In 1999, the California Legislature signed into existence the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers and Mountains Conservancy. Then, the battle began for state tax money, Bond monies and the power to manipulate the public and the "open handed" Bond laws, and slack oversight cost that State of California millions, perhaps billions, of dollars. One director stepped down in 2011 after an audit by the California Attorney General found monies transferred from one Joint Powers Authorities to another that had the same Director for all ad hoc groups. The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy has been audited but, its back room - not for public - meetings has been the "joke" of the state; "California is such an environmentally concerned state." Voters are constantly asked to vote to tax themselves for "heart pulling" issues like, the condition of the Sacramento Delta levees. After Katrina in New Orleans, the Bond Measures 1-E and Prop 84 were passed in 2006 yet the levees are still not fixed and much of the $9.4 Billion is gone.

If you are out of work, injured, sick, or just plain do not make enough money to sustain yourself your credit WILL become bad. Why are we being checked for credit to work or get auto insurance rates? Credit checks have NOTHING to do with work ethic, education, special talents or driving records. Stop this...the jobless rate would go down if ALL applicants are looked at, not just the ones with good credit.

I am a full time student and I am being affected by this erratic gesture whereby the army tuition assistance is being cut off. Me and thousands of my comrades are strongly being affected by this budget cut. Education is not something that should be cut and this should be stopped.

It is time for the American public to make a stand against the stalemate that has been created in Washington. It is a lack of communication, cooperation and leadership that has brought about the chaos that exists in Washington today. It is the President, House of Representatives and the Senates responsibility to create a budget. They have not done so. If it can happen now it can happen in the future. We owe it to our children, and our grandchildren to stop this maddness and hold them accountable.

Students at University of Arkansas - Fort Smith (UAFS) are concerned about potential education funding cuts! If UAFS and higher education in the state of Arkansas are important to you, please help send this message to our state legislators. A decrease in funding will increase our tuition and cut valuable programs and services!

It should be simple: if you’re sick, you can stay home from work so you don’t get your co-workers and customers sick too. Yet thousands of people are forced to come to work sick in restaurants, child care centers, and other workplaces because they lack paid sick leave. It makes our workplaces and communities less healthy for all of us. Some cities, including Seattle, give workers the right to earn leave for sick days, preventative care, or to care for a sick child or family member. These laws also help businesses maintain healthier, happier, more productive employees. Unfortunately, Republicans in our state Legislature are trying to undermine Seattle's sick leave law. (http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=5726) They're following in the footsteps of Wisconsin’s far-right Governor, Scott Walker, who passed similar ALEC legislation to override Milwaukee’s sick leave law in 2011. Tell our legislators to save Seattle's sick leave law!

Companies r not giving wage increase an i haven't had a wage increase in god nos when.

The foreclosure crisis continues to spread like a virus throughout our neighborhoods. Foreclosure sales, vacant homes, and blight have spillover effects that are impacting our entire community. Surrounding home values have plummeted resulting in an upside down housing market. Today, 20% of Coloradans are underwater on their mortgage – they owe more than their home is worth. They have collectively lost $9 billion in wealth. This loss of wealth means our families have less money to spend. The lack of middle-class purchasing power in this recession has been the trigger for our historic levels of unemployment and continued stagnant economy. The child poverty rate in Colorado has more than doubled since 2008. Additionally, the number of homeless children has risen 33% across the country since 2009 due to foreclosure crisis and the recession. We are not even halfway through this crisis. In 2010 lenders filed 3.8 million foreclosures and 5.7 million were at imminent risk. By the time the crisis subsides it is projected that between 10 and 13 million families will lose their homes. We know how this happened. We can blame this crisis on abusive mortgage issuers, abusive and predatory mortgage practices, ineffective government oversight, and rampant and complex securitization with little accountability. It is time to take action to stabilize the housing market and jump start the economy by preventing unnecessary foreclosures, by providing consumer protections and more integrity within a system that is currently biased towards the lender. Sign this Petition to tell your State Senators to protect Colorado homeowner rights: http://www.leg.state.co.us/clics/clics2013a/csl.nsf/fsbillcont3/603C3674C9B9C54487257A8C00506EF3?Open&file=1249_01.pdf

This petition is being formed to change Illinois' current flat-tax rate of 5% to a progressive rate that will increase as an individual's income increases (at a marginal rate, like our federal taxes). In fact, Illinois has maintained a flat-tax rate at least as far back as 1969 when it was 2.5%. It has remained approximately this rate since that time until 2011, when it was raised from 3% to the current rate of 5%. How does this affect us as Illinois citizens? Our state is fast-approaching a crisis position where it may go bankrupt. Pension-funding is being blamed, but this is money that was never properly allocated to the pension funds. So, now the workers who rightly earned this money might not ever see it or only get a fraction thereof. Why not make the wealthy pay more? They alone have profited over the last four decades from increases in productivity and efficiency gained in the workplace. The poor and working-class remain poor or unable to maintain a decent standard of living. The wealthy can afford to pay more and should. This is their way of contributing to an economy that afforded them the ability to gain these riches in the first place.

no more cuts to education, health; education and health is very important for every body , why we should have to save money if we have not good health good schools take care of old people ; my heart break when i see on the street old people asking for help please for god sake be human member of the congress, senate and governor you never know your future if you want to save money start for yourself

The greedy state government in Honolulu is again trying to deprive us of our fair share of the visitor tax. This means higher taxes for all outer islanders if it passes.

I returned from selling art in New Orleans where, since the failure of the Levees, New Orleans has had this method of nurturing art and artists in their work and supporting collectors of art to participate in culture by connecting with and supporting local artists. It is good for tourism, world opinion of the city and it cultivates culture directly with very little bureaucratic handling.