Excerpt:
The California State Teachers' Retirement System, or CalSTRS, owns 2 million Enron shares. It won't reveal the size of its loss.
http://calpensions.com/2009/06/08/calstrs-the-fighting-fiduciaries/
Excerpt:
It’s the second largest public employees pension fund in the nation with post-stock market crash assets valued at $117 billion on April 30. But virtually alone among public pension systems in California, it’s unable to set its own contribution rates.
http://www.goldrushcam.com/mariposa%20page%202%20news.htm
Excerpt:
CalPERS/CalSTRS*Think Mariposa CountySutter Supervisors to study pensions
While some Sutter County officials have pointed to its ability to avoid layoffs and the other effects of pension-driven cash squeezes, Auditor-Controller Robert Stark countered that its own pension system's underfunding has more than doubled to $126 million in the past year — and that its turn to suffer is near without radical changes.
"What you'll see is a steady erosion of our reserves; we may look like everything's fine compared to other cities and counties, but I think we're on the same sinking ship," he said Friday. "The sooner we take the steps to mitigate that, the better off we'll be in the end."
Appeal-Democrat
"What you'll see is a steady erosion of our reserves; we may look like everything's fine compared to other cities and counties, but I think we're on the same sinking ship," he said Friday. "The sooner we take the steps to mitigate that, the better off we'll be in the end."
Appeal-Democrat
California Farm Bureau
http://www.eogresources.com/about/company_history.html
Excerpt:
1999
- EOG Resources, Inc. (EOG), formerly Enron Oil & Gas Company, adopted a new name and declared its independence from Enron Corp. Simultaneously, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Forrest E. Hoglund retired, Mark G. Papa was elected Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and Edmund P. Segner was named President and Chief of Staff of EOG.
Excerpt:
Moreover, the Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB) has just issued rules that require public pension funds to “mark-to-market” the amount of unfunded pension liabilities of CalPERS, CalSTRS and other public pension funds in California. This rule change will finally reveal that CalPERS is only perhaps 50 percent funded, instead of 70 percent funded as it claims.
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=EOG_Resources
Excerpt:EOG Resources is the new name for Enron Oil and Gas Company; a Fortune 500 company, it is one of the largest independent oil and natural gas companies in the United States.
Its directors have ties to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, to the climate complacency media campaign CO2 Is Green, and, hereditarily at the very least, to the CIA.
Personnel
Directors
In 2011, the Board of Directors consisted of:[1]- George A. Alcorn, director of Eagle Publishing, parent company of Swift Boat publisher Regnery Publishing.
- Charles R. Crisp
- James C. Day
- Mark G. Papa
- H. Leighton Steward of CO2 Is Green with $600k+ media ad buy
- Donald F. Textor
- Frank G. Wisner, former Ambassador to India and AIG Vice Chairman; son of CIA's Frank Wisner[2]
Excerpt:
Regnery Publishing in Washington, D.C., is a publisher which specializes in conservative books characterized on their website as "contrary to those of 'mainstream' publishers in New York."[1] Since 1993, Regnery Publishing has been a division of Eagle Publishing, which also owns the weekly magazine Human Events. Regnery is currently led by President Marjory Ross, who had previously served as Vice President under President Al Regnery, son of the company's founder, until 1997.
Regnery has published books by authors such as former Republican Party Chairman Haley Barbour, Ann Coulter, former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Newt Gingrich, columnist Michelle Malkin and Barbara Olson.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1270613/posts
Excerpt:
The TEXAS Connection (Enron-PGE takeover connected to CA Senator Feinstein)
Wilamette Week Online ^ | 11/3/2004 | NIGEL JAQUISS
Posted on Thursday, November 04, 2004 12:02:36 PM by Robert357
Last week, a well-respected online business publication provided yet another possible link between Neil Goldschmidt and the Texans who recruited him to take over Portland General Electric.
On Oct. 28, Bloomberg News published an account of Texas Pacific Group's struggle to buy Oregon's largest utility. The story quoted Richard Blum, a San Francisco investor who has been a business partner and hiking companion of Texas Pacific CEO David Bonderman for the past decade.
Blum is no stranger to acquiring heavily regulated businesses in Oregon--nor is he a stranger to Goldschmidt. Correspondence obtained by WW from the state archives shows that the two were pals and that in 1990 Blum called on the then-governor for urgent political cover. That year, Blum's wife, Dianne Feinstein, was engaged in a brutal race for governor of California and making an issue about the savings-and-loan scandal. (She lost but was later elected to the U.S. Senate.)
Blum drafted a letter for Goldschmidt's signature on Aug. 23, 1990, praising Blum's 1988 takeover of the Jackson County Federal Savings and Loan in Medford. "Could you check out the veracity of this?" Goldschmidt scrawled in the margin before signing a later draft.
