Anschutz Entertainment Group isn't the only big winner from a pair of bills Governor Jerry Brown signed on Tuesday that fast-tracks any lawsuits against the proposed downtown stadium. Supporters of the slow-going subway to the Westside believe these bills could help them out, too, according to The Daily News. more ›

Yesterday, California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill 39, which bans the importation, production, and sale of caffeinated beer beverages at retail locations throughout the state. The ban, passed in the state senate last month, goes into effect on January 1, 2012. Behind the law is local state senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), who has been vocal about his concerns about the popular boozy drinks that mix stimulants with alcohol. more ›

Stock up now, party people, before it's too late: In a move aimed at protecting the youth of our state could find caffeinated beer beverages, such as Four Loko, banned in California. All that the ban needs to go through is Governor Jerry Brown's signature, after the State Senate gave the bill, SB 39, legislative approval. more ›

Last night's news of the death of Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden as part of a targeted attack by U.S. forces prompted powerful reactions from the American public, as some took to Twitter and Facebook to cheer, reflect, and joke. Leaders from around the state have begun to release statements about the death of Bin Laden; we'll update with more as they become available. more ›

Restaurant workers in California may soon be required to be trained and certified in proper food handling. What?! They weren't already trained and certified in that? Apparently not. Now a bill, which passed out of the State Senate today and headed to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for his approval, seeks to address that issue. more ›

How important is wine to California? Both the Senate and Assembly have committees dedicated to it. The industry employs over 330,000 Californians. It generates $61.5 billion in value for the state through sales and tourism. 90% of the nation's wine comes from California. more ›

A proposed bill to ban the sale of sports drinks in California public schools during school hours was approved by the State Senate yesterday, advancing it to the Assembly for consideration. If passed there, the bill's sponsor Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is likely to sign it. more ›

When California banned sugar-sweetened soda in public schools six years ago, there was a loophole: sugared electrolyte replacement beverages (sports drinks). SB 1255, legislation by Senator Alex Padilla in the San Fernando Valley, took another step today when the Senate Education Committee approved it in a 6 to 2 vote. “We have prohibited the sale of soft drinks at schools during the school day to improve both the health and academic focus of our children, SB 1255 continues that effort,” said Senator Padilla. “This is a common sense step forward in the effort to address the obesity epidemic in California." The bill is sponsored by Governor Schwarzenegger. more ›

Introduced today by L.A.-based State Senator, Senate Bill 1255 seeks to bar the sales of sugar-sweetened sports drinks in public schools during school hours. “When California barred the sale of sugar-sweetened soda in 2004, the law did not apply to sugar-sweetened sports drinks. We need to close the loophole and make state law consistent,” said Padilla, noting that California has one of the fastest rates of increase in obesity of any state in the nation. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is in support of the bill. more ›

A new nutritional information and menu labeling law will take effect next Wednesday, forcing many restaurants in the state to provide facts about the food they serve. Split into two phases, the first one next week states that restaurants with 20 or more locations in California must provide brochures at the point of purchase with number of calories, grams of saturated fat, grams of carbohydrates and milligrams of sodium for all standard menu items. more ›

A $1.50 tax increase to packs of cigarettes sold in California was approved today by the state's Senate Health Committee. Yesterday, a legislative budget committee approved the increase, among various other deficit related moves, all supported by Democrats, which Schwarzenegger promises to veto. It's estimate that it would provide $1.2 billion in new revenues. "A statewide poll by David Binder Research in the wake of the May 19th Special Election demonstrates that a strong majority of voters, 74%, support increasing taxes on tobacco," said a release from the bills sponsor, Senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima). "Sixty-two percent of those who voted no on the Prop 1A budget measure support." 1998 was the last time packs of cigarettes were increased--back upping it by fifty-cents to the current $0.87 tax. 31 other states have a higher tobacco tax. more ›

A law that would let landlords prohibit smoking in apartment buildings to protect tenants from secondhand smoke passed in the state senate Thursday -- it next goes to the state assembly, reports the LA Times. more ›

There are a few things you can't do in apartments. There are things that you can't do anyway, like drugs, but you also can't break holes in the walls unless you own the place. Well, that's what Jackass star Steve-O did this weekend before his neighbors placed him under citizen's arrest, then turning him over to police, who in turn searched his apartment and found drugs. more ›

This March, we will vote again. All even-numbered Los Angeles council districts will be up for grabs. Well... sorta. A few will be running unopposed: CD2: Wendy Greuel CD4: Tom LaBonge CD12: Greig Smith Competition will be found in: CD6: Tony Cardenas CD8: Bernard Parks CD10: Herb Wesson CD14: José Huizar (a story about this race) And since Alex Padilla will resign his seat in CD7 to go to the State Senate, there will... more ›

Take a deep breath -- the Coalition for Clean Air is having its Always in Fashion fundraiser tonight, Nov. 17. LA's bravest public servants hit the catwalk to model clothing manufactured in an eco-friendly way. Will City Councilman Tom La Bonge be sporting Timberland? Will Council President Alex Padilla be in Patagonia? more ›

The biggest loser in this battle is Mayor Hahn. He coveted having the measure on the ballot for the May runoff, when he could not only use it as part of his campaign, trumpeting drops in crime and the hiring of Chief Bratton simultaneously, but also because of its financial implications: such a ballot measure would facilitate setting up an independent expenditure (IE) committee to support the measure, where normal campaign finance laws don’t apply. With IEs, campaigners can raise an unlimited amount of money from contributors instead of the normal $1,000 limit. In addition, they can send out mailers that support a particular candidate, as long as they’re not connected to the candidate’s campaign. Had this measure gone to the ballot, the Police Protective League (the Police officers’ union), which has endorsed Hahn, would have undoubtedly sent out hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of mailers to support the measure–and Jim’s reelection. more ›

Contrary to popular belief, LA politics isn’t boring, it’s just really poorly covered. That’s somewhat a problem with the structural nature of news coverage. There’s quite a lot actually going on, and quite a lot of really interesting personalities, each with their quirks, closeted (and not-so-closeted) skeletons, and dreams of power. It’s just hard to fit all that into a deadline story without providing background over and over again, so the interesting stuff gets lost in the day-to-day foreground. more ›

Back in April, things looked promising for the proposed 555-acre, mixed-use development known as Las Lomas when a judge blocked the City of Santa Clarita’s attempt to annex unincorporated land in its effort to thwart the controversial development. more ›