The vote ensures that TRICARE Prime enrollment fees for individual retirees under age 65 will be raised in the new fiscal year by $30, to $260 a year, and that retiree family coverage will climb by $60, to $520. These will be the first fee increases since TRICARE rates were set in 1995.

The Senate panel also joined with the House to endorse an Obama administration plan to restructure TRICARE pharmacy co-payments to encourage use of mail order for refills instead of having local drugstores, at far greater cost to the government, refill prescriptions for chronic conditions.

Through TRICARE “home delivery,” patients get a 90-day supply of pills versus a 30-day supply from retail outlets. Defense officials intend to make mail order more attractive by ending a $3 charge for generic drugs and raising the co-pay for generic medicines at retail outlets to $5, up from $3.

Co-pays for brand name drugs on the military formulary would stay at $9 by mail but climb to $12 at retail pharmacies. For non-formulary brand drugs, the $22 co-pay would climb to $25 for mail order and retail. The new co-pays are projected to save $2.6 billion over five years, or five times the savings projected from higher TRICARE Prime fees on working age retirees.

The Senate committee also voted with the House to support a 1.6 percent military pay increase next January, enough to ensure that pay keeps pace with private sector wage growth.

But the Senate committee parted ways with the House version of the fiscal 2012 defense authorization bill on a number of other personnel issues.

Here’s a rundown of some key differences that will have to be reconciled before Congress can pass a final defense authorization bill later this year:

Combat pay windfall

Only the Senate bill would require the services to begin to prorate monthly imminent danger pay and hostile fire pay of $225 a month based on number of days in designated danger areas. Under current law, spending only part of a day in a war zone or imminent danger area makes a member eligible for the full $225 payment.

Amid the looming debt crisis, and congressional leaders searching for ways to lower federal spending, senators decided to address perceived combat pay windfalls to save $30 million a year. The main targets are persons on temporary assignments. Flight crews, for example, can spend only hours in Afghanistan and get a full month of danger pay.

The committee also received reports of military personnel attending first-of-the-month change of command ceremonies in war zones and, by arriving a day early and departing immediately after the ceremony, qualifying for two months of danger pay.

Members on full deployments also would be impacted by this change. Currently, if a member on a yearlong, wartime deployment arrives mid-month and, a year later, departs mid-month, he or she qualifies for a total of 13 months of danger pay. If the prorated formula becomes law, total payments would reflect the actual length of deployment, ending the extra month of danger pay so many members now receive.

Special survivor indemnity allowance

The Senate bill is silent on a House-passed provision that would ease further a reduction in Survivor Benefit Plan payments felt by 57,000 surviving military spouses.

Spouses of these survivors either have died on active duty or, in retirement from a service-connected injury or ailment. As a result they qualify for tax-free Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) from VA. But to accept DIC they must forfeit an equal amount of taxable SBP.

To ease this so-called “widow’s tax,” Congress four years ago authorized a Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance (SSIA) valued now at $70 a month and rising by $10 a year until it hits $100 by 2014. The House version of this year’s defense bill would raise SSIA higher and extend its life so that by fiscal 2017 payments would reach $314 a month.

The House was able to pay for this $150 million SSIA initiative in part by accepting the administration’s plan to curb costs linked to the Uniformed Services Family Health Plan, a managed care plan for military beneficiaries living in six areas of the U.S. near former Public Health Service hospitals.

The Senate bill also would curb costs under USFHP, as we describe below. But rather than use the dollars saved to expand SSIA, senators choose to beef up incentives available to downsize the force.

Force Shaping Tools – The Senate bill would give the services three new or extended authorities to downsize forces.

One new tool would be a “voluntary retirement payment” which could be offered to certain officers with between 20 and 29 years of service if they agree to retiree. The payment could equal up to 12 times an officer’s monthly basic pay. This could be used as an alternative to an early retirement board.

