Capitol Alert

In perhaps the touchiest, feeliest appeal yet of the November tax campaign, Carol Kocivar, president of the California State PTA, invites viewers in an online ad to "be" Proposition 38 - just like her.

"I am 38," she says. "Will you be, too?"

The campaign for Proposition 38, the initiative rivaling Gov. Jerry Brown's tax measure, was in the digital equivalent of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood today to announce a video contest urging Californians to record stories about how higher taxes could help their local schools.

The campaign said the contest winner will be featured in a primetime TV ad this fall.

"We're not looking for a full-length, Hollywood feature," Kocivar says. "Just a clip showing your face and sharing your authentic story, and you can even record it on your webcam or your camera phone."

The video, she says, could be "funny, serious, creative or dramatic. It could feature you, your family, your school. Just don't use any copyrighted content, and be positive."

Gov. Jerry Brown issued his first veto messages of the season this morning, and he is off to a prickly start.

Assembly Bill 1892, by Assemblywoman Linda Halderman, R-Fresno, would have required the Department of Consumer Affairs to post certain language on its website regarding construction defects.

"This has already been done," the Democratic governor said in his veto message. "So in keeping with the author's oft-stated mantra that government should not be wasteful or do unnecessary things, I am returning Assembly Bill 1892 without my signature."

The veto message was one of four issued today by Brown, who also signed more than a dozen other bills.

The vetoes are Brown's first since the legislative session ended, though he vetoed two bills earlier this year. Hundreds more bills are on Brown's desk awaiting action before the end of the month.

Rep. Darrell Issa is still one of the richest members of Congress, but he's apparently not as flush as he was.

An estimated $80 million drop in overall net worth from 2010 to 2011 caused the Vista Republican to slip from No. 2 to No. 3 in Roll Call newspaper's annual ranking of the wealthiest members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. A reported net worth of at least $140.5 million put him behind only Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, (worth $305.46 million) and Democratic U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts (worth $198.65 million) on the list.

Issa isn't the only Californian near the top of the list, which is compiled based on annual financial disclosure reports filed by members of Congress.

The day starts on a somber note for Gov. Jerry Brown, who will be in Vacaville for the 10 a.m. funeral of CHP Officer Kenyon Youngstrom. Later in the afternoon, Brown will join Attorney General Kamala Harris at a ceremony in the Capitol to present three public safety officers with the Medal of Valor.

The state's new "top two" primary system and its re-drawn political districts are the subject of a lunchtime talk by Eric McGhee of the Public Policy Institute of California. He'll discuss how these reforms played out in June's primary in terms of competition, money, and crossover voting. It's at noon at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, 1017 11th Street.

Also over the lunch hour, Brown's executive secretary Nancy McFadden will address a Capitol women's group called She Shares - a conversation series featuring female leaders. Prior speakers in the series included California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye and Attorney General Kamala Harris. The next talk, in December, features California's second lady, documentary filmmaker and social activist Jennifer Siebel Newsom. McFadden's talk today is at noon at Lucca Restaurant, 1615 J Street.

Capitol journalists will gather tonight at the Convention Center for the California Journalism Awards, put on by Sacramento State's Center for California Studies. See the list of winners here.