California Insider

On a party-line vote, the Assembly today passed AB 583, which would create a public financing system for state campaigns in California. Candidates who raised a specified number of $5 contributions and did not take money from other sources would qualify for the subsidy. The partisan nature of the vote was not a surprise, and this bill has problems. But I'm still wondering if some Republicans at some point might consider the idea of public financing as a way for the public to "buy back" its politicians, and its Legislature, from the interest groups that control it now. A well-designed program might even give a chance to Democrats who dare to run in the primaries without the endorsement of the public employee unions.

The California blogosphere was running hot and heavy over the weekend with a rumor that another Republican -- legislative secretary Richard Costigan -- was leaving the inner circle of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, and that Costigan was going to work for Ameriquest, a mortgage finance company whose policies have been criticized as unfair to the poor. Bill Bradley reported here that Costigan appeared to be "headed out the door." And Jon Fleischman reported here that he had six sources confirming the news.

It turns out that neither talked to Costigan first. He tells me flatly he is not going to work for Ameriquest. And he has no plans to leave at this time. He is, however, juggling some difficult personal responsibilities with the infamous demands on the time of anyone working for a governor of California, and no one should be shocked if he leaves the job some time this year.

Note: Fleischman later corrected his item with this posting.

Controller Steve Westly today proposed making community college free for all students who complete their course of study. He estimated this would cost between $100 million and $200 million annually. If he were governor, he said, he would shift this money to community colleges from K-12 education by giving the community colleges a bigger share of the Prop. 98 money.

This is an intriguing idea, and, given community college demographics, certainly more appealing than expanding the subsidy for UC students, many of whom are wealthy or come from wealthy families. Rather than taking the money from K-12, another way to fund it would be by not freezing fees at the UC and CSU, which the governor has proposed for the coming year.

Westly's proposal is a bit convoluted, however. In order to pursue the goal of demanding "responsibility" in return for the fee waiver, he has proposed loaning the money to all students upfront and then forgiving the loan for those students who obtain a two-year degree or transfer to a four-year institution. Students who drop out would be charged retroactively for the fees. So the state would be in the position of going after the bank accounts of a mostly poor population that, having dropped out of community college, probably doesn't have a lot going for it. That seems a bit awkward.

The California Community Colleges, by the way, have the lowest fees in the nation and already have a policy waiving even those fees for the needy. In 2003, that waiver covered 23 percent of the students and about 37 percent of the units taken.

Michael Der Manouel Jr. -- chairman of Lincoln Club of Fresno County -- doesn't think the gov's recent uptick in the polls means much.

This short piece by John Merline helps support the point often made here that the biggest problem in health care isn't so much the total cost but the issue of access to care for everyone who needs it.

Conservative Republican Activist Stephen Frank wonders why conservative Republican Sen. Tom McClintock is asking fellow conservatives not to withdraw the party's endorsment of Schwarzenegger or go on record opposing his agenda.