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98-835: The board is made up of 26 members, appointed by the governor, the Senate Committee on Rules, and the Speaker of the Assembly, as well as ex officio membership. The commission has two programs: Film California First and Star Program. The former, founded in 2000 by then Governor Gray Davis , refunds location costs to filmmakers for certain locations and expenses. The later offers certain state owned properties for free to filmmakers. There are over 50 local film commissions known as FLICS (Film Locations in California, Statewide) associated with CFC that provide local support for filmmakers and facilitate with

196-436: A general glut in the job market. University enrollment for computer-related degrees dropped noticeably. Aeron chairs , which retailed for $ 1,100 each, were liquidated en masse. As growth in the technology sector stabilized, companies consolidated; some, such as Amazon.com , eBay , Nvidia and Google gained market share and came to dominate their respective fields. The most valuable public companies are now generally in

294-627: A bill of rights, including a help-line to resolve disputes and independent medical review of claims. Under Davis, staff-to-patient ratios in nursing homes improved. However, Davis reneged on a campaign promise to expand low-cost healthcare to parents of needy children due to budget constraints. Davis allowed non-disabled low-income people with HIV to be treated under Medi-Cal . He signed a law allowing people participating in needle exchange programs to be immune from criminal prosecution. He also increased state spending on AIDS prevention. Under Governor Davis, California's anti-tobacco campaign became one of

392-458: A bill requiring gun buyers to pass a safety test. A supporter of the death penalty and tougher sentencing laws, Davis blocked nearly all parole recommendations by the parole board. Davis campaigned as an ardent supporter of capital punishment; which reportedly played a crucial part in his successful gubernatorial campaign. In 1999, he denied his first clemency request from Thai national Jaturun Siripongs , stating, "Model behavior cannot bring back

490-531: A candidate for the West Hollywood City Council who was convicted on federal pornography charges. LaPietra served as Davis’ finance chairman. Davis cut all ties with La Pietra following a Los Angeles Times report on his pornography convictions. In 1986, Davis ran against six other contenders in the race for State Controller ; several of those candidates, including Democrat John Garamendi and Republican Bill Campbell , were arguably better known at

588-470: A domestic partner, though he did not make good on a campaign promise to convene a task force on civil unions. He signed laws in 1999 banning assault weapons by characteristic rather than brand name, as well as limiting handgun purchases to one a month, requiring trigger locks with all sales of new firearms and reducing the sale of cheap handguns. Davis's ban included a ban on .50 caliber firearms and so-called "Saturday Night Specials." In 2001, Davis signed

686-690: A great deal of overcapacity as many Internet business clients went bust. That, plus ongoing investment in local cell infrastructure kept connectivity charges low, and helped to make high-speed Internet connectivity more affordable. During this time, a handful of companies found success developing business models that helped make the World Wide Web a more compelling experience. These include airline booking sites, Google 's search engine and its profitable approach to keyword-based advertising, as well as eBay 's auction site and Amazon.com 's online department store. The low price of reaching millions worldwide, and

784-436: A large advantage in campaign funds. As lieutenant governor until 1999, Gray Davis focused on efforts on the California economy and worked to encourage new industries to locate and expand in the state. He also worked to keep college education affordable for California's middle-class families and oversaw the largest student-fee reduction in California history. As the state's second-highest officeholder, he served as President of

882-514: A lecturer at the UCLA School of Public Affairs and as an attorney at Loeb & Loeb. Davis was born in the Bronx , New York City the son of Doris (Meyer) Morell and Joseph Graham Davis. Davis was the oldest of five children: Three boys and two girls. Davis's father, an advertising manager at Time Inc. and an alcoholic, was the son of businessman William Rhodes Davis . Davis' upper-middle-class family

980-443: A moderate centrist Democrat and to label Lungren a Republican too conservative for California and out of touch with its views on issues like guns and abortion. After his victory, Davis declared that he would work to end the "divisive politics" of his predecessor Pete Wilson . In his campaign, Davis emphasized the need to improve California's public schools, which voters had cited as their top concern in this election. In 1998, Davis

1078-421: A much-hyped company that had backing from Amazon.com, went out of business only nine months after completing its IPO. By that time, most Internet stocks had declined in value by 75% from their highs, wiping out $ 1.755 trillion in value. In January 2001, just three dot-com companies bought advertising spots during Super Bowl XXXV . The September 11 attacks accelerated the stock-market drop. Investor confidence

