EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: MARCH 25, 2011

March 25, 2011 (San Diego's East County)--East County Roundup highlights top news stories of interest to San Diego’s East County region, published in other media.

Recent Roundup headlines include:

• Brown signs off on billions worth of state cuts
• Will action on a new Alpine high school be halted?
• El Cajon council moves ahead with downtown business district
• CSU faces worse fiscal situation in history
• New details in arrests of immigrants posing as Marines
• Man pleads not guilty in Spring Valley fatal stabbing
• Governor may seek November initiative on tax plan
• Legislature approves main budget without new revenues

BROWN SIGNS OFF ON BILLIONS WORTH OF STATE CUTS

March 24, 2011 (San Francisco Chronicle) -- Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law billions of dollars worth of cuts to state services today, but acknowledged that state leaders still have to find more than $12 billion in cuts or revenues to close the state's budget gap.
 

Despite an impasse between Democrats and Republican lawmakers over the budget that has become more clear in recent days, Brown said he is still hopeful that some GOP legislators - he needs two in the Senate and two in the Assembly - will "give the people the right to vote" in June on the $14 billion worth of tax extensions and increases he has proposed. Democrats are running out of time to get the tax measures on a June ballot.
 

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/24/BA7U1IIV2H.DTL&tsp=1

WILL ACTION ON A NEW HIGH ALPINE HIGH SCHOOL BE HALTED?

March 24, 2011 (San Diego Union-Tribune)--The citizens group that monitors the Grossmont Union High School District’s bond construction program may ask the Board of Education to stop all work on the proposed Alpine high school except for acquiring property to build it.
 

The Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee, which oversees the Proposition H/U program, will consider making the recommendation at its monthly meeting Wednesday in the Grossmont High School Library.
 

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/mar/24/groups-urge-halt-action-new-alpine-high-school/
 

EL CAJON COUNCIL MOVES AHEAD WITH DOWNTOWN BUSINESS DISTRICT

March 22, 2011 (San Diego Union-Tribune)— The El Cajon City Council unanimously agreed Tuesday to move forward with recertification of downtown’s Property Based Business Improvement District.
 

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/mar/22/el-cajon-council-moves-ahead-downtown-business-dis/

CSU FACES WORSE FISCAL SITUATION IN ITS HISTORY

March 23, 2011 (San Francisco Chronicle) -- About 10,000 students will be turned away, and an untold number of employees will lose their jobs next fall across California State University's 23 campuses.
 

That was the grim news Tuesday out of Long Beach, where CSU trustees discussed how the university that serves more than 400,000 students will shrink amid devastating budget news from the state.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/22/MNPT1IH563.D...

NEW DETAILS IN ARRESTS OF IMMIGRANTS POSING AS MARINES

A second suspicious van remains at large
 

March 23, 2011 (North County Times)--Dressed in U.S. Marine uniforms, several illegal immigrants were apprehended at the Campo Border Patrol checkpoint on March 14. A second suspicious van was not stopped. Although authorities do not dispute the authenticity of the photos, officials insist they were not released to the media by any government agency. Their origin remains unclear.
 

Their vehicle wasn't right. They didn't know the Marine Corps birthday. And they failed to give a "hoo-rah" when asked to do so.
 

Those were some of the clues that tipped a Border Patrol agent, who just happened to be a former Marine, to suspect that a van full of people dressed as Marines were really illegal immigrants, according to an amended criminal complaint filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in San Diego.
 

http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sdcounty/article_8a3e892f-a778-54b9-ada2-9adf1a19478c.html

MAN PLEADS NOT GUILTY IN SPRING VALLEY FATAL STABBING

March 21, 2011 (Mt. Helix Patch.com) -- Hector Ivan Hernandez-Romero, who last week was arrested on suspicion of stabbing a man in Spring Valley, which resulted in the man's death, pleaded not guilty Monday to murder charges.
 

http://mounthelix.patch.com/articles/man-pleads-not-guilty-in-spring-valley-fatal-stabbing

GOVERNOR MAY SEEK NOVEMBER BALLOT INITIATIVE ON TAX PLAN

March 23, 2011 (Sacramento Bee)--A new Plan B for balancing California's budget emerged Tuesday as Gov. Jerry Brown mulled the possibility of a November ballot initiative to maintain higher tax rates.
 

The idea, which would bypass Republican lawmakers' opposition to a public vote, would require a signature drive under a tight timetable to put the measure on the ballot.
 

The Democratic governor continues to negotiate with Republican lawmakers to place tax extensions before voters in June through a two-thirds vote of the Legislature. But talks have sputtered, and state leaders are running out of time to call a June election.

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/03/23/3496690/browns-countdown-day-73-governor.html#ixzz1HUCRjCJE

LEGISLATURE APPROVES MAIN BUDGET BILL WITHOUT NEW REVENUES

March 17, 2011 (Sacramento Bee) -- Both houses of the California Legislature passed the main budget bill today and have now solved roughly half of the state's $26.6 billion deficit, mostly through cuts and taking funds from special state accounts. But nobody's celebrating yet.
 

The Legislature has left unsettled two of the thorniest issues in Gov. Jerry Brown's budget proposal -- the elimination of redevelopment agencies and a special election asking voters to extend higher taxes on sales, income and vehicles.
 

http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2011/03/legislature-approves-main-budget-bill.html