Assemblyman Guy Houston, R-San Ramon, announced his support Monday morning for legislation and a ballot initiative that would guarantee public safety funding, create a new agency and expand sentences for drug and gang-rated crimes.

The two parallel efforts, Assembly Bill 2417 and the “Safe Neighborhoods Act,” calls for the creation of a commission to evaluate and disclose the effectiveness of crime prevention measures and a new Office of Public Safety Education and Information.

Houston, who is also running in the June 3 election for Contra Costa County supervisor against incumbent Mary Nejedly Piepho, held a press conference in Alamo with county Sheriff Warren Rupf to announce his endorsement.

The assemblyman’s public show of support is more likely to boost his supervisor campaign than help pass the legislation.

GOP Assemblywoman Sharon Runner of Lancaster introduced the bill in early March but the Democratic-controlled Legislature has little appetite for a high-priced “tough on crime” measure at a time when lawmakers face an $8 billion deficit.

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Contra Costa County Supervisors Mary Nejedly Piepho of Discovery Bay and John Gioia of Richmond will introduce Tuesday a new ordinance called “Buy Fresh, Buy Local.”

They say it’s a “farming sustainability program connecting East County farmers and their locally grown produce with West County communities and urban schools.”

Piepho, Gioia and representatives from the Brentwood Agricultural Land Trust and the county’s Agricultural Advisory Task Force and local East County farmers will speak at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting at approximately 10 a.m. at 651 Pine Street in Martinez.

“The program will encourage public and private facilities in the county to purchase locally grown produce, improve access to West County communities and integrate the value of locally grown food and farm products into existing educational curricula,” according to a press release.

The pair said that “low income communities which have limited access to fresh fruits and vegetables are at a higher risk of obesity and other health problems due to poor diet. Additionally, the new law would open opportunities for the Contra Costa Health Department to incorporate the importance of incorporating fresh locally grown produce into existing programs.”

If you have a worthy cause, I know a couple of guys with some extra cash sitting around.

Former Assemblyman Joe Canciamilla of Pittsburg dropped out of the June 3 state Senate Democratic primary contest, much to the disappointment of his fans. But in campaign finance reports filed recently, he still had $405,263 in the bank as of Dec. 31, 2007. Canciamilla has raised $568,210 since he started campaigning in 2006 and had not spent much of it.

Meanwhile, his opponent — now unopposed — Democratic Assemblyman Mark DeSaulnier of Concord had $254,064 in his account as of March 17.

He had raised a total of $416,889 for what he expected would be a tough Senate primary fight. He transferred the vast majority of the money came from his Assembly re-election campaign fund, which he no longer needed after he opted to run for the Senate.

What will these guys do with all this money now?

Any registered Democrat in California still has time to run for one of the 241 up-for-grabs delegate seats for the party’s national presidential convention in Denver on Aug. 25-28. The deadline to file as a delegate candidate is Wednesday at 5 p.m.

The campaigns for presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama will hold caucus elections on April 13 in each of California’s 53 Congressional districts. Based on the results of California’s Feb. 5 primary election, Clinton will receive 134 and Obama 107 delegates.

To be successful, a candidate must secure the winning number of votes at the caucus of his or her Congressional district. Many delegate hopefuls are already campaigning to bring their friends and neighbors out to the caucuses.

The balance of California’s 441 delegates include members of Congress, party leaders and a slate of mayors and other local elected officials who will be selected by the party in May.

All delegates must pay their own airfare, hotel, meals and other expenses, estimated to be about $2,500.

For information on how the process works and how to apply to become a candidate, visit www.cadem.org and click on “Become a Delegate!”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke of the presidential race, the Iraq War and her new life as a national leader during a speech this afternoon in Concord at a packed luncheon fund-raiser for six-term incumbent Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Alamo.

Pelosi made a similar fund-raising stop for Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Pleasanton, late this afternoon in a reception prior to her appearance at this weekend’s California Democratic Party convention in San Jose.

In Concord at the Crown Plaza Hotel, Pelosi charmed the crowd with her trademark mix of smart policy talk with warm personal touches. She called Tauscher “girlfriend” and spoke lovingly of the East Bay lawmaker’s teen-aged daughter, Katherine, who used to arrive at political events in her mother’s arms and is now college shopping.

