Superior Court Judge Timothy Frawley has tentative ruled not to allow furlough lawsuits to be coordinated and transferred to Sacramento. Final ruling is expected later today. Tentative rulings are rarely changed.

An ACSS member has asked us if ACSS is pursuing grievances related to the loss of Columbus Day and Lincoln’s birthday as holidays, as SEIU Local 1000 is doing. ACSS President Arlene Espinoza responded directly to this member. Click on the headline above to read her full response:

The Sacramento News & Review this week interviews state workers (a large percentage of our working population here) about the impacts of Furlough Fridays on their lives and budgets. Amid the severe minuses are a few pluses. ACSS would like to know your reaction to the furloughs: How have you handled the pay cut? How do you spend your days off? Is there a silver lining? Please email your comments to Lholderness@calcsea.org. We will publish all we can.

Reaping again from The State Worker blog: Debate will begin in Sacramento Superior Court Friday on whether furlough lawsuits filed in other counties should be transferred to Sacramento.

From the State Worker blog: The state worker clothing swap meet, which was postponed last week, is now rescheduled for a new date and place. The details: Nov. 14, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., at New Life Preschool, 10190 Systems Parkway, Sacramento. (Systems Parkway is east of Bradshaw Road off Highway 50; the blog links to a map.) Donations can be dropped off until Nov. 12 at the following locations: 1515 S St., Room 104 North; 10000 Goethe Road, Suite C1C; and 1900 Alabama Ave. (ask for Cecily Brown in the master data unit).

The governor didn't give the order to buy fleets of vehicles that then stood idle; a state purchasing agent was responsible. The State Worker column today offers insight into how this mistake happened - and it reminds state workers of the power they have to blow the whistle on abuses they see.

Kathleen Webb, a Department of General Services deputy director who oversaw the state's vehicle fleet, resigned and a Caltrans employee was reassigned in the wake of a Sacramento Bee investigation that found $5.5 million had been spent on Caltrans vehicles that were left idle.

Gov. Schwarzenegger has written a letter to congressional leaders urging them to pass a health care measure that would require everyone to carry health insurance but reiterating concern that the proposals must be affordable to the states. Mandatory Medicaid expansion could impose $1 billion a year in additional costs to California, the governor wrote.

Two state departments spent more than $5.5 million on new vehicles this year only to leave them idle and gathering dust. A Sacramento Bee editorial points out that "the state's fiscal house of cards was collapsing but the state's purchasing agents were conducting 'business as usual.'" And that, the piece concludes, is part of the reason "California remains mired in a financial mess."

The Department of Personnel Administration is training its best and brightest state workers to take over top jobs as supervisors and managers become eligible to retire in large numbers. The department's "Leadership Academy" offers graduate-level courses in Sacramento. The students must interview and apply to take them.

In June, CalPERS announced it had added a new "CalPERS responds" section to its Web site. Now, the pension fund has expanded this resource to its own Web site, calpersresponds.com. The new format, the press release says, will make the information more easily accessible.

The State Worker blog today reports this morning that the Franchise Tax Board will be closing one hour early -- at 4 p.m -- beginning Nov. 1. Reason? "Budget constraints." The blog also gives the back and forth of the SCIF bonus, which was stopped by DPA.

From calpensions.com: State Treasurer Bill Lockyer warned California at a legislative hearing that the state will go bankrupt if the pension system isn't reformed. He also said he didn't have a solution to the pension problem "other than constructive dialogue."

From Capitol Weekly: State worker pensions continue to come under attack: A group of Orange County politicos has filed two proposed ballot initiatives to bar unions from deducting money from members' paychecks for political purposes and require unions to get written permission before deducting money for political activity. Two similar initiatives were rejected in the past. A third initiative by the California Foundation for Fiscal Responsibility would lower pension benefits, increase retirement age and establish a statewide pension rate.

A chart-style breakdown of the various furlough lawsuit issues and arguments.

Utah's four-day workweek, which compacted 40 hours into four days and did not include furloughs. saved the state $4.8 million in the first year. The goal was to save money by reducing the energy used, but while energy savings aren't as high as expected, other savings were higher.

The State Worker: "It's never a good sign when the court bench becomes labor's focus instead of the bargaining table." State unions' best ally, President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, couldn't even get the three-day furlough reduced to two.

Be prepared for (yet another) temporary reduction in your income beginning Nov. 1. Under a new state law, AB 17, your state tax withholding will increase by 10 percent starting with wages earned this month. For example, if your employer has been deducting $500 in state taxes, that amount will increase to $550. The law was passed to improve the state's cash flow in the short term. Note: Your taxes do not increase; if you're entitled, you will receive the additional withholding back as part of your income tax refund next year. Employers are required to deduct taxes at the rate specified on the new state tax tables.

