After sad reports that a little lost mountain lion was shot near the Santa Monica Promenade this morning to protect public safety, it was welcomed news that the California Senate passed an animal-protection bill that would ban bear and bobcat bullying. more ›

A bill was approved last night by the California State Senate that will require the testing of all rape kits in counties where fewer than 12% of forcible rape cases result in arrests, reports the Pasadena Star News. more ›

On Friday, Senator Kevin de León plans to get the Senate Select Committee on Sports and Entertainment together in downtown's state building on Friday for a hearing about the proposed football arena at L.A. Live. The stadium is tentatively called Farmers Field, and a funding proposal from developer AEG recently passed muster from the L.A. City Council. more ›

Today the California Senate voted in favor of a bill designed to protect teens from using tanning beds. A 24-to-9 vote in the 40-member house was in favor of passing SB 746, which would replace the current law that allows teens aged 14-17 to use tanning beds with the permission of a parent or guardian. more ›

The Great California Smokeout continues with a state Senate-approved anti-smoking bill that has Weho apartment dwellers concerned about the power of prohibition that may be granted to landlords under California law. Notes Weho Patch, the bill passed last week could have a "major impact in West Hollywood by giving landlords ammunition to evict smokers." more ›

Federal legislation known as the "Dream Act" was introduced in 2003, but failed to pass last year. However, in California, our state's own "Dream Act" for college students is making its way through its legislative hurdles successfully. Yesterday the state Assembly approved AB 130 (nicknamed the "Dream Act") by a vote of 51-21; the bill is sponsored by Los Angeles Assemblyman Gil Cedillo (D). more ›

State Senator Jenny Oropeza may have lost her life on October 20th following a long illness, but she may yet win a second term come November 2nd, says the Long Beach Press-Telegram. In polls taken prior to Oropeza's death, the incumbent Democrat was leading in the race that includes Republican John Stammreich and Libertarian David Ruskin as her posthumous opponents in a heavily Democratic voting area. Should Oropeza get the win on Tuesday there would be a special election held to install a new Democrat in her seat. more ›

Senator Jenny Oropeza (D - Long Beach) has died, according to the Sacramento Bee. The 53-year-old was diagnosed with a blood clot in her abdomen earlier this year and had been largely missing from the floor since. She was an State Assemblymember from 2000 to 2006, when she was elected to the Senate. Before that she was a member of the Long Beach School Board and Long Beach City Council. R.I.P. Jenny Oropeza. more ›

A state bill that sought to ban plastic and other single-use bags from supermarkets and other retailers in California failed to garner approval in a late-night Senate vote Tuesday evening. more ›

Although some reports are indicating that a bill to ban plastic and other single-use bags in California has failed in the State Senate, ultimately killing the bill, that was not the case as of 11 p.m. Tuesday night. An e-mailed update from the office of the bill's author, Assemblymember Julia Brownley (D - Santa Monica), explained the technical details... more ›

Puppet shows for gridlocked drivers may or may not be illegal, but a state bill seeking the realities behind digital license plates that would show ads has already been approved by the California Senate and will be heard by an Assembly Committee today. more ›

A Senate Joint Resolution initiated in June of last year is moving towards adoption today follwoing a 10-3 vote in its favor by the California State Assembly Committee on Health, according to a press release issued by the advocacy group Americans for Safe Access. more ›

A bill that would ban plastic and other single-use bags from a variety of stores took a big step today. The California State Assembly approved AB 1998 in a 41-27 vote. Under the legislation, the ban will “eliminate single-use bag litter, which pollutes oceans, beaches, parks and communities and endanger wildlife”, according to the bill's author Assemblymember Julia Brownley (D-Santa Monica). more ›

California's Senate on Friday unanimously passed a bill that would benefit state coffers, but leave cities with fewer dollars to collect when motorists get cited. Authored by Long Beach Democrat Sen. Jenny Oropeza, SB 949 would prohibit cities from citing motorists under city law instead of already existing state law, which allowed municipalities to keep fines. more ›

After being approved by the Appropriation Committee, AB 711 was approved by the California Senate yesterday, which will give supporters of cityhood in East Los Angeles a loan that will enable them to move forward with the lengthy process, according to cbs2. The emergency bill provides funds for "a study to determine whether cityhood for unincorporated East Los Angeles is financially viable." The next step is for the state Assembly and Governor Schwarzenegger to approve the bill. Backers of the cityhood movement have until Thursday to come up with $45k to contribute to the study fund. more ›

