The Public Eye

A maintenance worker remains employed at Twin Rivers Unified School District, despite pleading no contest to stealing thousands of dollars of copper wiring from the district.

The infamous pepper-spray incident at UC Davis in November brought a lot of negative attention to the campus. But it didn't hurt fundraising – at least not yet.

Consumer scams are everywhere. But they all have one thing in common: duping consumers into giving away their money or financial information.

MONEY MATTERS

It looks like Sacramento County's new CEO has taken a shine to his job.

The city of Sacramento's laws against camping overnight and staying in parks after hours have been challenged on two fronts in recent months. Both have been costly to the city.

Four months after becoming Sacramento County's chief executive, Brad Hudson hasn't hung anything on the walls of his top-floor office in the downtown County Administration Building.

When it comes to scams, the Better Business Bureau is vigilant about warning consumers. Now, it's the victim of one.

It's that time of year when generous folks open their hearts and wallets, giving to charities, food banks and other worthy causes. Whether by mail, email, phone or in person, it's a season of solicitations to help those in need.

Sacramento County District Attorney Jan Scully has complained about budget cuts, warning politicians and the public that crime will go up because she doesn't have the money to run her office. So why would she promote 15 employees this year with pay raises averaging 36 percent?

For shoppers, the recent revival of layaway plans makes holiday spending a little easier.

In a sometimes contentious legislative hearing Tuesday, state senators told California Department of Transportation officials that their management of data falsification by a technician in one of the agency's testing units suggests pervasive management problems.

In the midst of Sacramento County's fourth straight year of budget cuts, how could supervisors consider spending $1 million to renovate their chambers?

A Bee investigation has found that the state Department of Transportation technician who conducted key testing to ensure structural integrity of the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge eastern span's foundation was later disciplined for fabricating test results on other projects.

The state will spend nearly $2 million to develop one of the centerpieces of its climate change programs: cap and trade.

Sacramento County Supervisor Phil Serna is trumpeting an effort by Goodwill Industries to take over an alternative sentencing program for nonviolent criminal offenders.

Identity theft: It can happen anywhere and to anyone.

Something didn't smell right, and it certainly wasn't carbon monoxide.

Alex Spanos, a philanthropic Stockton developer, has yet to fulfill a promise he made in 2004 to donate $10 million to help build a sports complex at California State University, Sacramento.

THE MONEY TRAIL

Threatened for the last decade with bad publicity and sanctions following poor test results, school districts have been known to grab at loopholes in state testing policy and rip them wide open.

Here's how to make sure your smoke alarms work, and how to choose the right ones for each job.

COURT WATCH

THE MONEY TRAIL