The Swinging Door

A new council, rich lobbyists and a sheriff who doesn�t want to leave

Comments (0) By Robert Greene Thursday, Jun 26 2003

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Baca had no problem with term limits for the supervisors, but he sued to block Measure A, which included the sheriff. He lost. Measure A went to the voters, who overwhelmingly adopted county term limits in March 2002. Lockyer’s approval means Baca can now sue again to invalidate term limits for him and his successors.

The County Cutteth

County supervisors on Monday approved a $16.81 billion recession-year budget that eliminates unfilled positions among the more than 90,000 county employees but restores planned cuts for libraries. But little was really on the table for the supervisors to discuss, since the real meat of the proposed cuts and restructuring — in the massive Health Department — is tied up in court, and since most of the county’s projected revenues come from the state, which has yet to finalize its budget despite the July 1 deadline. In fact, further service cuts remain possible because county budgeting continues nonstop through December, as the supervisors revisit state-revenue projections and budget adjustments.

No One Home

The destruction of the last vintage house on Bunker Hill by a condo developer several weeks ago spurred the City Council to bar the builder from completing his project. But prosecutors had even stiffer penalties in mind, and are scheduled to proceed with a criminal arraignment this week for Geoff Palmer.