Villaraigosa Won’t Fight DWP Deal
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Monday that he would not ask the L.A. City Council to vote against an agreement that would give employees of the Department of Water and Power pay increases ranging from 16 percent to 30 percent. Villaraigosa said he was informed by his in-house attorney that a failure to consider the agreement could be viewed as an unfair labor practice by International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 18, Copley News Service reported. The proposed pay hikes have infuriated the heads of other unions, who said they accepted no pay increase last year in an effort to help the city deal with its financial woes.
Molina, Burke Want to Delay Vote on King-Drew Cuts
A proposal to scale back care for children and pregnant women at Martin Luther King Jr.-Drew Medical Center is scheduled to go before the county Board of Supervisors today, where two board members will press to delay a decision until September. Supervisors Gloria Molina and Yvonne Brathwaite Burke have questioned whether the cuts would help King-Drew maintain its accreditation and federal funding, and hope to postpone a vote, the Daily Breeze reported. County officials said that although closing the three underused departments could cause ripple effects at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center as patients switch hospitals, they expect only a small impact.
Housing Price Slowdown Continues
Southern California home prices hit new highs in July for the sixth consecutive month, although signs of a real estate slowdown continued to grow. The median price in the six-county region reached $469,000 last month, according to DataQuick Information Systems. Although that was a 16.7 percent increase on a year-over-year basis, after exceeding 20 percent nearly every month last year. Price gains in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, the region’s two hottest markets, slowed for the first time in about a year. L.A. County’s price appreciation regained some steam after dipping below 20 percent this spring. The median rose 20.2 percent to a record $488,000, the Los Angeles Times reported. Sales fell 7.3 percent.
Governor, Lawmakers Miles Apart on Ballot Measures
Despite months of talks, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic leaders are nowhere near reaching compromises that could avert the Nov. 8 special election called by the governor. The Legislature has until Thursday to place its own proposals on the special election ballot, the Los Angeles Times reported. Last year, Schwarzenegger and lawmakers fashioned agreements that avoided pitched fights over local government funding, workers’ compensation insurance and state borrowing. But lawmakers said no such settlements are imminent for the proposals Schwarzenegger endorsed on the ballot. The special election has largely overshadowed proposals that could make their way through the Legislature before it adjourns Sept. 9.
Lockyer’s Executive Life Lawsuit Tossed Out
The California Supreme Court on Monday derailed Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer’s attempt to seek up to $6 billion in damages for policyholders from the sale of failed insurer Executive Life Insurance Co., the Los Angeles Times reported. The state Supreme Court in San Francisco ruled that only the California Department of Insurance has the authority to pursue claims from insolvent insurers, and that the attorney general’s office could only pursue fines of as much as $2,500 per violation. In 2001, Lockyer filed suit against Artemis and Apollo Advisors, accusing them of unfair business practices and other claims related to the sale of Executive Life in the 1990s.