Fourteen years later, Blum's hiking buddy tapped Goldschmidt to head Oregon Electric Utility Company to run PGE should Bonderman get his way and buy the local utility.
When and how Goldschmidt and the Texans teamed up is of great interest to a lot of people. The sequence of events is a central question in an ongoing investigation by state Attorney General Hardy Myers into when Diana Goldschmidt and other members of the Oregon Investment Council first learned of the Texans' interest in PGE.
Neil Goldschmidt has said he did not learn of Bonderman's interest in PGE until Oct. 29, 2003, just hours after his wife, Diana, and the other members of the Oregon Investment Council voted to invest $300 million in public funds in Texas Pacific.
There is no evidence that Blum and Bonderman, who own neighboring properties in Aspen, discussed Goldschmidt during the year that Texas Pacific pondered acquiring Oregon's largest utility.
Owen Blicksilver, spokesman for both Blum and Texas Pacific, says neither has any comment about whether they discussed Goldschmidt.
Texas Pacific, for its part, has always maintained that Goldschmidt's name was given to them by Jerry Grinstein, the CEO of Delta Airlines, who, along with Goldschmidt and former TriMet boss Tom Walsh, was named to Oregon Electric's board. (Goldschmidt stepped down from the board in May after admitting the sexual abuse of a teenager 29 years ago.)
But on Oct. 21, however, Grinstein offered a slightly different version of events. Testifying before the Public Utility Commission, Grinstein said that in October 2003, Bonderman called to ask him to serve on the board and inquire "how I felt about other potential board members," namely Goldschmidt and Walsh.
The implication of his testimony was that Bonderman had sought his approval of the two Portlanders--a strange request if Grinstein had suggested them originally.
Speaking for Texas Pacific, Blicksilver disagrees. "We see no inconsistency in any statements made by Jerry," he says.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/20/us/enron-s-collapse-backdrop-houston-lines-dividing-politics-business-society-are.html
Excerpt:
ENRON'S COLLAPSE: BACKDROP; In Houston, the Lines Dividing Politics, Business and Society Are Especially Blurry
On the day that Enron Field made its debut in April 2000, its ''Diamond Club'' was a portrait in power.
In the state-of-the-art baseball stadium's most exclusive section, behind home plate, there were the George Bushes -- a former president and a president to be -- along with the younger Mr. Bush's running mate, Dick Cheney, and his successor as governor, Rick Perry. Nearby was Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, whose husband, Ray, is a lawyer with Enron's chief law firm, Vinson & Elkins. And then came the executives of Houston's biggest companies, who had vied to become the younger Bush's most prominent fund-raisers, just as they had jockeyed to buy the prized luxury seats.
In the state-of-the-art baseball stadium's most exclusive section, behind home plate, there were the George Bushes -- a former president and a president to be -- along with the younger Mr. Bush's running mate, Dick Cheney, and his successor as governor, Rick Perry. Nearby was Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, whose husband, Ray, is a lawyer with Enron's chief law firm, Vinson & Elkins. And then came the executives of Houston's biggest companies, who had vied to become the younger Bush's most prominent fund-raisers, just as they had jockeyed to buy the prized luxury seats.
http://forwardamerica.blogspot.com/2008/02/enron-and-california-energy-crisis.html
Excerpt:
By May 2001, California energy bills had increased 1,000% since the beginning of the crisis. At one point A megawatt hour cost $250, in comparison to about $12 in 1998. President Bill Clinton tried to address the problem on December 14, 2000 by ordering an end to uncontrolled speculation in energy going to California. That order was rescinded three days after George W. Bush was inaugurated. The Republican-controlled FERC did not do anything about California energy prices until late June, when caps were again applied. Perhaps, the new appointees, who owed their jobs partly to Ken Lay, thought there were legitimate questions about whether legislation passed in 1993 gave the agency power to act. ( )
http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/221265/enron-list/byron-york#
Excerpt:
(The two senators who took in the most from Enron are both Republicans from Texas, Kay Bailey Hutchinson with $99,500 and the retiring Phil Gramm with $97,350.)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherron_Watkins
Excerpt:
Sherron Watkins (born August 28, 1959) was Vice President of Corporate Development at the Enron Corporation. She is considered by many to be the whistleblower who helped to uncover the Enron scandal in 2001.
It has been remarked that her actions cannot be considered whistleblowing in a strict sense, because she only wrote a concerned internal email message to Enron CEO Kenneth Lay warning him of potential whistleblowers in the company and pointing out that there were misstatements in the financial reports. Her memo did not reach the public until five months after it was written. Dan Ackman argued in Forbes Magazine and in the Wall Street Journal that, for this reason, her actions did not constitute whistleblowing and actually helped provide legal cover for Lay.[1]
She testified before committees of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate at the beginning of 2002 and was selected as one of three "People of the Year 2002" by Time. (The two whistleblowers who joined her as "People of the Year" were Cynthia Cooper of WorldCom and Coleen Rowley of the FBI.)
