrieta) and Senator Bob Dutton (R-Rancho Cucamonga) issued the following statements concerning state budget deliberations. Sen. Dennis Hollingsworth - Senate Republican Leader: "The budget proposals Democrats have put forward so far are financially irresponsible or illegal. Only Governor Schwarzenegger has proposed a legal budget proposal that closes the $19 billion deficit without raising taxes. We share the same goals: fix the budget by reducing spending and without raising taxes, reform some of the biggest looming problems, and get the economy moving again by bringing jobs back to California." Sen. Bob Dutton - Vice Chairman, Senate Budget Committee: "I've become increasingly frustrated during this budget process because it has become clear that the only solutions Democrats have offered to close the $19 billion deficit are a mix of accounting maneuvers and tax increases. In fact, the Assembly Democrats' pr...

California single-payer plan advances Wyatt Buchanan, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau Friday, January 22, 2010 (01-22) 04:00 PST Sacramento - As national health care reform grew more uncertain, the California Legislature on Thursday pushed forward a controversial proposal to create a single-payer health system in the state. The Senate Appropriations Committee voted 6-3 along party lines, with Democrats in favor of the proposal, which will be considered by the full Senate next week. The vote came two days after Massachusetts voters elected a Republican U.S. senator to fill the seat long held by Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy - putting President Obama's national health bill in jeopardy. Backers of the California plan said the timing was coincidental and due to legislative timelines. But political observers said the vote could come back to hurt state Democrats in November and viewed the move as motivated by the turmoil in Washington, D.C. Similar incarnations of the Cali...

Democratic districts have received nearly twice as much stimulus money as Republican districts and the cash has been awarded without regard to how badly an area was suffering from job losses, according to a new study. FOXNews.com - Democratic Districts Won Twice as Much Stimulus as GOP Districts, Study Shows

House Passes $210 Billion Doc-Fix Without Paying for It On Thursday, the House passed a $210 billion stand-alone bill to protect doctors from scheduled cuts in Medicare payments over the next ten years, also known as a doc-fix. In 1997, Congress attempted to control Medicare’s skyrocketing growth through a payment formula known as the sustainable growth rate (SGR), and since its enactment it has been difficult for Congress to adhere to the resulting reductions in physicians’ payments. In fact, since 2002, Congress has stepped in to delay these cuts from taking place which has made the problem worse. Beginning January 2010, absent a change in law, Medicare physician payments will be reduced by more than 20 percent. In order to address this, the Majority cunningly detached the permanent doc-fix provision from the larger health care bill, the so-called Affordable Health Care for America Act, and introduced it separately—without it being paid for—so that the cost of the doc-fix would n...

UPDATE: US House Panel Approves Broader Auditing Of Fed (Updates with vote count, details on the amendment, comments by Rep. Frank) By Fawn Johnson and Sarah N. Lynch Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- A key House panel on Thursday attached to a broad financial overhaul bill language that would give federal watchdogs massive new authority to audit the Federal Reserve. The House Financial Services Committee's 43-26 vote on the Fed auditing amendment, introduced by Rep. Ron Paul (R, Texas), concluded weeks of debate on a bill to create a new council of regulators to wind down large institutions that pose a risk to the economy. The committee has postponed a final vote on the bill until after the Thanksgiving holiday. For more than 20 years, Paul has championed significantly neutering the Fed. His amendment removes restrictions on the Government Accountability Office's auditing authority, giving it access to every item on the Fed's balance sheet. Paul...

Health care reform squeaked through the House Saturday by a 220-215 vote as the threat of working during the Christmas holiday got the House version moving. The plan passed with virtually no discussion as speaker Pelosi squashed any attempts at questioning the bill or virtually any portion of the bill. Democrats must now be especially motivated to get this passed after viewing the results in Virginia and New Jersey, which could be a precursor to the 2010 elections. A loss of even a handful of seats next year could mean this type of bill won’t get passed in the next session. It was interesting to note that one Republican voted for the bill while 29 Democrats voted against it.

Thank you for writing to Governor Schwarzenegger in opposition to Assembly Bill 1288. Due to a technical error, you may have inadvertently received an outdated response from the Governor's Office, and I apologize for any confusion this may have caused. Our office is pleased to inform you that the Governor vetoed AB 1288 after extensive consideration of arguments from both supporters and opponents of the issue. To read the Governor's veto message for the bill, please visit the Official California Legislative Information website at "http://www.leginfo.ca.gov". Again, thank you for taking the time to write. The Governor values your suggestions on how government can better serve the people of our state. Sincerely, Lauren Thurston Office of Constituent Affairs