by Timothy Rutt
Picutred: Assemblyman Portantino gives his "state of the state" address Tuesday night.
Assemblyman Anthony M. Portantino delivered his "state of the state" address to the Altadena Town Council at Tuesday night's meeting.
It was hardly a standard political spiel, as Portantino, a Democrat, has earned the ire of his party's leadership this year for voting down a proposed budget. Speaker John A. Perez retaliated by informing Portantino that his office budget was going to be reduced, and his entire staff was to be furloughed for six weeks.
The snit ended with Portantino keeping his staff, but there's still rancor. Portantino told the council that he was working toward more transparency in the assembly, which keeps its individual member's budgets secret and has exempted itself from the California Public Records Act.
As it is now, Portantino said, the pettiness isn't over: his office ran out of photocopy paper and are not allowed to buy any on their own.
Portantino also pointed out triggers that go into effect if certain revenue targets aren't met: up to seven school days for k-12 students could be cut if revenue targets aren't met. Portantino also said that community colleges could raise their fees from $36 to $46 per unit under the new budget plan.
The assemblyman, who is looking at running for the U.S. House of Representatives next year, also detailed his community outreach efforts and said his annual holiday party in December would still be held.
