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State parks fee likely to be on November ballot

Written on 20 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | No comments

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

Written on 19 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | 2 comments

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

Written on 19 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | One comment

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)

Written on 19 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | No comments

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

Written on 18 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | 3 comments

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

Written on 18 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | 5 comments

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)

Central Coast oil platform sets new record

Written on 17 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | 6 comments

Exxon Mobil’s Santa Barbara facility set a new record for slant drilling from an oil platform off the coast of Santa Barbara, bringing to the forefront tensions between those in favor of local oil exploration and those opposed to off... (Continue reading)

Police bust Atascadero baby formula gang

Written on 17 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | 5 comments

Atascadero Police suspect four foreign nationals they arrested are members of a gang which has been stealing baby formula from grocery stores throughout California. [KCOY] Police seized 195 cans of formula from a car driven by one of the suspects... (Continue reading)

State workers tend to be professors or prison guards

Written on 16 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | 7 comments

It’s a familiar  refrain heard in any election year: What we really need to do in Sacramento is cut state jobs. Not so fast, according to the nonpartisan California Budget Project which reports that most state workers tend to be... (Continue reading)

California home prices continue to rise

Written on 15 Apr, 2010 in Daily Briefs | 4 comments

Home prices in California have continued to increase for the fifth month in a row adding up to a 14 percent increase from March 2009. [AssociatedPress] The medium price of a home has increased to$235,000 from $223,000 in 12 months, according... (Continue reading)