Some folks may remember a few years ago when the two women quarreled over district boundaries and leadership votes. But those differences are clearly a thing of the past as the pair obviously enjoyed each other’s company. The women also delivered glowing commentaries about each other’s political credentials and skills, a typical but sincere activity at political fund-raisers.

On the policy front, Pelosi reiterated to the crowd what she has been saying on the national stage for months.

She said it’s time to elect a Democratic president who will safely and securely extricate the U.S. from the Iraq War, a costly conflict she says is leading the country into a recession.

But no, she didn’t let on which of the two potential nominees she prefers, referring only to the fact that America is ready for “something new” and “a change,” watchwords for every presidential hopeful.

Pelosi expressed continued concern about long-term political stability in Pakistan and called on the international community to redouble its efforts in Afghanistan before extremist forces gain a further foothold there.

Some folks also asked Pelosi as she mingled prior to her speech about what it was like to be Speaker of the House of Representatives.

She answered them from the podium, where she paused, smiled and said, “It’s absolutely fabulous.”

Meanwhile, the National Republican Congressional Campaign Committee sent out a less than flattering missive about Pelosi’s appearance for McNerney later in the day. They characterized it as a reward for voting “in lock-step with Pelosi 96 percent of the time.”

The NRCC is backing McNerney’s presumed GOP opponent, former Assemblyman Dean Andal of Stockton. (Pictured on the right.) McNerney, a freshman who defeated Republican Richard Pombo in 2006, is one of the top Republican targets in the country.

Tauscher is also seeking re-election. Her presumed opponent is Republican Nick Gerber of Moraga (pictured on the right) but the political novice is considered a serious long-shot.

The NRCC hasn’t sent out a single email on Gerber’s behalf yet. What’s up with that?

Rep. George Miller, D- Martinez, will speak to struggling homeowners at a free Foreclosure Information Day in Richmond on Saturday, March 29.

Here’s Miller’s event advisory:

The bi-lingual, day-long event is being organized by a consortium of West County leaders, including Supervisor John Gioia, Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, Assemblyman Mark DeSaulnier, the City of Richmond and the Richmond Community Redevelopment Agency.

This seminar will offer advice on how to avoid a mortgage meltdown during the current credit crisis. HUD Certified Housing Counselors will be available to answer questions and information will be offered in English and Spanish.

As foreclosure rates in California and across the country continue to rise, Contra Costa County is experiencing the highest foreclosure rate in the San Francisco Bay Area. Studies show that more than half of homeowners do not seek help when they begin to fall behind on payments, but those who do seek help in the early stages of delinquency are more likely to avoid foreclosure. This seminar will address different ways through which foreclosure can be prevented and offer suggestions for where struggling homeowners can seek assistance.

WHEN: Saturday, March 29, 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m. (Miller will speak at 9 a.m.)

WHO: Congressman George Miller, Assemblyman Mark DeSaulnier, Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, Supervisor John Gioia, Mayor of Richmond Gail McLaughlin, Mayor of Hercules Joanne Ward, Vice Mayor of San Pablo Leonard McNeil,San Pablo City Councilwoman Genoveva Calloway, cities of Richmond, San Pablo, El Cerrito and Pinole, Richmond Community Redevelopment Agency, Neighborworks America, Greater Richmond Interfaith Program (GRIP) , Countrywide and Wells Fargo Maria Benjamin, Program Director- Community Housing Development Corporation of North Richmond,

WHAT: West Contra Costa “Foreclosure Information Day”

WHERE: Richmond Recreation Center

3230 Macdonald Avenue,

Richmond, CA 94804

Two political veterans will offer their thoughts at a free Saint Mary’s College forum on what to expect from Democrats and Republicans in the general election as the presidential campaign reaches the end of the primary season.