The state senate today passed a bill that would impose a sales tax on Amazon.com and other online purchases, which would raise $107 million annually, according to the Sacramento Bee. Governor Schwarzenegger said he would veto the measure when it was introduced last year and Overstock.com threatened to pull its affiliate program, which provides income to California residents, if the tax was approved. more ›

Yesterday, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed two bills into law, both of which focus on restricting operation of a motor vehicle to previous DUI offenders, reports the Daily News. Assemblyman Mike Feur (D-Los Angeles) has authored AB 91, calling for the implementation of a pilot program in four counties that will put an ignition interlock device in "every vehicle owned or operated by a first-time DUI offender." more ›

Tuesday's special election for a vacant state senate seat churned out a mere 6% of registered voters in a district ranging from Silver Lake and Hollywood to South LA and the Westside. Out of nearly 400,000 registered voters, only about 24,000 hit the polls or voted by mail. more ›

Shortly after 11 p.m., officials with the LA County Recorder-Registrar completed tallying a meager amount of votes casted Tuesday for the 26th State Senate seat vacated by Mark Ridley-Thomas last year when he became a Los Angeles County Supervisor. The semi-official results show that Democratic State Assemblyman Curren Price, Republican Rabbi Nachum Shifren and Cindy Varela Henderson of the Peace & Freedom Party will run in the May 19th runoff election. more ›

Yes, there is an election tomorrow. Yes, it's only three weeks to the day since we last voted. Yes, the next election that all Californians will be voting in is on May 19th. more ›

President-elect Barack Obama has asked local congresswoman Hilda Solis, the Democrat who represents the 32nd District, which includes parts of Los Angeles, East LA and the cities of Azusa, Baldwin Park, Covina, Duarte, El Monte, Irwindale, Monterey Park, Rosemead, South El Monte, and West Covina. Now speculation has begun regarding who will take her place. more ›

Photo by victoriabernal via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr more ›

Photo by LAist Editor-at-Large Carolyn Kellogg via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr more ›

Photo by Lush.i.ous via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr more ›

Photo by Lush.i.ous via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr more ›

Banner week for SFist as the site's new editor introduced himself -- hooray for Brock! While the NY Times weighed in on SF's mayoral race, only SFist had the hard-hitting latest on candidate/activist Josh Wolf. Coverage of a protest vs. gentrification spawned a fantastic debate amongst SFist's readers. Finally, from the sublime to the ridiculous: video of a man that confused a Board of Supes meeting with "open mic night" and sang a custom version of Madonna's "Borderline" to a much-beleaguered board member. more ›

Last night I put on a white “I Love WeHo Dykes” t-shirt, merged with the throng of Dyke March 2007 attendees, and paraded down Santa Monica Boulevard, a street coincidentally named in honor of the patron saint of abused, victimized, and neglected women. It may seem strange to some that I would do such a thing given that I am not Dyke, Lesbian, or Queer. But as a woman, a West Hollywood resident, and a lover of civil rights, I cannot lie. It is true. My t-shirt is accurate. I do love Dykes. I love them for their courage, their defiance, and their sacrifice. And as women, we share a traceable genealogical line that extends beyond 180,000 mitochondrial generations, making us all grand-daughters of the same Eve-of-origin. more ›

Even though "experts" are saying that Chicago will be the US city that the USOC will choose to represent the USA as host city nominee for the 2016 Summer Games, today the California State Senate approved a quarter-billion dollar guarantee if LA does get the nod. From an excited LA2016 press release: The California State Senate today voted overwhelmingly in favor of AB300, previously approved 65-1 by the State Assembly, which authorizes $250 million as... more ›

8% - Crime won't drop that much next year if Chief Bratton's overtime funding request doesn't go through. (LAT) 459 - Number of seats held in the California state senate and house. Redistricting is on the rise. (Daily News) 1.4 Million - Number of uninsured drivers in Los Angeles County. (LAT) 1911 - Year Crisco became to be. Los Angeles City Council is looking into banning the use of trans fat in restaurants. (Daily... 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 ›