The Senate bill also would extend the Voluntary Separation Incentive (VSI) authority that was set to expire. VIS is an annuity used extensively during the Post-Cold War drawdown to entice members to leave service.

A third initiative would expand from three months to a full year the period service prior to expiration of an enlistment contract that member could be discharged without a loss of benefits such as the GI Bill. The change would apply only to benefits, not pay or allowances.

USFHP and Medicare

Both the Senate and House would require individuals newly enrolled in the Uniformed Services Family Health Plan to transition to TRICARE for Life, and out of USFHP, as they become Medicare eligible due to age.

But only the Senate bill praises the USFHP model and directs Defense officials to work with USFHP and Medicare to develop and evaluate health plan alternatives for TRICARE for Life beneficiaries so they can get integrated health care management like that being delivered to elderly through USFHP.

To comment, e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., write to Military Update, P.O. Box 231111, Centreville, VA, 20120-1111 or visit: www.militaryupdate.com.

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Officials with the California Department of Public Health are continuing an investigation into a data breach that occurred this spring involving the personal information of several thousand current and former employees.

An agency investigation found that the personal and workers’ compensation information of approximately 9,000 current and former state employees was improperly copied to a private hard drive and removed from state offices, according to a statement first issued late last month by California Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ron Chapman.

Chapman said the agency regretted that the information was compromised, adding, “We take the breach of any secure documents very seriously and are committed to taking steps to minimize any impact of this action and further strengthen our security policy.”

Impacted are most current California Department of Public Health and California Department of Health Care Services employees, along with nearly 3,000 employees of the former Department of Health Services, according to the agency's report.

The personal information at issue included individual names and addresses, varying combinations of Social Security numbers, ethnicity, birth dates, next of kin and the addresses of those individuals listed as next of kin, and/or information from workers’ compensation documents, according to an agency report.

“The investigation continues,” said California Department of Public Health spokesman Al Lundeen.

Lundeen told Lake County News that the data breach occurred when an employee, who had access to the information, copied it and took it home in violation of agency rules.

On April 5 the Department of Public Health was alerted to the activity, which was discovered by the department’s security detection system. The agency reported that it immediately initiated an investigation and discovered the information's unauthorized removal before placing the employee on administrative leave while the investigation takes place.

Lundeen said the investigation has uncovered no evidence whatsoever that the information was disclosed or misused.

He said the agency has offered credit monitoring services to anyone impacted by the breach.

“Several hundred people have already requested that,” he said.

Also under way are new internal safeguards to protect employee information and a thorough review of information security policies. The Department of Public Health said it will put in place any additional necessary policies or practices to help prevent such an incident from happening again.

Last year, the Department of Public Health had another data breach issue which Lundeen said involved a few thousand individuals.

Lundeen said that incident involved a magnetic tape from a field office that was shipped to the department's headquarters. The tape – which included information about patients in longterm care facilities, employees and some medical personnel – was supposed to be encrypted and sent by a secure carrier but wasn't.

He said there now are policies in place to stop such issues.

There's also an effort to back up such material remotely so there is no need for shipping it. “We haven't resolved that issue technically,” he said.

Health data breaches are a nationwide issue and, as a result, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is required by law to post a list of breaches of unsecured, protected health information affecting 500 or more individuals.

In April 2010, the California Department of Health Care Services had a data breach affecting approximately 29,808 people in the Care 1st Health Plan, according to the Health and Human Services secretary's database. That issue involved the loss of a portable electronic device.

The Health and Human Services secretary's database records 292 incidents involving the compromising or loss of data between September 2009 and May 2011.

Information was compromised in a variety of ways, from hacking of networks and unauthorized access to materials, to theft of paper, hard drives or other portable devices such as laptop computers.

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The “Start Smart” program will be offered in July, August and September, according to Officer Kory Reynolds of the Clear Lake CHP office.

Traffic collisions are the No. 1 killer of teenagers in America. Nationally about 5,000 teens will die in automobile crashes.

