Teams of Republican and Democratic legislators face off tonight at the Crest Theatre on K Street to answer burning questions, one of which might very well be, "Who brought a sleeping bag to the Legislature's last all-night session?"
It's the eighth year for the annual YMCA Youth and Government event styled after the television game show "Family Feud," and it's now 4 to 3 in favor of the Republicans.
No doubt the Democrats want to even up the score.
Proceeds from the event -- which runs from 5:30 to 7 p.m. -- will help pay the way of high-school delegates to the organization's model legislature. About 2,300 of them will be in Sacramento over the weekend practicing how to run the place.
Under the dome, teams of Republicans and Democrats -- otherwise known as committees -- will explore other burning questions such as, "Can tax breaks make sense?"
The Senate Governance and Finance Committee, for instance, is considering Brown's proposal to repeal tax expenditures. Representatives of the Department of Finance, the Legislative Analyst's Office and the Franchise Tax Board are among those expected to appear at the hearing, which starts at 9:30 a.m. in Room 4203.
Click here for a full list of hearings on the Senate side. Click here for the Assembly.
Speaking of budget negotiations, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg told The Bee last month that he wanted to pursue legislation to reform regulations and streamline business permits.
Today Steinberg joins Sens. Ron Calderon and Fran Pavley as well as business representatives and environmentalists at the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce to unveil the proposal.
Rumor has it they'll be bringing the 28,000-page California Code of Regulations with them.
So Alert readers can keep track of all things budget, we've gathered The Bee's coverage of "Brown's Countdown," the 60-day quest for a budget deal. Find a time line and links to previous stories by clicking here.
Also check out which budget choices readers have selected so far with The Bee's budget balancer.
LOBBYISTS: Who's lobbying the state? Colleague Phillip Reese reports that special interest groups spent $539 million lobbying state government during the 2009-2010 legislative session. Click here to search the database for those organizations.
BUDGET TOWN HALL: Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, D-Sacramento, joins Next10 for a forum highlighting the organization's interactive budget program. The meeting runs from 6 to 8 p.m. at Coloma Community Center, 4623 T St., Sacramento.
AD 4 SPECIAL ELECTION: Candidates for the March 8 special primary in the 4th Assembly District will appear tonight at the monthly meeting of the Tea Party Patriots of El Dorado Hills, starting at 7 p.m. at the Holiday Inn Express, 4360 Town Center Blvd., El Dorado Hills. Click here for more information.
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