The event is set for April 2 at 3:30 p.m. at Haggerty Lounge, De La Salle Hall, Saint Mary’s College of California, 1928 St. Mary’s Rd., Moraga

Here are more details from the college:

Who: Tony Quinn, an expert in political trends and demographics, is the co-editor of the California Target Book, a nonpartisan analysis of California’s legislative and congressional elections. He has 35 years experience with California state government, including four years with the Assembly Republican Caucus and as director of the Office of Economic Research in the Department of Commerce.

Tim Farley is director of community and government relations at Saint Mary’s College. He previously served two terms as a Democratic city councilman in Martinez and was district director for former Democratic Assemblyman Joe Canciamilla ‘82. Farley was the Contra Costa Chairman of Bill Clinton’s presidential campaigns in 1992 and 1996, and was a 1996 Electoral College delegate.

The event, free and open to the public, is moderated by Lisa Vorderbrueggen, Contra Costa Times political editor.

The feisty Rep. Pete Stark, the Fremont Democrat who frequently says things that even his friends wish he hadn’t said, is keeping his presidential preference to himself.

Like most of the undeclared “super-delegates,” the 796 people who will have a vote in the nomination of the the Democratic Party’s choice for president in Denver in August, Stark is being wooed by both sides. (The super-delegates are members of Congress and the national Democratic Party board.)

But the Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama camps have had little success with Stark.

“I’m holding out for a new bridge or maybe even a new federal building,” Stark quipped in a light-hearted moment during a telephone a interview late Thursday. “So far, the biggest bribe I’ve been offered is dessert with Hillary (Clinton) in Washington, D.C. But I don’t eat dessert and I wasn’t available that evening. Is that the best they can do?”

Seriously, though, Stark says he will not endorse either Clinton or Barack Obama unless the delegates are unable to reach a deal on the floor of the convention.

“I think it’s got to be decided by the delegates,” said Stark. “We have millions of new people who participating in the process and they are not, as (California Attorney General) Jerry Brown said, going to put up with a bunch of old people going into a smoke-filed room and making the decision. We’ll disengage them.”

Let the delegates vote at the convention and if neither candidate prevails, then let the “delegates work the floor. Let them swap and bargain and if they can’t make a deal in two or three or four days and we (super-delegates) have to the tie-breakers, then we can do that,” Stark said.

Stark says he will take no part in any advance super-delegate meeting where the plan is to hash out the selection of a nominee prior to the convention. Some Democratic Party activists fear a convention bloodbath will make it harder for the eventual nominee to beat presumed GOP nominee and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

California Secretary of State Debra Bowen today released the certified list of more than 450 candidates who will appear on the June 3 primary election ballot including Congressional, state Senate and Assembly seats up for election.

Each of California’s 53 Congressional seats and 80 State Assembly seats is up for grabs, as are the 20 State Senate seats in odd-numbered districts.

The top vote-getter from each party’s primary will advance to the November 4 general election.

The official certified list of candidates, with ballot designations and contact information for each candidate, is available at http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/elections_cand.htm.

According to the state, in the June primary, decline-to-state voters may request an American Independent, Democratic or Republican ballot. Decline-to-state voters who do not request a specific ballot will be given a nonpartisan ballot containing only the two ballot measures, Propositions 98 and 99, and any nonpartisan local races.

The last day to register to vote in the June 3 election is May 19. The last day to request a vote-by-mail ballot is May 27.

I’ve spent most of the day pouring through campaign finance reports for candidates running in the June 3 election.

Eeeh gawd, what a mind-numbing exercise! I’m all for public disclosure but I’m not sure the average voter has the stomach or the eyesight to wade through all this disclosure.

Nonetheless, it’s always interesting. It’s still a bit early and we haven’t seen the influx of independent expenditures likely to surface later on in the campaign.

But one of the themes of this campaign thus far is some of the candidates’ willingness to loan their campaigns big bucks.

Here’s a preview of a campaign finance story I’ve written for publication in the Contra Costa Times later this week:

Money is pouring into the contests for open Assembly districts 14 and 15 and the state Senate seat currently held by President Pro Tem Don Perata, D-Alameda, according to campaign finance reports filed this week.

Candidates for two contested Contra Costa County supervisor seats are also raising cash, although one candidate had to send some of the money back.