About 10 percent of those deaths are in California alone. In California in 2007, there were 82,506 collisions involving teenage drivers statewide, 457 resulted in fatalities, according to the CHP.

The Clear Lake Area California Highway Patrol office will offer several, free, Start Smart traffic safety classes for teenage drivers and their parents.

The program aims to help future and newly-licensed teenage drivers learn the responsibilities that accompany the privilege of being a licensed driver.

It is an educational tool for parents and teens to reduce the number of teen injuries and deaths resulting from traffic collisions.

The program provides information on defensive driving, state traffic laws, dynamics of traffic collisions, tips on avoiding collisions and awareness of the dangers of driving under the influence.

The classes will run approximately two hours and will be offered on Monday, July 18; Monday, Aug. 15; and Monday, Sept. 12.

Classes will start at 6:30 p.m. at the CHP office in Kelseyville, located at 5700 Live Oak Drive, Kelseyville.

Space is limited for this class. For more information or reservations, call Reynolds, 707-279-0103.

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Deputy District Attorney Shannon Cox said the guilty plea exposes Steven Chiriboga, formerly of Hopland, to a prison sentence of life with the possibility of parole.

In return for Chiriboga’s change of plea, the prosecutor dismissed five other charges because the underlying facts supporting those counts will still be considered and additional convictions would not have materially changed Chiriboga’s prison exposure.

“We believe that justice will be served by Chiriboga’s change of plea,” said Cox.

Cox also said Chiriboga’s wife was pleased with the outcome. “She is relieved she does not have to go through a trial.”

On Thursday afternoon, Cox and Public Defender Linda Thompson outlined in open court the agreement to Judge Richard Henderson, who accepted Chiriboga’s plea and canceled a trial scheduled to get under way on Monday.

Henderson set Chiriboga’s sentencing for Sept. 30.

In the meantime Chiriboga’s bail status was changed to no bail so that he will remain in custody at the Mendocino County Jail.

Chiriboga was taken into custody in Sonoma County on Sept. 6, 2010, two days after he fled Hopland following his wife’s rescue by neighbors from a Mountain House Road residence.

Investigators said Chiriboga had opened valves to a gas line in the house’s kitchen, and set it on fire after his wife returned home. He allegedly refused to let his wife leave the burning house, which had been barricaded shut.

Neighbors were able to force their way into the house, and drag Chiriboga and his wife out of the burning structure. Chiriboga then fled in his pickup truck, where he was spotted two days later in the Sea Ranch area.

As the incident was unfolding at the Chiriboga residence, the Hopland Fire Department was holding

its annual fundraising barbecue just down the road.

As a result, the firemen were able to quickly respond to the fire and extinguish it, the District Attorney's Office reported.

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The Bass Bowl Committee has announced a cooperative effort with the California Historical Artillery Society (CHAS) to bring Civil War living history to Lake County the week of the Bass Bowl.

“We wanted to have a Civil War cannon at the Bass Bowl to commemorate the sesquicentennial of the Civil War and of the founding of Lake County,” Bass Bowl Executive Director Phil Smoley explained.

“They needed additional event staff at their upcoming Civil War Reenactment in Duncans Mills,” Smoley said. “So we negotiated a ‘win-win’ deal where they will be getting extra staff help from Lake County for their ‘Civil War Days’ and they will bring a artillery team for the Bass Bowl to fire after each touchdown, and then do living history demonstrations the next day.”

On July 16 and 17the quaint North Coast town of Duncans Mills will become the fields of Virginia, circa 1863.

“Civil War Days” is one of the largest reenactments west of the Mississippi. The event will give visitors the opportunity to interact with the soldiers and civilians of the Civil War and witness the camps of the Union and Confederacy.

Visitors will see how civilians lived and served with the armies of 1863, in what was referred to as the first “modern war.” The event will serve both as an educational experience and an unforgettable trip back into history.