Watkins was born in Tomball, Texas. She had joined Enron in 1993, having worked for Arthur Andersen the previous eight years. She departed from Enron in November 2002. Since then she has been giving speeches at management congresses and has co-written a book about her experiences at Enron and the problems of the US corporate culture.
Watkins holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (with honors) from the University of Texas, where she was a member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority,[2] and a Masters of Professional Accounting. She is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Arthur_Andersen
Excerpt:
Arthur Andersen LLP was an accounting company which was one of the Big Five. There now remains the Big Four - Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Arthur Andersen belonged to the umbrella organization Andersen Worldwide SC until it was destroyed by the Enron Corporation scandal. Arthur Andersen was left unable to perform audits for publicly traded U.S. companies which effectively ended the company's life. It still faces numerous civil lawsuits. [1]
Contents[hide] |
Personnel
Key people included: [2]- Mark Pollack, General Counsel
- Gil Humphreys, Chief Financial Officer of Marsh Copsey & Associates
- Rob Arkley[3]
- CSUS Business School dean Sanjay Varshney[4], [5]
Contact details
33 W. Monroe StreetChicago, IL 60603
USA
Phone: 312-580-0033
Fax: 312-507-6748
Web: http://www.andersen.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andersen_Worldwide
Excerpt:
In 1997, Andersen Consulting asked to break away from Andersen Worldwide. Three years later after a long arbitration process under the International Chamber of Commerce Andersen Consulting finally broke away agreeing to relinquish the use of the name "Andersen" by 1/1/2001. Sources often mis-reported that Andersen Consulting had to pay $1 Billion for its independence. This is inaccurate. Andersen Consulting had been paying Arthur Andersen many millions per year, which was at the crux of why Andersen Consulting wanted to break away. The $1 Billion payment at the time of the break-up was not a "payment for independence", rather, it was simply the regular annual payments which were held in escrow until a final arbitration decision was reached. 4 hours after the verdict was official, Arthur Andersen's CEO Jim Wadia promptly resigned. It was later reported by Wadia that a resolution had been passed by Arthur Andersen's board that Wadia had to get at least $4 billion (over and above the regular annual payments) from Andersen Consulting or step down.
http://www.sec.gov/litigation/aljdec/id222-petscedison.htm
Excerpt:
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
BEFORE THE
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
BEFORE THE
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
In the Matter of Applications of Enron Corp. for Exemptions Under the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935, (Nos. 70-9661 and 70-10056). | : : : : : : : : : | Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-10909 |
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA EDISON COMPANY'S PETITION FOR REVIEW
Pursuant to Rule 410 of the Rules of Practice of the Securities and Exchange Commission ("Commission"), Southern California Edison Company ("Edison") respectfully petitions the Commission for review of the following decisions in the above-captioned proceeding: 1) the Initial Decision issued by the Honorable Brenda P. Murray on February 6, 2003 (the "Initial Decision"); and 2) the November 2002 orders denying Edison's Motion to Intervene.1 Edison seeks review of the Initial Decision because it fails to consider whether Enron's Application No. 70-9661 (the "Application") was filed in good faith within the meaning of Section 3(c) of the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 ("PUHCA" or the "Act"). See Initial Decision at 10. By declining to address the issue of good faith, the Initial Decision effectively sanctions Enron's de facto exemption from the Act for a period of three years even though there is no record support for the exemption during that period. The uncontroverted record evidence establishes that the Application was filed without any colorable basis for the exemption being granted, that the Application was premised on falsified financial statements, and that, even after the nature of the misrepresentations made in the initial filing was revealed, the Application remained uncorrected by Enron.
If Section 3(c) of the Act is to have any meaning at all, the Commission must address the good faith issue. Simply ignoring the issue will establish a dangerous precedent for others who may seek the benefit of the temporary exemption afforded by Section 3(c) without a good faith basis for doing so. This issue is not only an important matter of law that this Commission should review, but also a policy matter of considerable importance as well. See SEC Rule of Practice 411(b)(2)(C).
Edison requests that the Commission grant review of the Initial Decision and find, based on the record before it, that Enron's application was not filed in good faith within the meaning of Section 3(c) of the Act.2 Alternatively, the Commission should remand the proceeding to Chief Judge Murray in part for a determination of whether the Application was filed in good faith.
