According to a statement posted on the California Majority Report, the Service Employees International Union will not pick a side on the subject of proposition 11. The union, which had previously been considering coming out in support of Proposition 11, has decided that its interests are best represented by not take a stance. Considering that… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Rose Report
New Redistricting Reform Advocacy Group
According to a press release shown on the blog Votelaw, a new group named Americans for Redistricting Reform has formed to advocate for reform of the redistricting process. The group is an umbrella organization for various groups involved in the redistricting process including the Brennan Center for Justice, The Campaign Legal Center, the Committee for… Continue Reading
Frates on Firefighters' Pensions
Dr. Frates was recently quoted in the Ventura County Star on the subject of what level of pension benefits is needed to recruit and retain firefighters. Frates makes the contention that lavish pension benefits are not needed to recruit qualified firefighters: When Oxnard adopted “3 at 50” in 2005 for its firefighters, it was virtually… Continue Reading
Tony Quinn Argues Proposition 11 Will Help Add Minority Legislators
In an Op-Ed piece in the Los Angeles Times, Tony Quinn, an editor of the California Target Book, makes the argument that the redistricting method under Proposition 11 would do a better job ensuring that there is minority representation in the state legislature than the current method. This is in contrast to arguments previously made… Continue Reading
Center for Governmental Studies Creates Guide to California Redistricting Reform Proposals
The Center for Governmental Studies recently released a guide to the redistricting reform proposals that have been proposed this election year. Their comparison includes Voters First, Assembly Constitutional Amendment 1 sponsored by former speak Fabian Nunez, the current redistricting law in California, and CGS’s ideal independent redistricting plan. The document provides an excellent overview and… Continue Reading
North County Times Endorses Proposition 11
Recently the North County Times has come out in favor of redistricting reform in California via proposition 11. The paper suggests partisan redistricting is responsible for the budget mess that California has every year. In California, that power now rests with the Legislature, which has used it as a tool to ensure its members’ own… Continue Reading
Professor Ralph Rossum on the Supreme Court
Professor Ralph Rossum has an editorial in the Investor’s Business Daily on the Supreme Court’s recent decision against imposing the death penalty for the rape of a child. Professor Rossum argues that it is Congress that should make decisions on issues of morality like this. First, who better can identify and express a contemporary national… Continue Reading
Pennsylvnia Legislators Create Watered Down Redistricting Plan
According to the Allentown Morning Call, some Pennsylvania state legislators are supporting a compromise plan on redistricting now that the deadline has passed for constitutional reform in the state. The plan’s creators include Rep. Babette Josephs, D-Philadelphia, who has previously been the main obstacle to redistricting reform in the state. The plan would essentially create… Continue Reading
How Redistricting Can Create a Springboard for Presidential Candidates
A little noticed aspect of the controversial article and cover on Obama in the New Yorker, is that Obama benefited from having his Illinois Senate districts tailor-made for him. The article describes in detail the process by which Obama was able to choose his district. One day in the spring of 2001, about a year… Continue Reading
Field Poll Shows Support for Proposition 11
The recently released California Field Poll shows that Proposition 11 has a majority of support among voters who have made up their mind on the issue, and a plurality overall. The Field Poll Data says that 42% of the voters are in support, 30% against, 28% undecided. What is of concern, however, is that only… Continue Reading