California NEWS INDEX

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Cory Allen Contemporary Art (CACA) announces that 'Fear Google' artist XVALA will be revealing the recent dumpster dived trash of Kim Kardashian, featuring the celebrity's collapsed basketball at a roof top event in Los Angeles this weekend.

IRVINE, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- PowerGuard Specialty Insurance Services announced today that China Sunergy Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ:CSUN), a specialized solar cell and module manufacturer, has joined the growing number of solar energy providers globally to adopt PowerGuard's unique PowerClip(TM) extended warranty protection.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /Califonria Newswire/ -- Mayor Edwin M. Lee today launched TechSF to train and reskill San Francisco residents for the City's growing number of technology and IT jobs, announcing a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor's Technical Skills Training Grants program to jumpstart funding for the City's major new workforce training initiative.

MONTEBELLO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Tom Calderon's campaign for California State Assembly announced the endorsement of the California School Employees Association (CSEA) today. The California School Employees Association represents around 210,000 dedicated school support staff throughout California.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. on Friday announced the following appointments for March 2: First, Francis Johnston, 75, of San Rafael, has been appointed to the Board of Pilot Commissioners for the Bays of San Francisco, San Pablo and Suisun, where he has served since 2008.

RIVERSIDE, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- On Friday, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. inaugurated carbonLITE's 220,000 square foot plant in Riverside, California, the largest bottle-to-bottle recycling plant in the world.

TEMECULA, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Temecula Valley Strawberry Farms, Southern California's first commercial hydroponic urban vertical farm, partners with EnviroIngenuity to promote new production techniques. On Saturday, March 17, 2012, the public will experience the future of farming at the grand opening of Temecula Valley Strawberry Farms, Southern California's first hydroponic vertical strawberry farm.

IRVINE, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- PowerGuard Specialty Insurance Services announced today the addition of Hilton Brown as Vice President of Claims Management. Specializing in claims management and client advocacy, Brown brings 22 years of experience to the PowerGuard team.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Platinum Studios, Inc. (OTC:PDOS) announced today that the production company and studio is teaming up with VirtualPitchFest.com, a popular website screenwriters use to pitch their feature screenplays directly to Hollywood decision-makers.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee today announced that Macy's, the nation's largest department store chain, has entered into a 242,753 square-foot lease at 680 Folsom Street in South of Market (SoMa) to house the e-commerce operations of macys.com.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee today swore in the following new appointments and reappointments to San Francisco’s Boards and Commissions at a ceremony in City Hall.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the following appointments. First, James Barthman, 77, of Castro Valley, has been appointed to the California Building Standards Commission, where he has served since 2000.

PALO ALTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- VLP Law Group LLP is very pleased to announce that Stephen Wright and Patrick Valentino have joined its Real Estate practice as partners based in San Francisco. Mr. Wright joins VLP from Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP based in San Francisco. Mr. Valentino was previously a partner of the San Francisco office of Corporate Counsel Group LLP.

MONTEBELLO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Tom Calderon's campaign for California State Assembly announced the endorsement of Teamsters Joint Council 42 today. Teamsters Joint Council 42 is the parent body to 22 Teamster Local Unions located and representing members in Southern California, Southern Nevada, Guam, Saipan, and Hawaii. Some 200,000 working Teamsters and retirees are affiliated with the Joint Council 42 family.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today issued the following statement regarding the death of Cottonwood Fire Protection District Captain Mark Ratledge.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the appointment of Ruth Bermudez Montenegro to a judgeship in the Imperial County Superior Court.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The moving facilitator, Free Moving Quote (FreeMovingQuote.com), has not only weathered the recession, they have found ways to thrive in this difficult environment. FreeMovingQuote.com strives to be a one-stop shop for movers looking to find moving companies both at their departure locale and their destination.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- NGDATA (www.ngdata.com) today announced that the company will showcase Lily, its big data management platform at the Strata 2012 Conference in Santa Clara, California. The O'Reilly Strata Conference is the leading event for the people and technology driving the data revolution.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Neotrope(R), a public relations, advertising and marketing firm established in 1983, today announced the recipients of the Non-Profit PR Grants Program for 2012. This year's 10 recipients, selected from over 300 applicants, will receive approximately $50,000 total in pro bono services. Originally launched in 2000, the Neotrope PR Grant program has helped raise awareness for worthwhile causes all over the U.S. by providing public relations, news dissemination and online marketing, donated by Neotrope's accredited staff.

SANTA ANA, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Santa Ana City Councilwoman Michele Martinez received the endorsement of the Santa Ana Police Management Association (SAPMA) today. The endorsement was announced by Jim Schnabl (Police Commander and Secretary/Treasurer of the SAPMA), on behalf of the association that represents the Command Staff of the Santa Ana Police Department.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., /California Newswire/ -- Treadstone 71 announced at the RSA Conference two new certification tracks. The Cyber Intelligence Analyst and the Cyber Counterintelligence (CI) Analyst Certifications focus upon real world, practical activities coupled with theory. The certifications enhance the overall cybersecurity posture of the United States by accelerating the availability of educational and training resources.

IRVINE, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Edupoint(TM) Educational Systems, a leading student information system (SIS) solutions vendor to the national K-12 market, has been exclusively selected as the student information system solutions provider by the Oregon Student Information System Consortium (OSIS).