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1176-881: A price–earnings ratio of 200, dwarfing the peak price–earnings ratio of 80 for the Japanese Nikkei 225 during the Japanese asset price bubble of 1991. In 1999, shares of Qualcomm rose in value by 2,619%, 12 other large-cap stocks each rose over 1,000% in value, and seven additional large-cap stocks each rose over 900% in value. Even though the Nasdaq Composite rose 85.6% and the S&;P 500 rose 19.5% in 1999, more stocks fell in value than rose in value as investors sold stocks in slower growing companies to invest in Internet stocks. An unprecedented amount of personal investing occurred during

1274-471: A profit. But despite this, the Internet continued to grow, driven by commerce, ever greater amounts of online information, knowledge, social networking and access by mobile devices. The 1993 release of Mosaic and subsequent web browsers during the following years gave computer users access to the World Wide Web , popularizing use of the Internet. Internet use increased as a result of the reduction of

1372-486: A revenue restatement due to aggressive accounting practices. Its stock price, which had risen from $ 7 per share to as high as $ 333 per share in a year, fell $ 140 per share, or 62%, in a day. The next day, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates, leading to an inverted yield curve , although stocks rallied temporarily. Tangentially to all of speculation, Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson issued his conclusions of law in

1470-448: A widely read article that stated: "It's time, at last, to pay attention to the numbers". On Friday, April 14, 2000, the Nasdaq Composite index fell 9%, ending a week in which it fell 25%. Investors were forced to sell stocks ahead of Tax Day , the due date to pay taxes on gains realized in the previous year. By June 2000, dot-com companies were forced to reevaluate their spending on advertising campaigns. On November 9, 2000, Pets.com ,

1568-488: Is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 until he was recalled and removed from office in 2003. He is the second state governor in U.S. history to have been recalled, after Lynn Frazier of North Dakota . A member of the Democratic Party , Davis holds a Bachelor of Arts in history from Stanford University and a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School . He

1666-584: The Assemblyman from the 43rd district, representing parts of Los Angeles County including West Los Angeles and Beverly Hills from 1983 to 1987. Davis championed a popular campaign to help find missing children by placing their pictures on milk cartons and grocery bags. Davis's Republican opponent in the race, William Campbell, criticized Davis as "...the man special interests love most." Among other allegations raised by Campbell were disclosures that Davis had received campaign contributions from Eugene LaPietra,

1764-455: The California electricity crisis , the California budget crisis that followed the bursting of the dot-com bubble , and the car tax. On October 7, 2003, Davis was recalled. In the recall election, 55.4% of voters supported his removal. He was succeeded in office on November 17, 2003, by actor Arnold Schwarzenegger , who won the recall replacement election . After being recalled, Davis worked as

1862-741: The Dulles Technology Corridor in Virginia, governments funded technology infrastructure and created favorable business and tax law to encourage companies to expand. The growth in capacity vastly outstripped the growth in demand. Spectrum auctions for 3G in the United Kingdom in April 2000, led by Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown , raised £22.5 billion. In Germany, in August 2000,

1960-683: The United States Army , serving in the Vietnam War during its height until 1969. Davis saw time on the battlefield during his time in Vietnam. Davis returned home as a captain with a Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service. Friends who knew him at the time said Davis—like many war veterans—came back a changed man, interested in politics and more intense, according to the Sacramento Bee . He returned from Vietnam more "serious and directed." Davis

2058-577: The United States Senate in 1970. He started a statewide neighborhood crime watch program while serving as chairman of the California Council on Criminal Justice. His initial political experience included working to help Tom Bradley win election as Los Angeles's first black mayor in 1973. The historical significance of Bradley's victory further inspired Davis to pursue a career in politics. Davis ran for state treasurer in 1974 but lost when

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2156-400: The quaternary sector of the economy and confidence that the companies would turn future profits created an environment in which many investors were willing to overlook traditional metrics, such as the price–earnings ratio , and base confidence on technological advancements, leading to a stock market bubble . Between 1995 and 2000, the Nasdaq Composite stock market index rose 400%. It reached

2254-527: The " digital divide " and advances in connectivity, uses of the Internet, and computer education. Between 1990 and 1997, the percentage of households in the United States owning computers increased from 15% to 35% as computer ownership progressed from a luxury to a necessity. This marked the shift to the Information Age , an economy based on information technology , and many new companies were founded. At

2352-588: The Academic Performance Index and supported the high school exit exam. He signed legislation that authorized the largest expansion of the Cal Grant program. Under the Davis administration, California began recognizing students for outstanding academic achievement in math and sciences on the new Golden State Exams . Davis's Governors Scholarship program provided $ 1,000 scholarships to those students who scored in

2450-727: The California On Location Awards which include the Location Professional of the Year Award and the Robin Eickman Memorial Mentorship Award. At the 2009 Locations Trade Show, attended by 180 film commissions and others representing more than 30 countries, the CFC's pavilion received 2nd Prize for "Most Informative Booth". Gray Davis Joseph Graham " Gray " Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942)