The Bass Bowl Committee committed to providing 30 “man days,” or an average of 10 workers for each of the three days the CHAS needs help.

“Friday, the 15th, is the set up day, and then the next two days will be the actual event,” according to Bass Bowl President Rob Ishihara. “They need staff to help with setting up, parking, collecting entrance fees, hauling off garbage, bringing hay and water to the horses, and other needs. There will be plenty of time for event staff to enjoy the event and watch the battles. It’s light work, and it will be rewarding, educational, and it will be helping with Lake County athletics. We need volunteers to fulfill our part of the bargain.”

Besides historical reenactments, the CHAS is involved with horse rescue.

They use Standardbred trotters rescued from California's tracks and retrains them as artillery horses. These horses now live on a lush 40-acre ranch in the Salinas Valley. They presently use more than 30 horses that were destined for an unpleasant demise.

These ex-trotter race horses are used exclusively by CHAS and given a second chance at life in the service of the "Army." Horse enthusiasts can help support them by "sponsoring" a favorite horse and contributing toward its care.

In addition to bringing Civil War history to Lake County, the Bass Bowl is planning a series of events leading up the big rivalry game between the Clear Lake High Cardinals and the Kelseyville High Knights.

Events include a bass tournament, a Miss Bass Bowl Beauty Pageant, a Kiss My Bass fundraiser and a Bass Bowling event at Lakeside Lanes.

The half time of the Bass Bowl will have a bowl-like half time extravaganza not seen before in Lake County. Net proceeds of these events are to be split between the two schools' athletic departments.

“Funding for local sports programs is nearly nonexistent,” according to Bass Bowl Commissioner Boone Bridges. “Without strong local support, they will go away, and that would be a disaster. These events will go a long way to keep these schools athletic programs going.”

The “Civil War Days” event is just minutes from the ocean, along the Russian River. “The location is beautifully forested, with lots of hiking trails,” Smoley said. “We can use all the help we can get. It is the perfect opportunity for a family to volunteer to help while learning about history.”

Volunteers and event staff will be camping next to the event grounds. To volunteer to assist in this event, contact Phil Smoley at 707-264-4905 or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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After the Air Force stopped using UC-123K Provider aircraft to spray herbicide on the jungles of Vietnam, some of those aircraft, their spray tanks removed, were reassigned in 1972 to new missions at three stateside bases.

For the next decade Air Force reservists flew and maintained them. Last month one of the post-war crewmen, disabled retiree Maj. Wesley T. Carter, 64, of McMinnville, Ore., had a heart attack requiring surgery, and also learned that he has prostate cancer.

A medical service officer, Carter said he thought about the many hours he had served aboard foul-smelling C-123 “spray birds” after the war, flying out of Westover Air Force Base, Mass. So in recent weeks he conducted online searches, looking for any report of lingering Agent Orange contamination on these planes assigned Reserve missions until 1982.

What Carter found alarmed him, enough he told me, that he began to contact crewmen from his squadron. The first five he reached had prostate cancer, Carter said. He heard of others who had died, most of them from more diseases that Department of Veterans Affairs presumes, at least for veterans of Vietnam, were caused by Agent Orange exposure.

“I know it’s just anecdotal,” Carter said last Friday, “but today I learned that our wing commander, Brig. Gen. Mike Walker, our vice commander, Col. Lou Paskowitz, and our hospital commander, Col. (Dr.) Warner Jones, all died of prostate cancer.”

Carter started a blog, www.c123kcancer.blogspot.com, with links to reports and memos referencing dioxin contamination aboard C-123s flown by reservists after the war from Westover, Pittsburgh (Pa.) Air Reserve Base and Rickenbacker Air Force Base in Ohio.

One of the first disturbing documents found, Carter said, deals with a famous C-123, nicknamed “Patches” during the war because it was hit so often by enemy fire during spraying runs. Patches was one of three C-123s, among 16 aircraft of the 731st Tactical Airlift Squadron, known to crewmen as having sprayed herbicide during the war.