In addition, Edison appeals the November 5, 2002 order denying Edison's Motion to Intervene as a Party in the above-captioned proceeding, and the November 19, 2002 order denying Edison's Motion for Reconsideration on the issue of Edison's Intervention (collectively, "Orders"). The Orders held that Edison failed to establish any basis to intervene, but authorized Edison to participate on a limited basis pursuant to Commission Rule 210(c). The Orders are clearly erroneous. As demonstrated in Edison's March 26, 2002 Motion to Intervene, Edison represents the interests of millions of "consumers" within the meaning of Section 19 of PUHCA who will be directly impacted by the outcome of this proceeding. No other party represents the interests of Edison's ratepayers in this case. Edison therefore should have been granted full intervention in this proceeding, and the Orders must be reversed.
Factual Background
Edison purchases energy and capacity from certain of Enron's wind energy small power production facilities (the "Enron Wind Facilities") under regulations of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") and the California Public Utilities Commission that implement the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 ("PURPA"). PURPA allows qualifying small power production and cogeneration facilities ("qualifying facilities" or "QFs") to obtain certain benefits, including the right to interconnect with and make sales of power to public utilities at "avoided cost." http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/politics&id=7116187 (be sure and watch the video) ...calExcerpt:
California Prison Teachers Protest Layoffs
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Chowchilla, California (KFSN) -- The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is planning to cut between 600 and 900 prison staff members across the state to deal with a more than one billion dollar budget deficit.
But employees at the two prisons in Chowchilla say the proposed lay-offs come with too high of a price for the public.
Dozens of staff members from the two women's prisons in Chowchilla rallied outside the gates of the Central California Women's Facility in hopes of sending a message to the community.
John Plain said, "The state of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to severely cut the number of teachers who work in prisons and that will severely impact public safety, and we want them to know what's coming."
Many of the protestors are teachers or vocational instructors. They say their classes and programs help prepare the women serving time inside these walls to be contributing members of society once their sentences are complete. They teach everything from reading and math to carpentry and landscaping. Catherina Fowler said, "We also teach life skills which is important. We teach people how to balance a checkbook, how to read a contract, how to apply for a job."
The teachers say without those skills, the women are more likely to commit crimes and end up back in prison. But prison officials say the state budget has left them with no choice but to scale back the programs.
Bart Fortner said, "We're looking at anywhere from 30 to 50 percent cut in staffing in our education and vocation programs."
Spokesman Bart Fornter says CCWF and the other state prisons will try to minimize the impact of those cuts by giving help first to the inmates who are closest to being released. There are also plans to use teachers aides instead of certified teachers ... and to train inmates to mentor each other. But the protestors say those substitutes won't be the same. And it will still leave them out in the cold.
Barbara Greninger said, "We are about to join one of the largest unemployment lines there is."
The protestors say the programs also save taxpayers money by keeping released inmates from returning to prison. They're asking residents to contact their legislators and demand they prevent the lay-offs.
Meanwhile, officials here at cCWF say they're still waiting on word on exactly how many positions will be cut.
Dozens of staff members from the two women's prisons in Chowchilla rallied outside the gates of the Central California Women's Facility in hopes of sending a message to the community.
John Plain said, "The state of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to severely cut the number of teachers who work in prisons and that will severely impact public safety, and we want them to know what's coming."
Many of the protestors are teachers or vocational instructors. They say their classes and programs help prepare the women serving time inside these walls to be contributing members of society once their sentences are complete. They teach everything from reading and math to carpentry and landscaping. Catherina Fowler said, "We also teach life skills which is important. We teach people how to balance a checkbook, how to read a contract, how to apply for a job."
The teachers say without those skills, the women are more likely to commit crimes and end up back in prison. But prison officials say the state budget has left them with no choice but to scale back the programs.
Bart Fortner said, "We're looking at anywhere from 30 to 50 percent cut in staffing in our education and vocation programs."
Spokesman Bart Fornter says CCWF and the other state prisons will try to minimize the impact of those cuts by giving help first to the inmates who are closest to being released. There are also plans to use teachers aides instead of certified teachers ... and to train inmates to mentor each other. But the protestors say those substitutes won't be the same. And it will still leave them out in the cold.
Barbara Greninger said, "We are about to join one of the largest unemployment lines there is."
The protestors say the programs also save taxpayers money by keeping released inmates from returning to prison. They're asking residents to contact their legislators and demand they prevent the lay-offs.
Meanwhile, officials here at cCWF say they're still waiting on word on exactly how many positions will be cut.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accenture
Excerpt:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_%26_Rubicam
Excerpt:
A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the highest standard of competence in the field of Accountancy across the globe. The exam is administered by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), which is the world’s largest accounting body. If you ever consider a career in accounting and want an illustrious career, CPA Course is the best option for you. CPAs are globally recognized as premier accountants and are hired across industries throughout the world.
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