2548-706: The California Trade and Commerce Agency, aims to assist with the screening process for potential production locations through the use of new technology. The library is the world's largest of its kind, housing hundreds of thousands of images of California. The website CinemaScout helps production scouts review locations and plan a shoot. Subject categories include Towns and Communities; Residential; Commercial and Retail; Public/Government/Municipal; Educational and Religious; Industrial; Parks and Recreation Areas; Ranches, Farms and Agriculture; Transportation; Water and Coastal Area; and Geography/Geology. CFC and FLICS are hosts of

2646-424: The California power grid, declared the first statewide Stage 3 power alert, meaning power reserves were below 3 percent. Rolling blackouts were avoided when the state halted two large state and federal water pumps to conserve electricity. On January 17, 2001, Davis declared a state of emergency in response to the electricity crisis. Speculators, led by Enron Corporation , were collectively making large profits while

2744-496: The California-Mexico border and California Proposition 187 had strained the relationship between the two parties. Davis met with Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo to improve relations with California's southern neighbor and major trading partner within Davis's first 30 days in office. Davis later met with President Vicente Fox and participated in his inauguration. The Governor met with Mexican presidents eight times. Under

2842-497: The Davis administration, California and Baja California signed a "Memorandum of Understanding" expanding cooperation in several policy areas. Under Davis, Mexico became California's leading export market for the first time in history and California's trade with Mexico surpassed all of Mexico's trade with Latin America, Europe and Asia combined. Because of the growth in the California economy, Davis opened and expanded trade offices around

2940-586: The Democratic-controlled legislature would sometimes push Davis to act decisively by taking over power plants which were known to have been gamed and place them back under control of the utilities. Some conservatives argued that Davis signed overpriced energy contracts, employed incompetent negotiators and refused to allow electricity prices to rise for residences statewide much as they had in San Diego, which they argue could have given Davis more leverage against

3038-464: The EPA to grant California a waiver on the federal minimum oxygen requirement. Without a waiver, California would have to import a much larger amount of ethanol per year and gas prices were projected to increase drastically. Bush did not grant the waiver and in 2002, Davis issued an executive order reversing his earlier executive order. Davis's actions when it came to regulating business suggested that Davis

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3136-427: The Federal Reserve , raised interest rates several times; these actions were believed by many to have caused the bursting of the dot-com bubble. According to Paul Krugman , however, "he didn't raise interest rates to curb the market's enthusiasm; he didn't even seek to impose margin requirements on stock market investors. Instead, [it is alleged] he waited until the bubble burst, as it did in 2000, then tried to clean up

3234-509: The Federal government. In fact, when I was fighting Enron and the other energy companies, these same companies were sitting down with Vice President Cheney to draft a national energy strategy." When the Enron verdicts were rendered years later, convicting Enron and other companies of market manipulation, Davis responded with the following quote: Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling , more than anyone, are

3332-542: The Internet or through the mail, ensured that all state taxes are being fully paid on tobacco purchases and increased the penalty for possessing or purchasing untaxed cigarettes. He also signed legislation to expand smoke-free zones around public buildings. Davis approved legislation creating a telemarketing do-not-call list in 2003. Under Davis, benefits for injured and unemployed workers increased. The minimum wage increased by $ 1 to $ 6.75. Davis backed higher research and development tax credits. He pushed for elimination of

3430-503: The Nasdaq fell 2.6%, but the S&P 500 rose 2.4% as investors shifted from strong performing technology stocks to poor performing established stocks. On March 20, 2000, Barron's featured a cover article titled "Burning Up; Warning: Internet companies are running out of cash—fast", which predicted the imminent bankruptcy of many Internet companies. This led many people to rethink their investments. That same day, MicroStrategy announced

3528-669: The Stanford golf team with a two handicap . After Davis entered Stanford, his father left the family, forcing Davis to join the ROTC to stay in school; his arrangement with ROTC included a promise to enter the Army after completing his education. In 1964, he graduated with distinction from Stanford, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in history. He then returned to New York City to attend Columbia Law School , graduating with his J.D. degree in 1967. After completing law school in 1967, Davis entered active duty in

3626-822: The State Senate, Chair of the Commission for Economic Development, Chair of the State Lands Commission, Regent of the University of California and Trustee of the California State University . In the June primary election, Davis surprised political observers by handily defeating two better funded Democratic opponents: multimillionaire airline executive Al Checchi and Congresswoman Jane Harman , wife of multimillionaire Sidney Harman . Davis's campaign slogan during

