California could lose a congressional seat -- For the first time in its history, California won’t gain a congressional seat in the next reapportionment, a Register analysis shows. Ronald Campbell in the Orange County Register -- 5/12/09

State GOP money went to fund for May ballot measures -- The California Republican Party is opposing the six measures on the May 19 ballot, yet it gave $650,000 to the account Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is using to fund support of those measures. Martin Wisckol in the Orange County Register -- 5/12/09

Poizner video rips Whitman as 'no, no, no' on debate -- State Controller Steve Poizner is letting Silicon Valley rival Meg Whitman have it for declining to show up at a May 18 Sacramento debate on the special election ballot initiatives. Peter Hecht SacBee Capitol Alert Jerry Roberts and Phil Trounstine CalBuzz -- 5/12/09

Meg Whitman needs to check her math -- Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman was down in Long Beach today, urging state leaders to immediately slash nearly 10 percent of the state government’s workforce in response to ugly new budget deficit estimates. Josh Richman Political Blotter weblog -- 5/12/09

Portantino makes end run on pay freeze -- The Democrat from La Cañada-Flintridge hedged his bet today, nearly two weeks after his bill to freeze pay for hundreds of California's highest-paid state employees was placed by Assembly leaders onto the Appropriations Committee's suspense file, a maneuver sometimes used to quietly kill controversial legislation. Jim Sanders SacBee Capitol Alert -- 5/12/09

Tobacco has cash to burn for props, but so does Mickey -- Backers of the May 19 propositions are getting cash from sports teams, liquor and oil companies that escaped new taxes in the February budget deal cut at the Capitol. Susan Ferriss SacBee Capitol Alert -- 5/12/09

Poll: Voters say 'no' on five of six propositions -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is hitting the road, warning of dire fiscal consequences if the special election ballot measures don't pass. But a majority of Californians say they prefer to take their chances and vote "no," according to a new poll. Peter Hecht SacBee Capitol Alert -- 5/12/09

Poll numbers driving Thursday's release of budget figures -- When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he was releasing the May revise budget figures Thursday because the numbers were so bad the immediate question was which numbers?: the projected $15.4 billion budget deficit or the plummeting polls for his ballot measures in next Tuesday's election. John Wildermuth Chronicle Politics Weblog -- 5/12/09

Schwarzenegger implores Californians to pass unpopular ballot propositions -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger told Californians today that if they reject a series of propositions on the May 19 ballot they won't be punishing politicians, they'll be punishing teachers, students, firefighters, police officers and, ultimately, themselves. Ken McLaughlin in the San Jose Mercury -- 5/12/09

Feinstein gives reluctant support to two ballot measures -- Sen. Dianne Feinstein finally surfaced today to announce her support for Props. 1A and 1B in Tuesday's special election, but don't expect to see her trading high fives with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on the campaign bandwagon any time soon. John Wildermuth Chronicle Politics Weblog Kevin Yamamura SacBee Capitol Alert -- 5/12/09

Feinstein pushes two Hispanic judges -- Sen. Dianne Feinstein, an influential member of the Judiciary Committee, wants President Barack Obama to consider two Hispanic judges from California as he reviews candidates to replace Justice David Souter on the Supreme Court. MANU RAJU Politico -- 5/12/09

Quinn: May 19th Winners and Losers -- Bring on the autopsy. If the polling is any indication, California voters will defeat the five budget balancing measures, Propositions 1A through 1E, on May 19. Not only do both the Field and PPIC polls show the measures losing, but opinion seems to be hardening against them. Tony Quinn Fox & Hounds weblog -- 5/12/09

Egg bill pushed by unusual alliance -- Valley Republicans opposed last year's ballot measure banning small cages for egg-laying hens in the state. But now at least a couple of those lawmakers are supporting a bill that expands the restriction. EJ Schultz Fresno Bee News Blog -- 5/12/09

1 in 5 of California's 6.3 million students drop out of high school -- The grim news, based on a relatively new, statewide data system that tracks individual students throughout their education careers, shows that in 2007-2008 only 68.1 percent of students graduated from high school. 20.1 percent, or 1 in 5, dropped out. Dana Hull in the San Jose Mercury Melody Gutierrez in the Sacramento Bee Kimberly S. Wetzel in the Oakland Tribune -- 5/12/09

1 pay cut + 1 pay cut = pain for GOP leader -- Days after Assembly Republican leader Mike Villines took a voluntary 5 percent pay cut to "stand in the trenches" with GOP aides whose pay hikes were rescinded, the Clovis Republican decided to step down from his GOP post. Jim Sanders SacBee Capitol Alert -- 5/12/09

Dem political sage South joins California Strategies -- Ever-quotable Democratic sage Garry South, a senior advisor to the gubernatorial campaign of San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and the architect of Gray Davis' gubernatorial victory in 1998, is going to work as a principal for White's firm. Peter Hecht SacBee Capitol Alert Josh Richman Political Blotter weblog -- 5/12/09