The State Worker blog reports on several state worker-related legal issues this morning: The state's constitutional officers filed their opening brief in their suit to keep their employees from being furloughed; the California Association of Professional Scientists filed a lawsuit over the governor's holiday changes; the attorney general filed a lawsuit against a bank for "fraud" against CalPERS and CalSTRS. the Social Security Administration has filed a statement in Alameda Superior Court saying the state's furloughs hamper their obligations under the Social Security Act.

A report by the Bureau of State Audits has found that some state employees, particularly in the departments of Mental Health and Developmental Services, are earning "significant" overtime, in some cases more than doubling their pay and in one case totaling more than $700,000.

AB 376, which would shield businesses from discrimination lawsuits for offering discounts to furloughed or laid off workers, has passed the state Senate and is awaiting the governor's decision. Gov. Schwarzenegger has 12 days to sign or veto the bill.

First, the State Worker blog reported the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education had issued a study ("The High Cost of Furloughs") showing that one furlough day would have the saved the state more money than three furlough days. The Berkeley study also noted the hardship the furloughs have caused state workers and the folly of furloughing workers in revenue-generating departments. Now a San Diego Union-Tribune blog attempts to reveal the study's "shoddiness."

A new Field Poll shows that a majority of Californians support limiting the amount of pension benefits state workers can receive, replacing the current pension system with a 401(k) plan and making current pension-setting formulas for state workers less generous. Link includes a graphic display of poll results.

CalPERS could lose $500 million on a New York City real estate investment and CalSTRS has already written off $100 million on the same deal, The Sacramento Bee reports today. The project was a Manhattan apartment complex that is about to go bust. The value has sunk to an estimated $2.1 billion from $5.4 billion. In other CalPERS news, the pension fund will investigate $50 million in fees paid to a former board member for "pitching deals to the pension fund."

Sen. Dianne Feinstein has departed from her usual pro-labor stance to oppose the Employee Free Choice Act. She cites the "difficult economy" as one reason. Last year, the AFL-CIO gave Feinstein a perfect 100 percent rating as a union supporter.

State Worker columnist Jon Ortiz reports this morning that some 24/7 facilities will not end up saving money from the furloughs because of deferred furloughs and other expenses. Correctional officers, Ortiz reports, incurred $52 million in deferred furlough time from February, when the furloughs were instituted, through August. Ortiz writes more about this issue in his blog.

The State Worker blog reports that CDCR employees have organized a clothing swap meet to help state workers. The particulars: Saturday, Oct. 24, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m, 10000 Geothe Road in Sacramento. The first 10 items (for men, women and children) are free. The group needs more donations (by Oct. 21). Call 916-255-6111 or 916-255-6134. The blog includes a link to a flier.

As state workers know, the jobs picture in California is bleak. The California Budget Project reports two years of job losses have erased four years of job gains and the economic recovery isn't likely to produce a quick remedy. With layoffs and furloughs, the average worker's income has dropped by 1.8 percent. Even with strong economic recovery, it will take several years for the state's employment to return to pre-recession levels. (pdf file)

Signatures of only 8 percent of voters are needed to put a proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot in California. Plus, initiatives that have nothing to do with fundamental rights are creating ballot clutter. The Sacramento Bee editorial board, the chief justice of the state Supreme Court and others are calling for change in the initiative process.

A new Field Poll shows that 51 percent of Californians think the state constitution should be overhauled and the same percent want the changes made through a constitutional convention. A majority of poll respondents want the vote requirement to amend the constitution raised from a simple majority to two-thirds vote and do not want the vote requirement to pass a budget reduced from two-thirds to just a majority. Article includes graphic.

Director-at-Large Frank Ruffino sends this photo of ACSS executive officers speaking with Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown at the Democratic Grassroots Convention in San Diego in September. Members with Brown are Carlos Chavez, Elnora Fretwell, Olin King and Ruffino. As keynote speaker, Brown said the time for one-time fixes has passed. The e-board members also met several legislative candidates.

In failing to get a single Republican vote in the Senate, a bill to protect businesses offering discounts to laid-off and furloughed workers has died. The Assembly passed the measure 78-0. Author Gloria Negrete McLeod said she'll try again in January. The failure of the bill doesn't prevent establishments from offering discounts; the bill would have protected them from lawsuits if they do.