3724-481: The Web to be a useful and profitable additional channel for content distribution, and an additional means to generate advertising revenue. The sites that survived and eventually prospered after the bubble burst had two things in common: a sound business plan, and a niche in the marketplace that was, if not unique, particularly well-defined and well-served. In the aftermath of the dot-com bubble, telecommunications companies had

3822-492: The approval threshold for local school bonds from two-thirds to 55 percent in a statewide proposition that passed. Davis earmarked $ 3 billion over four years for new textbooks and, between 1999 and 2004, increased state per-pupil spending from $ 5,756 to $ 6,922. In 2001, Gov. Gray Davis signed Senate Bill 19, which establishes nutritional standards for food at elementary schools and bans the sale of carbonated beverages in elementary and middle schools. Another early act of Davis's

3920-454: The auctions raised £30 billion. A 3G spectrum auction in the United States in 1999 had to be re-run when the winners defaulted on their bids of $ 4 billion. The re-auction netted 10% of the original sales prices. When financing became hard to find as the bubble burst, the high debt ratios of these companies led to bankruptcy . Bond investors recovered just over 20% of their investments. However, several telecom executives sold stock before

4018-501: The boom and stories of people quitting their jobs to trade on the financial market were common. The news media took advantage of the public's desire to invest in the stock market; an article in The Wall Street Journal suggested that investors "re-think" the "quaint idea" of profits, and CNBC reported on the stock market with the same level of suspense as many networks provided to the broadcasting of sports events . At

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4116-521: The case of United States v. Microsoft Corp. (2001) and ruled that Microsoft was guilty of monopolization and tying in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act . This led to a one-day 15% decline in the value of shares in Microsoft and a 350-point, or 8%, drop in the value of the Nasdaq. Many people saw the legal actions as bad for technology in general. That same day, Bloomberg News published

4214-519: The crash including Philip Anschutz , who reaped $ 1.9 billion, Joseph Nacchio , who reaped $ 248 million, and Gary Winnick , who sold $ 748 million worth of shares. Nearing the turn of the 2000s, spending on technology was volatile as companies prepared for the Year 2000 problem . There were concerns that computer systems would have trouble changing their clock and calendar systems from 1999 to 2000 which might trigger wider social or economic problems, but there

4312-744: The crash; 48% of dot-com companies survived through 2004, albeit at lower valuations. Several companies and their executives, including Bernard Ebbers , Jeffrey Skilling , and Kenneth Lay , were accused or convicted of fraud for misusing shareholders' money, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission levied large fines against investment firms including Citigroup and Merrill Lynch for misleading investors. After suffering losses, retail investors transitioned their investment portfolios to more cautious positions. Popular Internet forums that focused on high tech stocks, such as Silicon Investor , Yahoo! Finance , and The Motley Fool declined in use significantly. Layoffs of programmers resulted in

4410-419: The crisis, while his defenders attribute the crisis solely to the corporate accounting scandals and say that Davis did all he could. Some critics on the left, such as Arianna Huffington , alleged that Davis was lulled to inaction by campaign contributions from energy producers. Some of Davis's energy advisers were formerly employed by the same energy speculators who made millions from the crisis. In addition,

4508-449: The details of the energy deal. During the electricity crisis, the Davis administration implemented a power conservation program that included television ads and financial incentives to reduce energy consumption. These efforts, the fear of rolling blackouts and the increased cost of electricity resulted in a 14.1% reduction in electricity usage from June 2000 to June 2001. Gray Davis critics often charge that he did not respond properly to

4606-421: The domestic partnerships registry in 1999 and, in 2001, gave same-sex partners a few of the rights enjoyed by opposite-sex spouses such as making health care decisions for an incapacitated partner, acting as a conservator and inheriting property. He also signed a bill to prevent disqualification from a jury based on sexual orientation. Additionally, he signed a bill allowing employees to use family leave to care for

4704-444: The dot-com boom can be seen as similar to a number of other technology-inspired booms of the past, including railroads in the 1840s, automobiles in the early 20th century, radio in the 1920s, television in the 1940s, transistor electronics in the 1950s, computer time-sharing in the 1960s, and home computers and biotechnology in the 1980s. Low interest rates in 1998–99 facilitated an increase in start-up companies. In 2000,

4802-533: The dot-com bubble burst, and CalPERS did not grow, instead losing value in the stock market downturn of 2002. In 2001–2002, CalPERS provided technical assistance for the Sarbanes-Oxley Act because it had sustained financial losses from the Enron and WorldCom bankruptcies. After the Great Recession, in 2009 CalPERS investments lost 24%, dropping $ 67 billion in value. Chairman Crist retired from the board and it