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- National Association of Record Industry Professionals (NARIP.com) president Tess Taylor leads a delegation of creative music executives from New York to London this week for meetings to create new opportunities for music whose uses contribute to the national economies of the United States, the United Kingdom and world culture.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- On behalf of all Californians, Governor Brown and First Lady Anne Gust Brown honor six Marines who bravely gave their lives in service to our state and nation.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) announced today the introduction of Senate Bill 1128, which would encourage investment, job creation and economic growth in California by exempting advanced manufacturing companies from paying sales and use taxes on manufacturing equipment.

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Continuing its support of young people facing obstacles to employment, the Workforce Investment Board of San Bernardino County partnered with the Roadtrip Nation Experience to provide an intensive curriculum to the Year-round Workforce Investment Act youth program.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa today joined Councilmember Jose Huizar and the CEOs of Fifth and Pacific Companies and Lucky Brand for the grand opening of the new Lucky Brand Headquarters in downtown Los Angeles.

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The San Bernardino County Workforce Investment Board announced that a $1.5 million Workforce Investment Act, Multi-Sector Partnership National Emergency Grant has been expanded to include laid-off census workers. This grant has nearly 200 spaces available to fill by the close of June 30, 2012. Census workers who were laid off between September 21, 2010, and September 27, 2011 are eligible to apply at one of San Bernardino County's Employment Resource Centers.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) on Wednesday introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 1900, a bill that would change California's laws pertaining to biogas. Biogas (also known as bio-methane) is natural gas produced by decomposing matter.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) today introduced SB 1160 to protect California consumers by preventing the arbitrary interruption of telecommunications service.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- On Tuesday, Mayor Edwin M. Lee, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and partners Market Street Railway (MSR) and Historypin announced the launch of 'Treasures from the Muni Archive,' a new exhibit of photographs from Muni's extensive archive celebrating the last 100 years.

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Bonne Foi Beauty Products, an anti-aging skin care line, today, releases its Nourishing Face Cream which will further enhance the Bonne Foi line. Created primarily for night time use, the Nourishing Face Cream will nourish, rejuvenate and moisturize your face, firming your skin and improving its overall appearance.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the following appointments. First: Ashleigh Aitken, 36, of Anaheim, has been appointed to the 32nd District Agricultural Association, Orange County Fair Board.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) announced today that he has been named Chair of the newly created Senate Select Committee on English Learners. The committee will focus its efforts on how to improve the academic success of California's 1.5 million English Learner students.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) has introduced Assembly Bill 1708, amending the California Vehicle and Insurance Codes, to give California drivers the option to carry their proof of auto insurance and vehicle registration in electronic form, such as on a smartphone or other personal electronic device.

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Sample Digital, the leading provider of production workflow applications for Film and TV production, has appointed Chris Chen as Chief Technology Officer.

CLAREMONT, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The City of Claremont has achieved 'Silver' status as a California Green Community for its commitment to sustainability. Claremont is one of only four cities to be honored by California Green Communities for its efforts. In addition to Claremont, the cities of Monrovia, Riverside and Santa Clarita have reached California Green Community Silver status.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- In remarks today at a U.S./China economic forum, Calif. Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. announced his intention to form a China-California Joint Task Force to drive more collaboration, investment and trade between California and China.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the following appointments. First, Janet Barentson, 49, of Rocklin, has been appointed chief deputy director at the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Moving to increase direct investment in California and give the state's businesses a distinct advantage in China, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced plans to open a new trade and investment office in China.

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Mayor Edwin M. Lee today announced the return of the popular Sunday Streets program with a full schedule of car-free events starting Sunday, March 11th, along the Embarcadero.

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The U.S. Department of Labor Employment Training Administration selected the San Bernardino County Workforce Investment Board Summer Youth Employment Program to participate in a study of youth training innovators. Findings of this study will be used to inform workforce investment boards nationwide of best practices.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- On behalf of all Californians, Governor Brown and First Lady Anne Gust Brown honor Pfc. Cesar Cortez, who bravely gave his life in service to our state and nation.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. on Wednesday announced the following appointments. First, Jim Evans, 42, of Sacramento, has been appointed deputy secretary for communications and strategic planning at the Business Transportation and Housing Agency.

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Dalton Trucking, a transportation company based out of Fontana, is now shipping modular building units that will become the temporary facility for St. John's Regional Medical Care Center in Joplin, MO. The transportation company couldn't have taken on such a project without On-the-Job Training incentives and employee referral support through the San Bernardino County Workforce Investment Board.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- For over six months, Christopher Campbell, a recent graduate of the University of California, Irvine, has been spearheading a campaign, CHEC2012 (Californians for a Higher Education Contract), that will profoundly change affordability and access to public higher education for currently enrolled and future college students in California.

SACRAMANTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- The Sustainable Economies Law Center (SELC), the Los Angeles Bread Bakers (LABB), and Proyecto Jardin are pleased to announce that Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D—Los Angeles) has introduced the California Homemade Food Act, AB 1616, in the California State Assembly.

COMPTON, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Assemblymember Warren Furutani announced his endorsement of Assemblymember Isadore Hall today. Hall is running for reelection in California's newly...

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- On Tuesday, Mayor Edwin M. Lee and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) announced that the federal government has once again demonstrated strong support for planned improvements to public transportation in San Francisco.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /California Newswire/ -- Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today issued the following statement after Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Rating Services shifted California’s credit ratings outlook from stable to positive: