Daily Briefs


San Luis Obispo County public defender’s office runs out of money

The San Luis Obispo County public defender’s budget is about $500,000 in the red and the Board of Supervisors is being asked to intervene. (Tribune] According to a staff report, there is only $50 left in the public defender’s $5... (Continue reading)

Cash for clunker appliances

Does your old refrigerator rattle while it guzzles energy like an SUV in need of a tune up? A federal government rebate program could help you rid your home of that clunker appliance. [KEYT] However, you might need to act... (Continue reading)

Maldonado gets another chance at lieutenant governor confirmation

The nomination of state Senator Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) to be California’s next lieutenant governor is apparently back in play after an earlier rejection [San Francisco Chronicle] The state Assembly, which voted to reject Maldonado last February, is scheduled to... (Continue reading)

Council expands Mardi Gras penalties

The San Luis Obispo City Council voted unanimously to expand the Safety Enhancement Zone Ordinance currently in place for Mardi Gras to include St. Patrick’s Day and Halloween. There will be stricter penalties for those who break the law, additional... (Continue reading)

State parks fee likely to be on November ballot

Make room on the November ballot for yet another measure–environmental groups have apparently gathered enough signatures to let voters decide whether to charge California motorists $18 a year to help state parks. [San Jose Mercuy News] Petition organizers submitted 760,000... (Continue reading)

Introducing Eye on the Coast

This weekend, we launched our new Eye on the Coast photo gallery. The gallery provides our readers a new window into the many unique events, people and places in our community. Our photo galleries can be easily viewed as either... (Continue reading)

Thousands flock to first Marijuana Expo

Approximately 15,000 marijuana enthusiasts turn out in the Bay Area over the weekend for the International Cannabis and Hemp Expo–the first trade show in the U.S. to allow on-site pot smoking. [San Francisco Chronicle] It took organizers four years to... (Continue reading)

UCSB makes Top Ten party school list (again)

Poor UC Santa Barbara. They don’t seem to get much respect. The campus boasts 1-2-3-4-5 Nobel Prize winners on its faculty, but the school just can’t seem to shake that party down image. Once again, UCSB has the dubious distinction... (Continue reading)

Nursing homes accused of misspending funding

Nursing homes in California have received about $880 million in additional government funding since the passage of a 2004 state law designed to help them hire additional caregivers and increase wages. [CaliforniaWatch] However, a California Watch investigation found that 232... (Continue reading)

Tracking Congressional pork

Some call them earmarks. Others use the term “pork.” But it is an age old debate both inside and outside the Beltway. How much federal funding should elected representatives be bringing home for their pet projects at the expense of... (Continue reading)