4900-642: The dot-com bubble burst, and many dot-com startups went out of business after burning through their venture capital and failing to become profitable . However, many others, particularly online retailers like eBay and Amazon , blossomed and became highly profitable. More conventional retailers found online merchandising to be a profitable additional source of revenue. While some online entertainment and news outlets failed when their seed capital ran out, others persisted and eventually became economically self-sufficient. Traditional media outlets (newspaper publishers, broadcasters and cablecasters in particular) also found

4998-491: The energy traders and encouraged more conservation. The electricity crisis is considered one of the major factors that led to Davis's recall. In a speech at UCLA on August 19, 2003, Davis apologized for being slow to act during the energy crisis, but then forcefully attacked the Houston -based energy suppliers: "I inherited the energy deregulation scheme which put us all at the mercy of the big energy producers. We got no help from

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5096-547: The fund only grew at 4.4%. The benefits expansion bill, SB 400, passed with unanimous backing by California State Assembly Democrats and was signed into law by Governor Gray Davis. CalPERS then produced a video promoting the legislation with Chairman Crist promising greater benefits "without imposing any additional cost on the taxpayers" and the California State Employees Association president praising it as "the biggest thing since sliced bread". The next year

5194-434: The future, including in his race for lieutenant governor. Davis blamed his campaign managers for the defeat and vowed not to let major decisions in future campaigns be decided by his campaign staff. In 2003, when Feinstein urged voters to vote no during the recall election, she was constantly reminded through questions, video and the media about the 1992 primary. Many Democrats came to believe that Davis's political career

5292-584: The governor and the Legislature passed an overdue budget. He also found and returned more than $ 1.8 billion in unclaimed property to California citizens, including forgotten bank accounts, insurance settlements and stocks. Davis ran against San Francisco mayor Dianne Feinstein for the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate in the 1992 special election to fill the Senate seat vacated by Pete Wilson who

5390-670: The height of the boom, it was possible for a promising dot-com company to become a public company via an IPO and raise a substantial amount of money even if it had never made a profit—or, in some cases, realized any material revenue or even have a finished product. People who received employee stock options became instant paper millionaires when their companies executed IPOs; however, most employees were barred from selling shares immediately due to lock-up periods . The most successful entrepreneurs, such as Mark Cuban , sold their shares or entered into hedges to protect their gains. Sir John Templeton successfully shorted many dot-com stocks at

5488-489: The largest and most effective in the nation. R. J. Reynolds and Lorillard Tobacco sued over California's antismoking campaign but their lawsuit was dismissed in July 2003. Davis also authorized a new hard-hitting anti-smoking ad that graphically depicts the damage caused by secondhand smoke . In September 2002, Governor Davis signed bills to ensure age verification was obtained for cigarettes and other tobacco products sold over

5586-484: The launch of a new product or website, a company would organize an expensive event called a dot-com party . In the five years after the American Telecommunications Act of 1996 went into effect, telecommunications equipment companies invested more than $ 500 billion, mostly financed with debt, into laying fiber optic cable, adding new switches, and building wireless networks. In many areas, such as

5684-428: The law would lead smaller and more expensive cars to be sold in California. In 2003, Davis signed legislation aiming to ban junk email . On March 25, 1999, Davis issued an executive order calling for the removal of MTBE (a toxic gasoline additive) from gasoline sold in the state. In 2001, in order for gas prices to remain reasonable in California while removing MTBE, Davis asked President George W. Bush to order

5782-533: The lives of the two innocent murder victims." Siripongs was executed in February 1999; the first execution to occur during Davis's governorship. Early in 1999, Davis sought to improve relations with Mexico. Davis believed that California under Pete Wilson had left millions of dollars of potential trade revenues "on the table." Davis said he wanted California to have relations with Mexico that were more like Texas under then-Governor George W. Bush . Controversy over

5880-473: The mess afterward". Finance author and commentator E. Ray Canterbery agreed with Krugman's criticism. On Friday March 10, 2000, the NASDAQ Composite stock market index peaked at 5,048.62. However, on March 13, 2000, news that Japan had once again entered a recession triggered a global sell off that disproportionately affected technology stocks. Soon after, Yahoo! and eBay ended merger talks and

5978-431: The minimum franchise tax paid by new businesses during the first two years of operation. While Davis's record is generally considered pro-environmental due to increases in spending for land acquisition, maintenance of the state's park system, signing legislation that attempts to cut greenhouse gas emissions by having automakers produce more efficient vehicles, cutting fees to state parks and opposing offshore drilling , he