Carter found a report from 1994 showing that before Patches was put on display at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, an analysis for toxins found that it was “heavily contaminated with PCDD,” or polychlorinated dibenzodioxin, a human carcinogen.

So work crews that prepared Patches for display had to wear hazardous material suits and respirators, and the public would not be allowed to touch it. Yet Carter and crewmates had flown it often. He remembered its strong smell, like the inside of one Halloween mask he had worn as a kid.

By filing an IG complaint, Carter wants the Air Force to explain why, after learning C-123s flown by reservists were toxic, the service did not warn former crewmen of their exposure and possible health risks.

Retired Air Force Reserve Lt. Col. John O. Harris of Mashpee, Mass., flew 2700 hours as a C-123 command pilot for the 731st, from 1973 to 1981. Almost 400 of those hours were in Patches or in one of the other squadron aircraft that had sprayed in Vietnam. Harris, 67, has diabetes and peripheral neuropathy, both conditions on VA’s list of 14 AO presumptive diseases.

“We knew it was there,” Harris said of residual herbicide on some C-123 aircraft. “You could smell it on a hot day, or a cold day when the heaters were running. You could smell it so bad you couldn’t stand it.”

Harris said he often flew with cockpit windows open. He compares the smell to wasp or roach spray.

Vietnam vets in the squadron identified it as Agent Orange, Harris said. But no one back then understood the dangers of compounds used in the war to defoliant jungles and kill crops.

Neither Harris nor Carter served in Vietnam. Both men now believe reservists who flew or maintained these aircraft should be treated like Vietnam veterans with regard Agent Orange-related presumptive diseases for when filing VA compensation claims or seeking survivor benefits.

Several years ago Harris did file a claim for his diabetes, citing post-war exposure to Agent Orange on his missions with the 731st. He provided flight logs listing hours aboard “spray bird” aircraft. Both his claim and his appeal were denied, Harris said, because he had not served in Vietnam.

Harris later remembered that, while flying F-4 Phantoms out of Thailand during the war, he had a two-hour refueling stop at Da Nang. He even recalled the guy he chatted with at the airfield that day. After finding him and supplying VA with his statement, Harris qualified for disability pay.

“Two hours on the ground with no Agent Orange in sight trumped 11 years and 400 hours of definitive exposure flying spray UC-123s,” he said. Harris figures he caught a break and others haven’t. So he has joined Carter’s quest to find more colleagues and notifying of them of toxin exposure. They want to help those with AO-related ailments get VA care and compensation, and for spouses of colleagues who have died from these conditions get VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation.

Besides the memo showing Patches was toxic, Carter learned the government in 1996 stopped a contract to sell some of these C-123s because of contamination. Another report indicates Air Force struggled over how to dispose of these aircraft, worried that even burying them could contaminate the ground. Some officials told Carter that last year the service tore apart and melted down remaining C-123 aircraft.

Asked to comment on this, on Carter’s complaint and his blog, an Air Force spokesman, Jonathan Stock, said the service “is going to look into these claims” but can’t make any immediate comment. Also, VA Press Secretary Josh Taylor said VA will “carefully review this matter.”

Marshall Hanson with Reserve Officers Association added, “This cadre of Agent Orange casualties needs to be recognized for the contamination risks they have been exposed to, similar to crews that initially flew the same C-123 aircraft. Agent Orange presumption needs to be reexamined to include all those who were exposed outside the Vietnam territories, both in the Air Force and the Navy.”

To comment, e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., write to Military Update, P.O. Box 231111, Centreville, VA, 20120-1111 or visit: www.militaryupdate.com.

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Governor Jerry Brown Jr. said Governor's Executive Order B-2-11, issued in January to purge unnecessary vehicles, has already cut the state’s fleet by 3,800, which is expected to save $11.4 million next year and bring in $5 million from auction revenue.

