Leveraging anecdotal evidence of increased crime and a poll conducted by teenage prohibitionists, the city aims to tighten restrictions on local pot clubs. Under new rules—if they garner a majority vote Tuesday from the City Council—dispensaries would operate no closer than 1,000 feet from a school, 500 feet from a substance abuse clinic and 150 feet from a home.
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Congressman Mike Honda’s Wake-up Call
Mike Honda—Silicon Valley’s globe-trotting, karaoke-singing, hard-partying congressman—has had a charmed career. Now, a well-funded challenger, Ro Khanna, asks whether being likeable is enough, or whether the public expects a lawmaker to work hard, write laws and fight to keep valley industries competitive.
Reed Offers Cover to Measure B with State Pension Reform Measure
Mayor Chuck Reed is a good lawyer. That’s why his pension reform proposal for the city of San Jose made no sense. And that’s also why he’s moving forward with a statewide petition to change the state Constitution. It is the biggest admission we have to date that Reed understands the legal flaws to San Jose’s pension reform initiative, which voters passed last year.
San Jose’s Lawsuit against Major League Baseball Takes a Hit
A federal judge on Friday dismissed most of San Jose’s lawsuit against Major League Baseball, which accused the league of flouting antitrust laws by delaying a proposed move of the Oakland A’s to the South Bay. U.S District Judge Ronald M. Whyte said San Jose could go ahead with claims that MLB got in the way of an option agreement between the city and the A’s over property for a new stadium. That means the city could still pursue billions of dollars in damages, but has to back down on a court order to allow the A’s to move to San Jose.
Up in Smoke? Medical Marijuana, Pot Clubs Back in front of Rules Committee
After failed past attempts to regulate medical marijuana collectives in San Jose, the city should take up the issue again, says Councilman Don Rocha—just as a voter initiative to legalize the stuff cleared for signature gathering. Other items on the agenda for Wednesday’s Rules and Open Government Committee meeting include Councilman Xavier Campos asking for the city to sponsor a gun buyback event, Voice Mayor Madison Nguyen wanting some pension reform clarification and David Wall doing his best David Wall impersonation.
Beall Bill Could Extend Protections for Child Victims of Sexual Abuse
A bill landed on Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk Friday that would give victims of childhood sexual abuse a longer window to sue private organizations that employed their abusers. Senate Bill 131, authored by State Sen. Jim Beall (D-San Jose), passed the Assembly Wednesday and then the state Senate with a 21-8 vote Friday. Brown has less than a month to sign the bill into law.
Investing in Early Childhood Education is the Best Way to Address Crime
The nation spends more than $60 billion a year to keep more than 2.5 million people incarcerated. If we continue to spend our money on locking people up instead of investing in early childhood education, nothing will change.
Black Youth Continue to Die as Racism in America Prevails
The cases of Emmett Till and Trayvon Martin, two African American boys who were killed while on trips to visit family, have another common link: Their deaths occurred because of a dark cultural mentality that still exists in many places in this country, especially the Deep South.
San Jose Officials Blame Bud Selig for Antitrust Lawsuit
More than four years have passed since Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig formed a committee to study the best places for the Oakland A’s to play ball. But what’s the point of studying something if that knowledge is never put to the test? On Tuesday, the city of San Jose called time and filed a federal lawsuit challenging MLB’s antitrust exemption, part of which prevents teams from relocating without approval of the league and other team owners.
County Finalizes 2013-14 Budget with Hearings This Week
After 11 years of shortfalls and $2 billion of gap-closing, Santa Clara County plans to adopt a budget that maintains services and even restores some debilitating cuts. The Board of Supervisors will spend four days this week hammering out last-minute details of the $4.6 billion 2013-14 budget, which must balance a $67 million shortfall.
Council Set to Raise Pot Club Taxes
The City Council will vote Tuesday on whether to pursue a tax hike on medical marijuana collectives, bumping up fees to the maximum amount allowed under the voter-approved pot club tax Measure U. Also on the council agenda for Tuesday: an update on measure B litigation and a new incentives agreement for Team San Jose.
Supervisor Ken Yeager Snubs Mayor Chuck Reed over Marriage Equality
Ever since Chuck Reed was elected mayor of San Jose in 2006, he has held quarterly meetings with the president of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. The goal of these meetings is to allow city and county officials to discuss legal disputes without lawyers present. But that all changed last week, when current Board president Ken Yeager snubbed Reed’s request for a meeting.
Council Looks for New IT Chief, More Developer Fees
City officials admit that San Jose’s IT department tails behind other Silicon Valley municipalities, and to change that they want a new department head. In questions geared toward candidates applying for the role of chief information officer, the City Council asks how the applicants plan to make San Jose more competitive and how to improve data access to the public. Other items on Tuesday’s San Jose City Council agenda include a $10 million airport taxiway proposal, a resolution supporting a ban of flavored tobacco sales in San Jose and a possible bump in fees for developers.
It’s Time to Sue Major League Baseball
It’s nothing short of bizarre that our national pastime, which ostensibly embodies the all-American values of competition and fair play, remains the only business exempt from U.S. monopoly laws. That a single recreational activity deserves such special treatment—absent any economic reason except greed or convenience—should offend our sense of decency. Who gave a Kremlin in Milwaukee the power to decide whether San Jose could build a stadium with its own money for a baseball team?
School Suspensions a Civil Rights Issue?
School suspensions go beyond just quick-fix discipline to get an unruly student out of the way. Statistics show that suspensions can lead to to a number of dangerous paths in life. The Santa Clara County Board of Education will hear a report about suspensions at its meeting Wednesday night, as well as an ongoing fight involving Bullis Charter School.
San Jose’s 5-Year Sexual Harassment Anniversary
Today represents the unfortunate five-year anniversary of a very painful situation for the city of San Jose. As reported previously in the San Jose Mercury News, 2008 was the year city officials terminated, or at least tried to terminate, a firefighter on charges of sexual harassment against female co-workers.