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6076-489: The more popular Jesse Unruh filed to run on the deadline. Davis served as executive secretary and chief of staff to Governor Edmund G. "Jerry" Brown Jr. from 1975 to 1981. Davis was not as liberal as Brown, and some said he offset Brown's style by projecting a more intense, controlled personality. Davis has stated that while Brown was campaigning for president in 1980, Davis ran the state in Brown's absence. Davis served as

6174-468: The mottos "get big fast" and "get large or get lost". These companies offered their services or products for free or at a discount with the expectation that they could build enough brand awareness to charge profitable rates for their services in the future. The "growth over profits" mentality and the aura of " new economy " invincibility led some companies to engage in lavish spending on elaborate business facilities and luxury vacations for employees. Upon

6272-503: The new entrepreneurs had experience in business and economics, the majority were simply people with ideas, and did not manage the capital influx prudently. Additionally, many dot-com business plans were predicated on the assumption that by using the Internet, they would bypass the distribution channels of existing businesses and therefore not have to compete with them; when the established businesses with strong existing brands developed their own Internet presence, these hopes were shattered, and

6370-544: The newcomers were left attempting to break into markets dominated by larger, more established businesses. The dot-com bubble burst in March 2000, with the technology heavy NASDAQ Composite index peaking at 5,048.62 on March 10 (5,132.52 intraday), more than double its value just a year before. By 2001, the bubble's deflation was running full speed. A majority of the dot-coms had ceased trading, after having burnt through their venture capital and IPO capital, often without ever making

6468-408: The next decade. When Board member Phil Angelides' aide questioned whether the stock market could grow that long, Board Chairman William Crist, a former union president, replied that they "could make all sorts of different assumptions and make predictions, but that's really more than I think we can expect our staff to do." CalPERS' chief actuary, objected, finding that it would be "fairly catastrophic" if

6566-579: The peak of the bubble during what he called "temporary insanity" and a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity". He shorted stocks just before the expiration of lockup periods ending six months after initial public offerings, correctly anticipating many dot-com company executives would sell shares as soon as possible, and that large-scale selling would force down share prices. Most dot-com companies incurred net operating losses as they spent heavily on advertising and promotions to harness network effects to build market share or mind share as fast as possible, using

6664-527: The permit process. The current director of the California Film Commission is Colleen Bell. Previous directors included Amy Lemisch, Lisa Rawlins, and Karen Constine. The California Film Commission administers the Film & Television Tax Credit Program which provides tax credits based on qualified expenditures for eligible productions that are produced in California. 3.0 is the most recent iteration of

6762-573: The point where the spikes in power usage would cause blackouts. Rolling blackouts affecting 97,000 customers hit the San Francisco Bay area on June 14, 2000, and San Diego Gas & Electric Company filed a complaint alleging market manipulation by some energy producers in August 2000. On December 7, 2000, suffering from low supply and idled power plants, the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), which manages

6860-481: The possibility of selling to or hearing from those people at the same moment when they were reached, promised to overturn established business dogma in advertising, mail-order sales, customer relationship management , and many more areas. The web was a new killer app —it could bring together unrelated buyers and sellers in seamless and low-cost ways. Entrepreneurs around the world developed new business models, and ran to their nearest venture capitalist . While some of

6958-499: The primary was "Experience Money Can't Buy." Early primary polls showed Davis in third for the Democratic nomination. Davis surprised many political insiders with his landslide come-from-behind victory. Davis even finished ahead of the unopposed Republican nominee in California's first blanket gubernatorial primary. Davis won the 1998 general election for governor with 57.9% of the vote, defeating Republican Attorney General Dan Lungren who had 38.4%. Davis aimed to portray himself as

7056-475: The reason I'm talking to you now from this law firm. (Skilling's conviction was later overturned by the United States Supreme Court in its narrowing of the "honest services" statute.) Dot-com bubble The dot-com bubble (or dot-com boom ) was a stock market bubble that ballooned during the late-1990s and peaked on Friday, March 10, 2000. This period of market growth coincided with

7154-448: The same time, a decline in interest rates increased the availability of capital. The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 , which lowered the top marginal capital gains tax in the United States , also made people more willing to make more speculative investments. Alan Greenspan , then- Chair of the Federal Reserve , allegedly fueled investments in the stock market by putting a positive spin on stock valuations. The Telecommunications Act of 1996

7252-400: The state teetered on the edge for weeks and finally suffered rolling blackouts on January 17 and 18. Davis stepped in to buy power at highly unfavorable terms on the open market, since the California power companies were technically bankrupt and had no buying power. California agreed to pay $ 43 billion for power over the next 20 years. Newspaper publishers sued Davis to force him to make public

