Check it out – The hottest content of the week on The Sacramento Press. Who made the list?    Tony Sheppard struck gold with The Hobbit, Kupros Bistro's social media gaffe created quite a stir, and photos of the Fab Forties are always a hit.  Writer Mary Nares and photographer Kati Garner prove to be quite a team – this is the third consecutive week they've made the list. Community Contribution: 5.) Arts Grown Locally: the arts flourishing in Yolo County by Rik Keller (& Natalie Nelson) 4.) Humor, fresh faces to distinguish Pamela Hayes' 'Nutcracker' by Barry Wisdom 3.) Master Singers' Celtic Christmas is a joy by Mary Nares, photos by Kati Garner 2.) Fab '40s Christmas Lights 2012 - Par

Disneyland trips, stays at hotels in Las Vegas and coastal towns, clothes, makeup, iTunes games, music, movies and entertainment apps, meals at restaurants and more.  No, this isn't a Christmas wish list, though it could easily be mistaken for one. These items are just a few of the now infamous laundry list of items that a former aide to Mayor Kevin Johnson allegedly bought using a city credit card that was meant to be used strictly for city business. Lisa Serna-Mayorga allegedly spent more than $19,000 making personal purchases with the card over nearly three years, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office. On Tuesday, Dec. 18, their investigation into Serna-Mayorga

The city of Sacramento’s investigation into $2 million in employee credit card charges came to a close as City Auditor Jorge Oseguera presented his findings and recommendations, including reducing the number of employees who can use credit cards, stricter authorization policies and updated credit card use training. The scandal that rocked City Hall this summer was addressed without so much as a whimper, as the discussion finished in just under 13 minutes with little public comment.  “The city’s policy under the credit card purchase program explicitly states that they are to be used for business purposes only,” Oseguera said.  With department credit card purchase totals reaching upward o

The Sacramento City Council is getting set to launch – not one, but two – audits of credit card use at City Hall in the wake of a scandal among the ranks of council staff uncovered last week. Both the first audit, an internal investigation into the use of approximately 300 city-issued credit cards by employees citywide, and the second audit, which extends higher up the chain at City Hall to the offices of City Council members and the mayor, are on the council agenda for Thursday night. According to a city staff report, the second audit will be conducted by an external company, is expected to cost the city $12,000 and will take about two weeks. The internal audit is expected to be complet

The Sacramento Press will be chatting live with Sacramento Bee City Hall reporter Ryan Lillis at noon about an eventual week in city politics - with the Lisa Serna-Mayorga credit card/criminal investigation and the more recent news that the Sacramento Democratic Party blasted Mayor Kevin Johnson for running a number of his non-city funded initiatives out of offices on the 3rd floor of City Hall – including the Greenwise group’s pursuit of energy and green tech opportunities and Think Big, the initiative to get an arena built in Sacramento. The chat will conintue a conversation with City Concilman Steve Cohn about the credit card scandal and the city's developing plans to rebuild the playg

The Lisa Serna-Mayorga credit card scandal has dominated city news this week, and Sacramento Current podcasters Isaac Gonzalez and Cosmo Garvin took both her and the city to task in their latest episode. Serna-Mayorga, the former aide to Mayor Kevin Johnson, resigned shortly after city officials discovered $9,000 in personal expenses she allegedly charged on a city credit card while she was the city's council operations manager. She now faces a criminal investigation, according to a report by Ryan Lillis in The Sacramento Bee.  Serna-Mayorga isn't new to politics. She started working for the city in 2009, and she also comes from a well-known political family – she is the daughter of form

On Tuesday, at the Citizen Hotel in downtown Sacramento, a benefit reception was held for the UFW Foundation Joe Serna Civic Participation Fund. The event was a salute to the life and work of former Mayor Joe Serna, Jr. and honored Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg for his work on behalf of farm workers. In addition, the event was held to recognize and support the work of the UFW Foundation. The UFW Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Its mission is to empower and improve the lives of farm workers and other low-income and migrant workers through civic engagement, community education, research, and implementation and enforcement of equitable public policy. The o