Ex-Blackstone Pension Agent Pleads Guilty to Fraud -- Julio Ramirez Jr., who recently quit a unit of Blackstone Group LP that lobbies public pension funds, pleaded guilty to securities fraud, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said. Karen Freifeld and Michael Marois Bloomberg Dale Kasler in the Sacramento Bee -- 5/12/09

Gas prices start rising again -- The annual spring/summer price bump in gas prices is moving right along, but AAA experts said they do not expect prices to zoom up to levels seen last summer. Mark Glover in the Sacramento Bee -- 5/12/09

• Tour of California likely to start again in Sacramento -- Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson said today he has received "every indication" that the Tour of California bicycle race again will start in Sacramento next year. Ryan Lillis in the Sacramento Bee -- 5/12/09

Governor: Budget shortfall could reach $21.3 billion if ballot measures fail -- With the state's annual income tax collections expected to fall for the first time since 1938, Schwarzenegger warns of 'severe cuts' if voters don't pass Propositions 1A through 1E. Michael Rothfeld in the Los Angeles Times BRIAN JOSEPH in the Orange County Register Kevin Yamamura in the Sacramento Bee Matthew Yi, Wyatt Buchanan in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 5/12/09

Schwarzenegger: California's deficit has nearly doubled to more than $15 billion -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger warned Monday that California's budget deficit has swelled to more than $15 billion — a staggering figure that he said would grow even worse if voters reject a slate of budget ballot measures next week. Mike Zapler in the Contra Costa Times James Sweeney San Diego Union-Trib weblog James P. Sweeney in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 5/12/09

Cuts Loom in California if Propositions Fail -- California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger warned Monday that the state would need to make another round of budget cuts if voters reject six key propositions in a May 19 special election. STU WOO in the Wall Street Journal -- 5/11/09

First anti-Prop. 1A ad airs, which is bad news for governor -- The first TV attack on Prop. 1A is airing across California today, but it's Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his allies who need to find the cash to fill the airwaves in this final week before the May 19 special election. John Wildermuth Chronicle Politics Weblog -- 5/12/09

Feinstein still MIA in special election endorsements -- One down and one -- maybe -- to go. After two weeks of hemming and hawing, Sen. Barbara Boxer came out today in favor of Propositions 1A and 1B on the May 19 ballot, saying that "these two measures will help get California back on track, while protecting our investment in education." John Wildermuth Chronicle Politics Weblog -- 5/12/09

Roberts and Trounstine: Stop the Presses: Boxer-Feinstein Prop Summit Collapses -- All those voters who were breathlessly awaiting guidance on the May 19th budget propositions from Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein had their hopes and dreams smashed to smithereens today, when Boxer went rogue and announced her support for Props. 1A and 1B. Jerry Roberts and Phil Trounstine CalBuzz -- 5/12/09

Lottery measure 1C will have greatest immediate impact on state budget -- While tax increases and spending caps have dominated the debate over California's upcoming special election, Proposition 1C is the ballot measure that will have the greatest immediate effect on the state budget. Judy Lin AP -- 5/12/09

Prop. 1C, a proposed lottery makeover, proves much debated ticket -- Twenty-five years after approving a state lottery, California voters are being asked to expand it to help plug a multibillion-dollar hole in the state's sagging general fund. JIM MILLER in the Riverside Press -- 5/12/09

Question about lottery players could be more about who than where -- Prop. 1C's proposed modernization of the California Lottery hinges on attracting new players or getting existing ones to buy more tickets and help pay for at least $5 billion in budget borrowing. JIM MILLER in the Riverside Press -- 5/12/09

Walters: Crisis sparks fight among governments -- The relationship among federal, state and the myriad local governments is a complex one, to say the least, and very often resembles a barnyard pecking order. Dan Walters in the Sacramento Bee -- 5/12/09

Assembly office cuts next -- Pay cuts have not been imposed on legislative employees, as they have on other state workers, but the paring knife inched closer Monday. Jim Sanders in the Sacramento Bee -- 5/12/09

White House officials say no decision has been made to rescind state's stimulus payment -- The Obama administration has taken no action regarding $6.8 billion in funds. The issue centers on the legality of a wage cut for home healthcare workers who belong to a politically powerful union. Peter Nicholas and Evan Halper in the Los Angeles Times -- 5/12/09

Roberts and Trounstine: Schizoid Californians Fuel Dysfunctional Government -- In our unstinting commitment to customer service, Calbuzz has spared neither effort nor expense to bash the governor and legislative leaders for the shameful spectacle of the May 19th ballot measures. Jerry Roberts and Phil Trounstine CalBuzz -- 5/12/09