Supervisor candidate Guy Houston, a soon-to-be-termed-out Assemblyman who is challenging incumbent Mary Nejedly Piepho, returned $3,850 he had transferred from several of his other campaign accounts. The money originated with political action committees and the amount exceeded the county’s contribution limit of $40,000 per election.

Houston reported $148,786 cash on hand as of March 17 and has collected $192,956 in contributions since the beginning of the campaign. He has transferred $108,000 of that figure from his Assembly and Board of Equalization campaign committees.

Piepho had $74,993 cash in her campaign account and has received $81,380 in contributions toward her re-election bid.

Four Republican challengers vying or the chance to replace Houston in the Assembly are sparing no expense even it means writing super-sized personal checks.

Retired automobile dealership entrepreneur Robert Rao of Livermore personally loaned his campaign another $150,000 as of March 17, according to reports filed this week. Rao has forked over a total of $359,069 from his own funds since he began the campaign.

Rao reported $299,477 cash on hand in his campaign fund, the highest among the GOP field. He has received $553,889 in contributions, including his loans.

San Ramon Mayor Abram Wilson (he doesn’t have a web site yet) loaned his campaign $95,000, a step he took to jump-start a campaign he said almost didn’t happen after his father recently fell ill and passed away. He has received $199,927 in contributions.

Businessowner Judy Biviano Lloyd of Danville made a far smaller personal loan of $10,000 to her account, for a total of $17,112 from her own funds. She reported $211,173 in the bank as of the end of the filing period. She has received $304,708 in contributions.

Only optometrist Scott Kamena of Livermore has kept his wallet closed. He reported $283,566 in his campaign account in what appears to be a successful fund-raising appeal to fellow eye doctors. Since he started campaigning in 2006, he had received $412,433 in total contributions as of March 17.

On the Assembly District 15 Democratic ticket, San Ramon Valley School Board Trustee Joan Buchanan of Alamo is well ahead of her politically unknown opponent and Walnut Creek economist Ted Ford.

Ford reported $2,140 cash on hand and $4,030 in contributions, including a $2,000 personal loan.

Buchanan showed $122,475 in her account as of March 17, and has loaned her campaign $50,000.

Buchanan received $222,383 in contributions - including the loan - plus another $8,800 in contributions since the reporting deadline. The recent donations include $4,200 from IBEW and $3,600 from EMILY’s List.

In Contra Costa County, Supervisor Federal Glover of Pittsburg maintained a substantial financial lead over his four challengers in District 5. That could change as several candidates entered the race just prior to the March 7 candidate filing deadline and haven’t time to raise any cash.

Glover reported $103,281 cash on hand, including contributions of $1,675 from former Assemblyman Joe Canciamilla of Pittsburg, $1,000 each from Conoco Phillips, Garaventa Enterprises and his former employer, Dow Chemical.

The incumbent’s closest fiscal competitor, Erik Nunn, had just $1,786 in the bank. Nunn, a chief financial officer and Oakley Planning Commissioner.

Businessman Don Parscal loaned his campaign $3,015 and received an additional $1,630 in contributions.

Antioch school board trustee Gary Agopian and former Antioch mayor Mary Rocha, who entered the field late, had nothing to report.

The four Democratic primary candidates in the Assembly 14 primary (there are no Republican candidates) have also relied on personal loans to bolster their campaigns.

The leading fundraiser is political novice Dr. Phil Polakoff of Berkeley. He reported $55,883 cash on hand and has collected $139,892 in contributions, although that figure includes $31,000 in personal loans.

Nancy Skinner, an elected member of the East Bay Regional Park board and a Berkeley resident, had $122,198 in the bank, and has received $132,768 in contributions. She has loaned her campaign $30,000.

Richmond Councilman Tony Thurmond had $53,494 in the bank and has raised $77,000 since he started his campaign. He has loaned his campaign $4,200.

Berkeley City Councilman Kriss Worthington had $64,317 cash on hand. He has received $109,026 in contributions, including $22,000 in loans.

In the hotly contested state Senate race for Perata’s seat, Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, and former Assemblywoman Wilma Chan of Alameda have banked substantial war chests.

Chan had $507,283 cash on hand while Hancock reported $406,107 in the bank.