California Insider

Don Perata's "Rebuilding California" political action committee has donated $25,000 to Californians to Improve Traffic Now, the coalition that wants to "fix" Prop. 42 so that revenue from the sales tax on gas is forever walled off from the general fund. That's the same idea that the CTA last week asked members to oppose because, the union argued, it would give transportation a higher priority in the budget than the schools.

The infrastructure talks are on again, following a meeting of the Big 5 Wednesday night. The word is that the Little 4 -- the leaders minus the gov -- are going to try to come to an agreement among themselves on at least the outlines of a deal, then go back to the governor to nail down the details together.

Business owners in Costa Mesa are organizing to fight the city's decision to have its police cooperate more closely with immigration authorities to deport criminal aliens. They say business in the city's heavily Hispanic neighborhoods has dropped off sharply since the policy was announced.

Former Schwarzenegger communications director Rob Stutzman is joining fellow Arnoldistas Mike Murphy and Todd Harris at Navigators, where Stutzman will specialize in crisis communications, according to an announcement.