Browsing Category : Government

Wage Theft Issue Gains Momentum


It’s a story not too many other media outlets seem to be paying attention to, (except us and NBC Bay Area )yet it’s critical to thousands of Silicon Valley workers.  The San Jose City Council voted to move forward with a proposal to strengthen wage theft laws in San Jose.  The tally that put the close vote over the line…

After 6-Week Vacancy, Mercury News Hires City Hall Beat Reporter


The new San Jose City Hall beat reporter is home grown SJSU grad Ramona Giwargis, whose last gig was at the Merced Sun Star newspaper for three years.   Giwargis describes herself as a “Broadcast media professional” on LinkedIn.  That was most likely from the days when she worked in TV in Salinas, Eureka or as an intern at NBC…

Mtn. View Goes Bold With BRT


Too often, policy decisions are made on narrowly focused considerations, such as politics or special interests, and do not give proper weight to the true benefits of a proposal. Last Tuesday, the Mountain View City Council bucked that trend by voting in favor of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Tweet

Morgan Hill Files Suit Against County Office Of Education, 6th District to Sue the County


The Morgan Hill Unified school district filed suit against the Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE) in the county’s superior court.  The beleaguered County Office of Education, who carries a mission of serving and supporting local school districts, has now been sued by six of the county’s local school districts over its unprecedented approval of 43 charter schools.  Tweet

Will Los Altos Be Next to Raise the Wage?


From the Los Altos Town Crier: Forum on topic of minimum wage scheduled Monday A community forum on raising the minimum wage is scheduled 7-9:30 p.m. Monday (May 4) in the Creekside Room of Los Altos United Methodist Church, 655 Magdalena Ave., Los Altos. The event is free and open to the public. Tweet

Policy Watch: Your weekly tip sheet for what’s going on in your community


San Jose General Plan 4-year review and updates on Urban Village development Public entity: San Jose Community & Economic Development Cmte Date/time/location item will be heard:   April 27, 2015, 1:30 pm Recommendation: Accept the status report on General Plan and Urban Village Implementation and provide comments on the proposed approach to the Four-Year Review of the General Plan. Refer this item to…

Fighting for Racial Justice and Immigrant Rights on the Frontlines


This week marks the five year anniversary of Arizona’s notorious SB-1070 law, which codified a set of anti-immigrant regulations designed to promote self-deportation of local residents or “attrition through enforcement” in the explicit language of the bill. Among the most disturbing aspects of the law is the provision that mandates racial profiling by requiring law enforcement agents to determine the…