Gov. Jerry Brown has backed away from his earlier call for legislators to put a pension-change measure on the November ballot, although the administration is continuing to push for statutory changes.

In an email to The State Worker, Brown spokeswoman Elizabeth Ashfordsaid, "There won't be pension changes on the November ballot. But we'll get the reforms done, you can count on that."

Read entire article at SacBee.com >>

Gov. Jerry Brown personally submitted the first of about 1.5 million signatures to qualify a revenue measure on the November ballot.

Local 1000 members and staff collected more than 24,000 signatures to qualify the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012.

Click here to see video of Brown submitting the signatures >>

Click here to read a Sacramento Bee article on signatures >>

by Jon Ortiz

We're months from when the real fighting starts, but already the labor union and business interests on opposite sides of a November ballot measure are honing their messages.

"The Stop Special Interest Money Now Act" would ban both unions and corporations from contributing directly to candidates. Both could still fund independent expenditure campaigns to support them.

The measure, which hasn't been assigned a proposition number yet, is especially tough on labor because it would ban all payroll-deducted contributions - unions' primary method of raising money for those independent expenditure committees.

Corporations, by contrast, raise the bulk of their political money from shareholders and executives.

Look for labor to attack the measure as faux political reform that kneecaps unions - and, by extension, the working class - and leaves the power of "the 1 percent" virtually unchallenged.

Read entire article at SacBee.com >>

Wealthy interests want to silence our voices

Corporate Power Grab initiative undercuts union power, gives strength to big private donors

By Yvonne R. Walker
President, Local 1000

Once again, public employees and our families are under attack.

Giant corporations, billionaires and their high-paid lobbyists are unhappy that unions keep fighting for the middle class - and often win. Now they want to tie both hands behind our backs with a cynical, misleading initiative on the November ballot.