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Who Gets Hurt When the California Budget Stalls
The State Legislature is ending this year’s legislative session without completing passing a budget, but they’ve been collecting money from lobbyists for their own campaigns. We hear about some of the pain caused when there’s no spending plan. Also, the curious timing of eminent scientists fired from a state board that regulates chemicals, and the McCourts in divorce court. On our rebroadcast of To the Point, egg safety, animal rights and industrial farming.
By Warren Olney • • 52m ListenThe State Legislature is ending this year’s legislative session without completing their principal mission of passing a budget. At the same time they’ve been collecting money from lobbyists for their own campaigns. Also, eminent scientists have been fired from a state board that regulates chemicals, in the midst of a lawsuit brought by polluting industries, and the McCourts in divorce court. On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, the big lesson from this month’s outbreak of salmonella is don’t eat eggs if the yolks are still runny. We hear about filthy conditions, animal cruelty and the absence of federal or state regulation at massive egg farms in Iowa.
Banner image: California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger talks about the State budget during an appearance at City Summit 2010 August 31, 2010 in San Francisco, California. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
In this episode
4 storiesDodger Owner Frank McCourt Takes the Stand
The divorce trial of Frank and Jamie McCourt continued today in Superior Court, focusing mainly on who owns the Los Angeles Dodgers . The case is expected to last up to a month and determine who will be awarded some $400 to $500 million in assets. Gene Maddaus was in the courtroom for the LA Weekly .
Read the story6 minThe Legislature Adjourns with Unfinished Business
The State Assembly and Senate still haven't passed a budget, but they have cracked down on abuses of public trust by local officials, at the same time they're ending this year's legislative session with $380,000 in campaign money raised from lobbyists in the past few days. We hear about some of the pain caused when there's no spending plan.
Read the story13 minToxic Air Contaminant Board Members Disappear into Thin Air
Five scientists from Stanford, UCLA, USC and UC Davis have been dismissed without explanation from the Scientific Review Panel on Toxic Air Contaminants , a little-known group with weighty responsibilities that decides how new chemicals should be regulated. The action comes in the midst of a lawsuit brought by a group of industrial polluters.
Read the story6 minEgg Safety, Animal Rights and Industrial Farming
Yesterday, FDA inspectors reported filthy conditions at the two Iowa mega-farms that have recalled a half billion eggs because of a national outbreak of salmonella . The irony is that the FDA had no regulations for egg safety until last month.
Read the story27 min