The Governor's Office said the cuts meet approximately 32 percent of the state's goal to reduce 5,500 passenger cars and trucks, and deeper cuts will continue as the state eliminates more unnecessary vehicles across every department.

“Significant progress has been made, but we are not done yet,” Brown said in a statement released by his office. “I’m not satisfied with purging just 3,800 vehicles – state departments can make deeper cuts. Every department must eliminate the unnecessary vehicles that waste taxpayer money. There is no excuse for an excessive state fleet.”

The Department of General Services, charged with implementing the governor’s executive order, estimates this first reduction phase will save the state more than $11 million annually by eliminating surplus cars, trucks, vans, buses and heavy equipment.

Auctioning these vehicles is estimated to bring the state at least $5 million more in additional revenue. The Department of General Services is prepared to begin holding auctions in the fall.

The largest reductions come from the following eight departments, which operate the largest fleets:

• California Department of Transportation: 926;

• Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation: 795;

• California State Parks: 388;

• California Highway Patrol: 322;

• California Department of Fish & Game: 251;

• Cal Fire: 234;

• California Department of Water Resources: 204;

• California Department of Food & Agriculture: 111.

On average, a state vehicle remains useful for five years and costs $3,000 per year in maintenance, insurance and depreciation costs. Based on those figures, the reductions announced Thursday could save the state up to $57 million over five years, according to the Governor's Office.

The Department of General Services will continue to make even deeper cuts in the coming months to eliminate unnecessary vehicles across every department.

In addition to reducing the size of its state fleet immediately, the state is examining its need for vehicles going forward. This examination will include reviewing how, when and why vehicles are used and will help departments implement more practical and cost-effective plans for the amount and type of vehicles needed to achieve their missions.

Departments also have eliminated more than 600 vehicle home storage permits that are nonessential or cost ineffective, the Governor's Office reported. The Department of General Services expects to eliminate hundreds more.

Since taking office, Brown has implemented a variety of cost-saving measures, including cutting his own office's spending by more than 25 percent, and ordering state agencies and departments to recover millions of dollars in uncollected salary and travel advances, ban spending taxpayer dollars on free giveaway and gift items, eliminate 30,000 cell phones and freeze hiring across state government.

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Andrew Serrano, 38, of Kelseyville, Calif., was arrested on Saturday, July 2, 2011, after he allegedly used his pickup to ram a vehicle driven by his estranged wife. Lake County Jail photo.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Lakeport Police officers on Saturday arrested a Kelseyville man who allegedly used his pickup to ram another vehicle.

Andrew James Serrano, 38, was arrested on three felony counts of assault with a deadly weapon, a felony count of hit-and-run resulting in injury, a misdemeanor violation of a domestic violence restraining order and two misdemeanor violations of civil harassment restraining orders, according to police.

Lakeport Sgt. Jason Ferguson said Serrano was taken into custody at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday.

Serrano had allegedly rammed his Chevrolet pickup into the side of a Chevy Tahoe driven by Lesa Serrano while on Main Street in Lakeport, according to Ferguson. Lesa Serrano is reported to be Andrew Serrano's estranged wife.

Ferguson said Lesa Serrano and her two passengers – sisters Katrina and Kayla Hickey – contacted police to report that Andrew Serrano rammed into their vehicle.

They alleged that he caused major damage to the Chevy Tahoe and, in the process, injured the Hickeys before he fled the scene, Ferguson said.

During the course of the investigation officers learned that Lesa Serrano had a domestic violence restraining order protecting her from Andrew Serrano, and that the Hickeys had civil harassment restraining orders against him also, according to Ferguson.

Ferguson said that officers also learned during the investigation that Andrew Serrano had allegedly circled the restaurant where Lesa Serrano was eating at three separate times before the ramming incident is alleged to have occurred.

