Editorials

Now that Sacramento City Council members have pumped up their discretionary accounts, at least they're pledging to be more open about where the money goes.

Late Friday afternoon, Sacramento City Manager John Shirey pulled a controversial recommendation to terminate the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency from the City Council's Tuesday agenda. He was right to do so.

In my 12 years as a professional basketball player in the NBA, I learned a lot about resilience. You lose a tough game one night, and find a way to come back strong and win the next.

Journalists shouldn't be prosecuted for just doing their jobs and informing the public. It's past time to enshrine that principle with a federal shield law to protect reporters and their confidential sources.

Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Turlock, has two remarkable accomplishments since being named chairman of the U.S. House subcommittee that oversees the nation's railway system.

Fortunately, no legislators got hurt as they patted themselves on the backs for meeting their constitutional deadline for approving the new budget.

Sugar is sweet, but the sugar industry is sweeter when it comes to getting what it wants in the farm bill. The Senate this month passed its version of the legislation. The bipartisan bill is about $24 billion less expensive than the farm bill of 2008. Nonetheless, it will cost about $955 billion over 10 years, and sugar supports will remain intact. Sugar is the only commodity program that remains untouched in the farm bill now under consideration.

Sacramento County supervisors can't seem to hog enough air time complaining that the county doesn't get enough money from the state for public safety realignment. And the sheriff threatened that he would have to eliminate patrol officers if he didn't get more money. The jail, he said, is his top priority.

State transportation officials must decide by July 10 whether they can meet the scheduled Labor Day weekend opening for the new eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. It is a decision that obviously must be driven by safety considerations – not by financial incentives offered to contractors working on the bridge.

It was a familiar refrain. If Sacramento County were to cut his budget by the $10 million initially proposed, Sheriff Scott Jones warned that he would be forced to cut already dangerously thin deputy patrols.

The state budget deal crafted by legislative Democrats and the governor contains much to praise and much to criticize and much, much more that is unknown. Here is how it all breaks down:

The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to begin formal debate on the first immigration overhaul since 1986. It is long past time to create a new system that reflects our history as an immigrant nation and the needs of our changing economy.

The American River Parkway is one of the region's treasures, to be shared and enjoyed safely by joggers, families and people walking their dogs, as well as recreational and hard-core cyclists.

Members of Congress are calling for the prosecution of 29-year-old Edward Snowden for leaking the existence of far-reaching U.S. surveillance programs.

Who would not be disturbed by the basic facts surrounding EMQ FamiliesFirst, a Davis group home?

For the first time in five years, Sacramento County's proposed budget does not call for layoffs or furloughs or significant cuts.

California taxpayers should not be expected to subsidize card rooms and strip joints, legal though these businesses are.

Legislators have six days to meet the constitutional deadline for passing a budget. It could be legacy time.

Southern California Edison's announcement on Friday that it won't restart the San Onofre nuclear power plant shouldn't shock anyone, least of all Gov. Jerry Brown.