Assembly votes to ban hunting for bear or bobcats using hounds

SACRAMENTO (AP) - A hotly contested bill that would ban the use of dogs to hunt bears and bobcats in California moved a step closer to becoming law. The state Assembly approved SB12212 on a party-line vote after a lengthy debate, sending it back to the Senate for concurrence. Proponents of the ban say dogs chase the animals ...

Costs of big wildfire season hits struggling state governments hard

Bill would help injured student athletes at high profile California universities

Calif. health officials warn of lead in licorice

LOS ANGELES (AP) - California health officials are warning consumers not to eat black licorice twist candies made by Red Vines because they contain too much lead. California Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ron Chapman says tests found that packages with a best before Feb. 4, 2013 date have lead levels that exceed state standards. Chapman says ...

Spending missteps make Brown tax plan a hard sell

Brown jokes about 'Moonbeam' label in JPL visit

Bill seeks to reduce police, student confrontation

SACRAMENTO . (AP) - California State University campuses would be required to designate liaisons between student protesters and campus law enforcement under a bill approved by the Assembly. Lawmakers say it is a response to recent confrontations, most notably the pepper-spraying of student demonstrators at the University of California, Davis in November. The bill does not apply to ...

Metal thieves find markets at illegal scrap yards

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Metal thieves who have stripped wires from streetlights and statues from parks have found markets at illegal scrap yards in Southern California, authorities said. With copper prices soaring, California authorities reported an epidemic of metal thefts. Crooks have torn up train tracks, stolen air conditioners from schools, and earlier this summer made off with a 200-pound brass bell ...

Bill would lower cost of chemo pills

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Patients undergoing chemotherapy would pay less for pill-based treatments under legislation sent to the governor Wednesday over the objections of some health plans and insurers. The state Assembly passed AB1000 on 51-12 vote. It would prohibit health plans and insurance policies from charging more for covering oral chemotherapy than for the intravenous treatment. <p style="line-height: ...

Senate OKs bill targeting unvaccinated students

SACRAMENTO (AP) - The California Senate has approved a bill that would require parents to visit the doctor's office before enrolling their children in school without vaccines. The bill by Democratic Assemblyman Richard Pan of Sacramento passed the Senate Wednesday on a 21-14 vote. It now goes back to the Assembly for a final vote. AB2109 would require ...

State Side

BILL MANDATES QUICK REPORTING OF LOST, STOLEN GUNS: SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gun owners would have to report stolen or missing firearms to authorities within 48 hours of discovering them gone under a bill approved by the state Assembly.

Bay Area briefs

Sewage worker's unused sick time worth $145K MARTINEZ (AP) - It seems working with California sewage isn't sickening. Central Contra Costa Sanitary District sewage engineer Alan Grieb cashed in 2,138 hours of unused sick time when he retired last year, adding about $145,000 to his final paycheck. The Contra Costa Times says the district also counted most of that ...

Hollywood tax break prompts economy debate

Endangered whales invade coastal waters

Ballot petitions could come in multiple languages if proposed law passes

OC officials keep inmate alive they want to ultimately execute

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) - A man charged with raping and killing a woman 30 years ago is being kept alive in Orange County with dialysis treatments until officials can win permission to execute him.

Bills aim to protect privacy in drone age

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California lawmakers are attempting to stay ahead of science fiction-style technology as increasingly nimble unmanned aircraft are considered for use in tracking fleeing suspects and monitoring crowded public spaces.