June 22, 2025 The Best Source of News, Culture, Lifestyle for Culver City, Mar Vista, Del Rey, Palms and West Los Angeles

Double Standard Prevails in California Government

By Tom Elias

 

 

 

 

 

 

Few California administrations have been plagued with as much corruption as Gov. Jerry Brown’s current governing cadre, with well-documented, possibly illegal manipulations by several major agencies run by his appointees.

That’s why Brown’s double standards were so plainly exposed the other day when he blasted the lone state agency where Republicans have a significant voice, the tax collecting Board of Equalization. Brown lambasted “inappropriate actions by the board” that render it unable to perform many of its duties.

That board’s elected membership, representing four large districts covering the entire state, is half Republican, half Democratic. Democratic state Controller Betty Yee, elected statewide, holds the decisive vote, but the GOP members – former legislators George Runner of Lancaster and Dianne Harkey of Dana Point – have plenty to say about the board’s operations.

The board is under fire these days after an audit by the Brown-controlled state Department of Finance found members regularly assigned employees to help board members with public events that could promote them in their districts. Even tax auditors were sometimes used at self-serving events for things like crowd control or “parking lot duty.”

Brown came down hard on the board. He suspended its ability to approve new contracts, hires and promotions, giving these functions to another state department. And he sought action from the Legislature to correct other “serious problems.”

That stands in stark contrast to the governor’s mild approach after the highly irregular activities of perhaps the two most powerful state agencies – the Public Utilities and Energy commissions – were exposed while those bodies are controlled by Brown appointees.

For example, he did nothing when the Energy Commission in 2014 awarded of tens of millions of dollars in grants to build hydrogen refueling stations for the new generation of H2-powered cars to a brand new company headed by a onetime academic who only months earlier drew the map for where those stations would go and instructed Energy Commission employees on how to award grants.

Instead of firing the commission chairman who furthered this obvious, cronyist conflict of interest, Brown reappointed him to a new term.

It was much the same at the Public Utilities Commission (PUC). When it emerged that the former commission president met secretly with utility executives and privately decided the outcome of multi-billion-dollar cases, Brown complimented that man on “getting things done” and allowed him to serve out his term without criticism.

While media exposed many cases of the PUC favoring the companies it regulates over their customers, Brown spokesman Evan Westrup insists that he acted, when he actually did nothing beyond signing a thus-far insignificant, watered-down package of “reform” bills last fall. These changed almost nothing about the commission’s operation. Brown was mute even when the PUC spent more than $10 million retaining a criminal defense team to help conceal or downplay its alleged illegal actions. He made no move to truncate any of its authority or that of the Energy Commission.

The sums of money involved in questionable actions by these two commissions dwarf anything the Board of Equalization (BoE) spent wrongfully. Irregular-seeming PUC decisions have cost consumers multiple billions of dollars in recent years, while grants seeming to involve several forms of favoritism by the Energy Commission amount to many tens of millions. The most commonly cited alleged misdeed by the BoE cost less than $200,000, paltry by comparison.

One big difference between the BoE and the other agencies here, besides the magnitude of their alleged actions, is that Brown appointed no one on the BoE, but did name every member of the other panels.

It’s not just Brown who favors the Democrat-dominated agencies over the only one with significant GOP membership. When PUC presidents appear before legislative committees, hearings usually become love-fests, no matter how egregious recent PUC decisions have been.

But when legislators hauled BoE members and staffers in for hearings this spring, they wound up proposing changes to reduce the ability of board members to use agency staff for anything but official duties.

The responses of Brown and major lawmakers to all this demonstrate clearly the double-standard operating in California government – appointed Democrats can get away with almost anything so long as they also promote policies favored by party mates who put them in their current, powerful jobs.

Related Posts

LA City Councilwomen Yaroslavsky and Jurado Call for Legal Action Against Federal Immigration Raids

June 21, 2025

June 21, 2025

City Motion Targets Alleged Unconstitutional Tactics, End Qualified Immunity for Fed Officers  City Councilmembers Katy Yaroslavsky and Ysabel Jurado introduced...

Weekend Lane Closures on PCH in Malibu Could Snarl Summer Beach Traffic

June 21, 2025

June 21, 2025

Army Corps Work Triggers Weekend Closure on Pacific Coast Highway Motorists traveling along Pacific Coast Highway this weekend should prepare...

All Aboard to LAX: Metro Opens Game-Changing Transit Hub Ahead of Global Events

June 20, 2025

June 20, 2025

 New LAX/Metro Transit Center Comes Closer to Connecting Metro Directly to LAX The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro)...

Princess Diana’s Largest Wardrobe Auction Set for Beverly Hills

June 20, 2025

June 20, 2025

Over 200 Royal Garments to Hit the Auction Block for Charity More than 200 garments and royal artifacts, including the...

Queer Beauty Through the Ages: Getty Hosts Lecture on Greek Art’s Influence on LGBTQ Aesthetics

June 20, 2025

June 20, 2025

Art Historian to Trace Homoerotic Imagery From Ancient Greece to Modern Queer Identity As part of its ongoing Pride Month...

Food Fight on the Venice Boardwalk: Chefs Stand Up for Immigrants with Food

June 20, 2025

June 20, 2025

Turk’s Pizza Party Rallies Top Local Eateries for an Immigrant Rights Fundraiser In a bold display of culinary activism, Turk’s...

Navy Vietnam Vet Finally Gets His UCLA Commencement Moment

June 20, 2025

June 20, 2025

John Fong, 80, Missed His Graduation in 1968 While in Vietnam  Nearly six decades after completing his studies, U.S. Navy...

Culver City Launches Solidarity Campaign Alongside Hate Crimes Report Presentation

June 20, 2025

June 20, 2025

Join City Leaders on June 24 for a Community Presentation on Rising Hate Incidents Local officials and residents are invited...

Films, Flair, and Panoramas: Free Cultural Events Light Up The Ebell This Week

June 20, 2025

June 20, 2025

The Ebell Theatre Hosts a Double Feature of Films, Plus a Coffee Talk A pair of free public events this...

Culver City Police Nab Two Suspects in Canterbury Drive Burglary Case

June 19, 2025

June 19, 2025

Community Tip and Set Investigation Lead to Arrest of Repeat Offenders Culver City police have arrested two suspects in connection...

9th Circuit Court Backs Trump in Battle Over California National Guard Control

June 19, 2025

June 19, 2025

Federal Judges Allow Trump to Retain Command of Troops in Los Angeles Federal judges on Thursday cleared the way for...

Nightly I-405 Lane Closures Begin June 23 for Sepulveda Pass Rehab

June 19, 2025

June 19, 2025

Caltrans Will Shut Down Select Lanes Nightly Through June 28 The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has announced overnight lane...

(Video) Where great minds grow at The Willows Community School

June 19, 2025

June 19, 2025

The Willows, a DK-8 co-educational school, enrolls 474 students from 57+ zip codes annually. As a balanced, progressive educational leader, experiential learning,...

(Video) The Guest List Collab Dinner with Chef Raphael Lunetta and Chef Alan Wong

June 19, 2025

June 19, 2025

Held at Marelle Restaurant at The Sandbourne Hotel in Santa Monica. An Incredible mix of Hawaiian and Santa Monica’s flavors...

Summer Pop-Ups Serve Crullers, Challah Donuts, Croissants, Coffee and Musical Vibes

June 19, 2025

June 19, 2025

Nyletta Nyletta, Challah Dad, Des Croissants Paris Bring Pastry Delights to Culver City A pair of sweet summer pop-ups are...