Andrew Serrano was booked at the Hill Road Correctional Facility where his bail was set

at $250,000. He remained in custody on Sunday night, according to jail records.

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Chiang's report is the latest step in a massive roll out of salary information for local and state government employees and elected officials that he began last fall.

The effort was prompted by the discovery of inflated salaries for officials in the Southern California city of Bell.

The information can be found at the Government Compensation in California Web site, www.sco.ca.gov/compensation_search.html.

The information released on Chiang's Web site on Tuesday shows the salary, pension benefits and other compensation for 256,222 state of California employees as well as 123,406 California State University (CSU) employees.

Chiang's office said the database does not include state positions that are not paid by the controller, including the staff of legislators and staff of the lieutenant governor, the Department of Food and Agriculture's agriculture associations and Division of Fairs and Expositions, the University of California and California Community Colleges.

Based on the data, approximately 1,357 state employees make $200,000 or more a year, with many of the top salaries held by physicians and other health officials in the state prison system.

Among California State University employees, 69 – mostly top administrators – made $200,000 or more, according to an analysis of the data.

On Tuesday afternoon Chiang's office reported that the figures on the Web site reflected some incorrect information – in particular, that the state's top earner by taxable wages made $838,706 in calendar year 2010.

Spokesman Jacob Roper said that amount was not paid to an individual for state service, and that the data was being reviewed and would be updated.

Based on that correction, the data showed the top state wage earner was a physician and surgeon for the High Desert State Prison in Susanville. That doctor received $777,423, well above the position's annual salary of $235,740.

Other members of the top 10 wage earners among state employees for 2010 included:

– The physician and surgeon for the Northern California Youth Center in Stockton, paid $736,378, above the annual salary of $248,172.

– The chief dentist of the Sierra Conservation Center correctional facility in Tuolumne County, paid $599,403 (salary range, $303,060 to $334,140).

– The staff psychiatrist for the Vacaville-based California Medical Facility's correctional and rehabilitative services, paid $582,609 (salary range, $228,624 to $260,952).

– The chief risk officer of the State Compensation Insurance Fund, paid $561,072 (annual budgeted salary, $288,000).

– The chief investment officer of the Public Employees' Retirement System, paid $548,152 (salary range, $408,000 to $612,000).

– The physician and surgeon for the California Correctional Institution in Tehachapi, paid $536,955 (annual budgeted salary, $223,344).

– The physician and surgeon for the Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, paid $534,527 (annual budgeted salary, $235,740).

– California Prison Health Care System medical executive, paid $508,140 (salary range, $240,000 to $412,080).

– President of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, paid $482,234 (salary range, $285,996 to $529,092).

Among educators in the CSU system, the state chancellor was the highest paid, receiving $399,326. That position's annual maximum salary is $421,500; no minimum salary was listed.

Other top 10 wage earners among educators were presidents of the various state universities, with all of those presidents having an annual salary range of $223,584 to $350,004.

They included No. 2, president of CSU Los Angeles, $372,461; No. 3, president of CSU San Francisco, $356,366; No. 4, an administrator IV at State Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, $356,330 (salary range, $89,844 to $258,168); No. 5, president of CSU Sacramento, $351,541; No. 6, president of CSU Humboldt, $343,862; No. 7, president of CSU San Bernardino, $337,215; No. 8, president of CSU Channel Islands, $333,507; No. 9, president of CSU Bakersfield, $332,845; and No. 10, president of CSU Sonoma, $331,359.

All of those are higher than Gov. Jerry Brown's salary, which was not listed in the study but is reported to be $173,987, according to The Book of the States 2010.

Last October, Chiang collected and posted wage information for more than 600,000 city and county employees. He also added 2,379 special districts’ payroll earlier this year, as Lake County News has reported.

For each position the Web site includes minimum and maximum salary ranges; actual wages paid; the applicable retirement formula; any contributions by the employer to the employee’s share of pension costs; any contributions by the employer to the employee’s deferred compensation plan; and any employer payments for the employee’s health, vision and dental premium benefits.