7350-448: The tax credit program. In 1993, NASA 's Jet Propulsion Laboratory signed an agreement to develop an online reference system for the CFC's Location Resource Library. The Electronic Production Resource Library Information Database would be a catalog for the more than 200,000 location photographs that the CFC had at the time. The project, undertaken by Caltech who manages the JPL for NASA, and

7448-412: The technology sector. In a 2015 book, venture capitalist Fred Wilson , who funded many dot-com companies and lost 90% of his net worth when the bubble burst, said about the dot-com bubble: A friend of mine has a great line. He says "Nothing important has ever been built without irrational exuberance ." Meaning that you need some of this mania to cause investors to open up their pocketbooks and finance

7546-415: The time. Davis won the election and served as State Controller for eight years until 1995. As California's chief fiscal officer, he saved taxpayers more than half a billion dollars by cracking down on Medi-Cal fraud, rooting out government waste and inefficiency and exposing the misuse of public funds. He was the first controller to withhold paychecks from all state elected officials, including himself, until

7644-636: The top 1% in two subject areas on the state's annual statewide standardized test. Davis signed into law legislation that began the Eligibility in the Local Context (ELC) program that guaranteed admission to a University of California institution to students that finished in the top 4% of their high school class. Public schools received $ 8 billion over the minimum required by Proposition 98 during Davis's first term. Davis increased spending on recruiting more and better-qualified teachers. He campaigned to lower

7742-1009: The widespread adoption of the World Wide Web and the Internet , resulting in a dispensation of available venture capital and the rapid growth of valuations in new dot-com startups . Between 1995 and its peak in March 2000, investments in the NASDAQ composite stock market index rose by 800%, only to fall 78% from its peak by October 2002, giving up all its gains during the bubble. During the dot-com crash , many online shopping companies, notably Pets.com , Webvan , and Boo.com , as well as several communication companies, such as Worldcom , NorthPoint Communications , and Global Crossing , failed and shut down. Others, like Lastminute.com , MP3.com and PeopleSound remained through its sale and buyers acquisition. Larger companies like Amazon and Cisco Systems lost large portions of their market capitalization, with Cisco losing 80% of its stock value. Historically,

7840-475: The world, including in Mexico. But most of these offices were eliminated in the 2003 California budget due to difficult fiscal times. Davis significantly expanded the number of low-income children with state-subsidized health coverage. He signed laws to allow patients to get a second opinion if their HMO denies treatment and, in limited cases, the right to sue. Davis signed legislation that provided HMO patients

7938-505: Was a more moderate governor. He worked to kill a comprehensive bill opposed by banks and insurance companies to protect consumers' personal financial information. "What you saw in the campaign was what you got," said UC Berkeley professor Bruce Cain. "He's tried to negotiate a course between the different interest groups and keep Democrats on a more centrist, business-oriented track". Davis approved $ 5.3 billion over five years for more than 150 transit and highway projects. One of those projects

8036-446: Was awarded a Bronze Star for his service as a captain in the Vietnam War . Prior to serving as governor, Davis was chief of staff to Governor Jerry Brown (1975–1981), a California State Assemblyman (1983–1987), California State Controller (1987–1995) and the 44th lieutenant governor of California (1995–1999). During his time as governor, Davis made education his top priority and California spent eight billion dollars more than

8134-696: Was construction on the new eastern section of the Bay Bridge . During 1999 and 2000, California spent millions on onetime projects like buying new rail cars and track improvements. Soon after taking office, Davis was able to fast-track the first power plant construction in twelve years in April 1999, although the plant did not come on line before the electricity crisis. According to the subsequent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 's investigation and report, numerous energy trading companies, many based in Texas, such as Enron Corporation , illegally restricted their supply to

8232-617: Was criticized for not backing tougher restrictions on timber companies as some environmentalists desired. Under the Davis administration, California purchased 10,000 acres (40 km ) for urban parks. Davis signed the first state law in the US in July 2002 to require automakers to limit auto emissions. The law required the California Air Resources Board to obtain the "maximum feasible" cuts in greenhouse gases emitted by all non-commercial vehicles in 2009 and beyond. Automakers claimed

8330-479: Was elected Governor of California in 1990. The race is often cited as an example of Davis's history of negative campaign tactics. The Davis campaign featured an ad that compared Feinstein to the incarcerated hotelier Leona Helmsley . Some experts consider that ad to be the most negative in state history. The ad backfired with Davis losing to Feinstein by a significant margin for the nomination although this loss did not stop Davis from using negative campaign ads in

8428-553: Was elected the Golden State's first Democratic governor in 16 years. The San Jose Mercury News called him "perhaps the best-trained governor-in-waiting California has ever produced." In March 1999, Davis enjoyed a 58% approval rating and just 12% disapproval. His numbers peaked in February 2000 with 62% approval and 20% disapproval, coinciding with the peak of the dot-com boom in California. Davis held his strong poll numbers into January 2001. Davis's first official act as governor