The Legislature has scored the lowest rating in the history of the Field Poll (26 years) with just 13 percent approving the job they're doing. The governor's approval rating was 27 percent, not quite as low as Gray Davis when he was ousted. The impact of budget cuts and furloughs is causing the drop, a Field Poll spokesman said.

The assessment of SEIU Local 1000's call for workers to stay home Monday, for Columbus Day, depends on whom you ask. SEIU President Yvonne Walker proclaimed the effort for her members to observe the holiday "a victory." Four DMV offices closed for lack of workers, but a DMV spokesman called the day "a nonevent."

Second of two-parts: The Legislature did make some cuts, and Senate staffers are furloughed one day a month, but Assembly workers are not furloughed and lawmakers did not suffer cuts as steep as state workers and offices did. Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg asked senators to take a voluntary 5 percent paycut, but two did not. Speaker Karen Bass did not ask Assembly members to take the cut, and most did not. (This is a two-page story.)

Working for the Legislature can pay off: Legislative staffers can retire at 50 with only five years of service and full lifetime health benefits. And that's just the beginning. Today and tomorrow, The Sacramento Bee examines the state Legislature's budget and spending. The article includes links to a graph and a list comparing legislative benefits with the benefits state workers get.

State controller John Chiang reports that state revenues came in $1.1 billion below estimates in the first quarter of this fiscal year. "I urge lawmakers and the governor to prepare for more difficult decisions ahead," Chiang said.

Since no candidate won a majority of the vote, J.J. Jelincic and Kathy Hackett will face a runoff election for their at-large seat on the CalPERS board. Ballots for that election will be mailed Nov. 9 and must be returned by Dec. 4. Jelnicic got 36.8 percent of the vote; Hackett got 28.4 percent. Kurato Shimada easily won the second at-large seat with 83.3 percent of the vote.

Gov. Schwarzenegger has moved to consolidate current and future furlough lawsuits into Sacramento Superior Court, The State Worker blog reports. An update with the full court document is here.

The State Worker column this morning ponders whether SEIU Local 1000 members will support their union by taking next Monday, Columbus Day, as a holiday. SEIU President Yvonne Walker has told members they can lawfully take the day off but the DPA has said any employees doing so will be "AWOL." A Bee editorial urges SEIU workers to show up on Columbus Day, saying it would be "counterproductive (and) detrimental to state workers" not to show up for work that day.

From the LA Times: Gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman, former CEO of eBay, calls state workers "selfish and arrogant" and wants to cut 40,000 of their jobs from the state payroll. Yet, the writer points, out, the 53-year-old Whitman has little experience working with public entitities and didn't bother to register to vote until she was 46.

The State Worker blog has posted the email the BOE executive director sent to employees informing them that enough other cuts had been made to the budget to eliminate the need for layoffs. More than a quarter of the staff was slated to be laid off next year.

Longtime political columnist Dan Walters suggests this morning that we may look back on this year's budget mess as "the good old days." In addition to lawsuits and near-daily protests at the Capitol, revenues are down and the state has borrowed billions that must be paid back.

The Department of Personnel Administration has published its official list of holidays for excluded employees. Excluded employees are entitled to 11 holidays plus one personal holiday.

The state Board of Equalization, which has defied Gov. Schwarzenegger's furlough order, has announced it has identified enough savings in its budget to avoid issuing termination notices, which had been expected for more than 1,000 BOE workers. The BOE employs about 4,000.

Former Assemblyman Jerome Horton will be sworn in tonight in Los Angeles as a member of the Board of Equalization. Horton, a former ACSS member, was appointed to the board by Gov. Schwarzenegger to replace Judy Chu, who won a seat in Congress. ACSS worked on Horton's behalf to help him win the appointment. The ceremony starts at 5:30 p.m. at the California African American Museum.

Following a link from The State Worker blog, the Orange County Register conducted a three-part interview with Republican candidate Meg Whitman. In Part 2, she explains her justification for cutting 40,000 state employees. In Part 1, she talks about why she didn't vote until she was 46. We'll post Part 3 when it is available.

SEIU has told its members to stay home on Columbus Day, Oct. 12. But other unions have taken different stands. Some workers say they'll stay home; some say they can't take the chance of getting even more docked pay.

Of interest to state workers will be CalPERS' new Web site, calpersresponds.com, which sorts facts from myths on three hot topics: the pension fund's investments, state workers' pension security, and national health care reform.

State Worker column: If more courts rule the furloughs are illegal, as happened with the State Compensation Insurance Fund, the state could lose millions. The payback cost in interest to reimburse SCIF employees is $23.5 million. For all furloughed workers, it would be nearly $200 million.