Free Republic

The Maryland Catholic Conference is on board with Gov. Martin J. O’Malley on his top legislative priority: raising the state’s minimum wage. As the state’s largest provider of social services, the Catholic Church has a unique vantage on the challenges facing low-earning workers, said Mary Ellen Russell, executive director of the MCC, which advocates for public policy on behalf of the state’s bishops. Russell and the MCC’s associate directors spoke with the press Jan. 10, two days after the start of the General Assembly’s 2014 session. The following issues are among those they highlighted as legislative priorities in this year’s...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Legislative leaders returned to work Wednesday promising cooperation with each other and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger despite last year's special election battles and a general election just 11 months away. Saying they understand voters' growing discontent with Sacramento, lawmakers said they will set aside politics in favor of making progress on a number of issues. "The voters clearly said they want us to solve California's problems," said Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, D-Oakland. "They don't want bickering, and they certainly don't want to be given the responsibility of solving the problems they sent us to do." The...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California's minimum wage would climb to $7.75 an hour under legislation that was approved by the state Assembly on Wednesday, an increase supporters said would still leave roughly 1 million workers with poverty-level pay. The measure by Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, D-Santa Clara, would raise the wage from $6.75 to $7.25 an hour starting Jan. 1, 2005, and to $7.75 on Jan. 1, 2006. It was sent to the Senate by a 45-29 vote. The bill's supporters said the other West Coast states have higher minimum wages than California and the minimum wages in Oregon and Washington increase...

Legislative session at a glance A look at some of the bills that were voted on Tuesday by the California Legislature. Friday is the deadline for bills to pass their house of origin: BUSINESS: - Employers would have to notify employees when they monitor their e-mails and other activities on the Internet under a bill approved by the Senate. The measure, SB1841 by Sen. Debra Bowen, D-Redondo Beach, was sent to the Assembly by a 23-13 vote. - Automatic teller machines not owned by banks would have to be registered with an established financial institution, giving consumers more protection from...