8526-594: Was expected to result in many new technologies from which many people wanted to profit. As a result of these factors, many investors were eager to invest, at any valuation, in any dot-com company , especially if it had one of the Internet-related prefixes or a " .com " suffix in its name. Venture capital was easy to raise. Investment banks , which profited significantly from initial public offerings (IPO), fueled speculation and encouraged investment in technology. A combination of rapidly increasing stock prices in

8624-760: Was further eroded by several accounting scandals and the resulting bankruptcies, including the Enron scandal in October 2001, the WorldCom scandal in June 2002, and the Adelphia Communications Corporation scandal in July 2002. By the end of the stock market downturn of 2002 , stocks had lost $ 5 trillion in market capitalization since the peak. At its trough on October 9, 2002, the NASDAQ-100 had dropped to 1,114, down 78% from its peak. After venture capital

8722-416: Was later revealed he had accepted more than $ 800,000 from a firm to ensure hundreds of millions of investment from CalPERS. This CalPERS mess was one of the factors that made Gray Davis get recalled. Governor Jerry Brown worked on trying to fix this retirement system for years, but CalPERS is still underfunded in 2022 and could end up costing state tax payers hundreds of billions in bailouts. Davis recognized

8820-553: Was led by his demanding mother, who gave him the nickname "Gray". Davis moved to California with his family in 1954. Davis graduated from a North Hollywood military academy, the Harvard School for Boys (now part of Harvard-Westlake School ). His diverse educational experiences at public, private and Catholic schools allowed him an opportunity to compare all three systems as a lawmaker. Davis's academic accomplishments earned him acceptance to Stanford University . He played on

8918-442: Was no longer available, the operational mentality of executives and investors completely changed. A dot-com company's lifespan was measured by its burn rate , the rate at which it spent its existing capital. Many dot-com companies ran out of capital and went through liquidation . Supporting industries, such as advertising and shipping, scaled back their operations as demand for services fell. However, many companies were able to endure

9016-407: Was over after his defeat in his run for the Senate, but Davis created a new campaign team. He won a landslide victory in his race for lieutenant governor in 1994 , receiving more votes than any other Democratic candidate in America. Davis ran as a moderate candidate against Republican Cathie Wright. Davis used ads to depict Wright as a Republican who was too conservative for California. Davis had

9114-467: Was required under Proposition 98 during his first term. In California, under Davis, standardized test scores increased for five straight years. Davis signed the nation's first state law requiring automakers to limit auto emissions. Davis supported laws to ban assault weapons and is also credited with improving relations between California and Mexico. Davis began his tenure as governor with strong approval ratings, but they declined as voters blamed him for

9212-560: Was surprised to discover that many of those serving in Vietnam were Latinos, African Americans and southern whites with very few from schools like Stanford and Columbia; Davis believed that the burden of the war should be felt equally and he resolved early on to go about changing America so that would change. Davis is a life member of the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars . Davis volunteered for John V. Tunney 's campaign for

9310-400: Was the largest to date and was questioned by many analysts. Then, on January 30, 2000, 12 ads of the 61 ads for Super Bowl XXXIV were purchased by dot-coms (sources state ranges from 12 up to 19 companies depending on the definition of dot-com company ). At that time, the cost for a 30-second commercial was between $ 1.9 million and $ 2.2 million. Meanwhile, Alan Greenspan , then Chair of

9408-570: Was the reversal of his predecessor Republican Governor Pete Wilson's alteration of California's eight-hour overtime pay rule for wage earners. In 1999, the CalPERS board proposed a benefits expansion that would allow public employees to retire at age 55 and collect more than half their highest salary for life (pension spiking). CalPERS predicted the benefits would require no increase in the State's contributions by projecting an average annual return of 8.25% over

9506-491: Was to call a special session of the state legislature to address his plan for all California children to be able to read by age 9. "I ran for governor because of my passion for education," Davis told CNN the Sunday night before the recall election on Larry King Live . Davis used California's growing budget surplus to increase education spending. He signed legislation that provided for a new statewide accountability program and for

9604-439: Was virtually no impact or disruption due to adequate preparation. Spending on marketing also reached new heights for the sector: Two dot-com companies purchased ad spots for Super Bowl XXXIII , and 17 dot-com companies bought ad spots the following year for Super Bowl XXXIV . On January 10, 2000, America Online , led by Steve Case and Ted Leonsis , announced a merger with Time Warner , led by Gerald M. Levin . The merger

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