WASHINGTON – Steven Polanksy, an obstetrician and gynecologist in Sacramento since 1977, says he can't afford a 10.6 percent pay cut from Congress.

Steven Polansky, a Sacramento obstetrician and gynecologist since 1977, says he can't afford a 10.6 percent cut in Medicare payments.

Dr. Steven Polansky

Over the years, as California politicians have contended with income-outgo gaps in the state budget, they have often turned to upfront and backdoor loans, accounting gimmicks, and raids on various pots of money to ease or avoid the difficult alternatives of raising taxes and cutting spending.

WASHINGTON – Sen. Barack Obama, whose ability to deliver a soaring speech is considered unrivaled among the current crop of American politicians, will head for a bigger stage next month when he formally accepts the Democratic presidential nomination: He'll deliver his acceptance speech at Denver's 76,000-seat football stadium.

Eight days into the fiscal year and 23 days past the June 15 constitutional deadline, state lawmakers have yet to even schedule a floor vote on the state budget. They and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger are still at odds over how to close a $15.2 billion shortfall in the $101 billion general fund. The entire budget proposed by the Republican governor is $144 billion, including bond and special funds.

Republican Tom Campbell, who served in the state Senate, Congress and, briefly, as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's budget director, has filed paperwork to explore his own run for governor.

Mortgage lenders must contact California home borrowers to explore loan modifications by phone or in person before starting foreclosure proceedings under a new law Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Tuesday.

A new report on California's highly contentious system of compensating workers for job-related illnesses and injuries proves that the systemic overhaul pushed through the Legislature by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2004 continues to save employers many billions of dollars each year.

Tourists at the Capitol last week would hardly know the state budget was $15.2 billion to the bad and increasingly overdue.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, to the dismay of his aides, last week cracked a joke as the state began another fiscal year without a state budget.

WASHINGTON – Justice Anthony Kennedy vaulted from California to the Supreme Court 20 years ago, seemingly with his eyes wide open.

Natural phenomena have a way of finding Chuck Quackenbush.

Opponents of the oil tax initiative, Proposition 87, got an early start on raising money and putting together their campaign.