In addition, the Web site shows employees who hold multiple positions within either state government or the CSU system.

The Controller's Office said it is continuing to update the site weekly with new information from local government agencies.

All counties have complied with the reporting requirements, with only two cities – Fort Jones and Tulelake – listed as noncompliant, according to the site.

Among the numerous special districts around the state that have not filed salary and compensation reports three are located in Lake County – Scotts Valley Water Conservation District, Reclamation District No. 2070 and Villa Blue Estates Water District.

Chiang's office said noncomplying agencies can face penalties of $5,000.

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The National Weather Service is expecting temperatures to be in the high 90s this week, following a warm Independence Day weekend.

While the weekend's hot temperatures beckoned some people outdoors to enjoy time on the water, others experienced health issues as a result.

Northshore Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Steve Hart said paramedics reacted to numerous heat-related medical calls over the holiday weekend because of the higher temperatures.

The National Weather Service said monsoonal moisture is expected to work its way from the Sierra Nevadas through the interior of California late Tuesday through Wednesday, bringing the possibility of thunderstorms and higher humidity.

Because of the chances for higher humidity, forecasters urge anyone who is working or engaged in recreational activities to avoid prolonged sun exposure during the hottest hours of the day.

Dr. Ron Chapman, director of the California Department of Public Health, issued guidelines for avoiding health sickness, including reducing exposure to the sun from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. when UV rays are strongest, and keeping physical activities to a minimum during that time. When working outside, drink plenty of water or juice even if you are not thirsty, and take rest breaks in the shade.

Those spending time outside also should wear hats to help cover the face and neck, along with sunglasses the provide 100 percent UVA and UVB protection, as chronic exposure to the sun can cause cataracts, which left untreated, can lead to blindness. Use sunscreen of an SPF rating of 15 or more.

Because of the high temperatures inside cars, don't leave children, infants, the frail elderly or pets inside parked vehicles, as temperatures can climb to deadly levels, state officials said.

The California Emergency Management Agency has a list of summer heat resources at www.calema.ca.gov/NewsandMedia/Pages/Current%20News%20and%20Events/Summer-Heat-Resources.aspx.

For pets, which also are at risk during the hot summer months, the ASPCA's Web site at www.aspca.org/pet-care/pet-care-tips/hot-weather-tips.aspx offers tips for keeping pets safe from high temperatures.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews, on Tumblr at www.lakeconews.tumblr.com, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews.

Judy Pitts, 40, of Clearlake, Calif., was arrested on Saturday, July 2, 2011, after she allegedly attempted to kidnap a baby. Lake County Jail photo.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A Clearlake woman was arrested Saturday after she allegedly attempted to kidnap a baby.

Judy Lynn Pitts, 40, was taken into custody following the incident, which was reported Saturday night, according to Clearlake Police Sgt. Tim Hobbs.

Just before 10:30 p.m. Saturday Det. Ryan Peterson was on patrol covering a shift for an officer who was off that day when he was waived down by a woman on Pine Street near Olympic Drive, Hobbs said.

The woman told Peterson that a subject who she didn't know – later identified as Pitts – grabbed her 8-month-old daughter from her arms and fled into a nearby residence with the baby, according to Hobbs.

Family members of the child ran into the residence and retrieved the child, who was safely turned back over to her mother, Hobbs said.

Hobbs said the child's mother and other witnesses pointed Pitts out to Peterson as she was leaving the home.

Peterson subsequently arrested Pitts, who appeared to be intoxicated, on a felony charge of kidnapping, Hobbs said.

Pitts later was transported to the Lake County Jail and booked. She remained in custody on Sunday night, with bail set at $50,000, according to jail records.

The Clearlake Police Department is asking anyone with information regarding this case that has not already been interviewed to contact Det. Peterson at 707-994-8251.

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