Winograd to challenge Harman in 2010 Democratic primary -- Marcy Winograd, the liberal activist who challenged South Bay Rep. Jane Harman three years ago, announced Monday that she would try again to oust the veteran congresswoman in the 2010 Democratic primary. Gene Maddaus in the Torrance Daily Breeze -- 5/12/09

Is Meghan McCain the new face of the GOP? -- Republican leaders frantically seeking to rebrand their party might want to swing their attention from Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney to a feisty young Republican who has never been elected to anything: Meghan McCain. Carla Marinucci in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 5/12/09

Inland new home sales are up but foreclosures hit at profitability -- Although an increase in new home sales this year has spurred hopes of a housing market recovery, industry experts worry that a fresh bout of foreclosures and rising unemployment could push home builders back on the mat as they struggle to regain their footing. LESLIE BERKMAN in the Riverside Press -- 5/12/09

Obama tax proposal would hit securities dealers, life insurance firms, big estates -- The Obama administration seeks to raise $58 billion mainly by ending some corporate tax breaks and changing the way assets in estates are valued. Republicans and business groups blast the plan. Jim Puzzanghera and Mike Dorning in the Los Angeles Times -- 5/12/09

UC Merced far short on cost of first lady's visit -- The University of California at Merced is still hundreds of thousands of dollars short in its effort to defray the cost of Saturday's commencement ceremony. The item is in the Fresno Bee -- 5/12/09

California Student Finds Benefactor to Help Him Pay for College -- Brennan Jackson, a Los Angeles high school student whose effort to raise $25,000 in merit scholarships to attend the University of California, Berkeley, was described in an article in The New York Times two weeks ago, has effectively met his goal, courtesy of a Berkeley government professor and a benefactor he enlisted. JACQUES STEINBERG in the New York Times -- 5/11/09

In an economic downturn, even Stanford University's fundraisers have to cut back -- Faced with the need to make significant cutbacks, Stanford University hasn't quite killed the goose that lays its golden eggs. Lisa M. Krieger in the San Jose Mercury -- 5/12/09

Senate approves software as an alternative to textbooks -- California teenagers may be spared having to lug back-breaking loads of textbooks to school under a proposal that would make it easier for campuses to use electronic instructional material. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times -- 5/12/09

Small school, big numbers -- River Valley Charter School continues its run of excellence in statewide testing. Leonel Sanchez in the San Diego Union-Trib -- 5/12/09

Badly-needed California water transfers blocked by economic, environmental hurdles -- As another summer of drought approaches, hundreds of thousands of acres of San Joaquin Valley farmland are expected to be fallowed, and much of urban California faces 20 percent water cutbacks. Jim Downing in the Sacramento Bee -- 5/12/09

Bike to Work Day aims to raise awareness -- Bay Area cycling activists expect 150,000 people to hop on their two-wheelers Thursday for Bike to Work Day, an annual event that mixes politics with exercise. Rachel Gordon in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 5/12/09

Pursuing smugglers, border agents become trackers -- New fencing and high-tech devices make it difficult for drug traffickers to cross the border. So smugglers hoist packs and take to the desert on foot. Agents use century-old tracking skills to follow. Scott Kraft in the Los Angeles Times -- 5/12/09

Soda Tax Weighed to Pay for Health Care -- Senate leaders are considering new federal taxes on soda and other sugary drinks to help pay for an overhaul of the nation's health-care system. JANET ADAMY in the Wall Street Journal -- 5/11/09

Bid to stop health insurance gender rating advances -- Legislation outlawing gender rating by health insurers took another step forward Monday when the Assembly voted overwhelmingly to prohibit insurers from using a person's sex as the basis for charging different premiums for similar policies. Bobby Caina Calvan in the Sacramento Bee -- 5/12/09

Steep Hills, Skinny Tires and Guts -- Contenders at Cycling's Giro d'Italia Must Master the Descents; Learning How to Crash Properly. REED ALBERGOTTI in the Wall Street Journal -- 5/11/09

Stretch of I-680 highway to be named after ex-lawmaker -- Daniel Boatwright has had a couple of streets named after him, and athletic fields at the Cal State East Bay Contra Costa campus, and a marina in Antioch. Steven Harmon in the Contra Costa Times -- 5/12/09

LAPD takes in 1,700 weapons in gun buyback program -- A grenade launcher and other AR-15s, Uzis and AK-47s are among the arms traded for gift cards. Richard Winton and Maeve Reston in the Los Angeles Times -- 5/12/09

San Francisco seeks to strengthen renter protections -- San Francisco is among the nation's most expensive rental markets, but it also offers most tenants some of the country's strongest protections - from limits on rent increases to strict rules on how and when a person can be evicted. Marisa Lagos in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 5/12/09

Former Anaheim city manager hits jackpot with pension -- Few have profited from California’s government retirement system as former Anaheim city manager Jim Ruth — who is one of the highest-paid retirees at $219,045 a year. Tony Saavedra in the Orange County Register -- 5/12/09