Subpoenas restricted

The Securities and Exchange Commission, headed by former Newport Beach Rep. Chris Cox, last week announced new guidelines for using subpoenas to get information from journalists. The move came after Cox, who took over as SEC chairman in 2005, publicly criticized his agency’s enforcement arm for issuing subpoenas to reporters without consulting the commission.

Under the new guidelines, enforcers must exhaust all other avenues to get information for an investigation before resorting to subpoenas, and they must notify the chairman whenever a subpoena is authorized by the head of the enforcement division.

In an interview in March, Cox said the work of journalists complements the SEC’s mission. That was reiterated in a statement from the commission last week, which read in part, “Diligent reporting is an essential means of bringing securities law violations to light and ultimately helps to deter illegal conduct.”

REACTOR REACTION

UC Irvine business professor and four-time Congressional candidate John Graham took issue in 2004 and 2005 with the safety of a small nuclear reactor on the UCI campus, and he said this week he’s relieved to know officials are considering shutting the reactor down.

As a candidate for the 48th District U.S. House seat last year, Graham drove an empty moving truck up to the building that houses the reactor and parked it there for about 45 minutes to show what he considered lax security at the facility.

George Miller, the reactor’s supervisor, confirmed Monday that “a decision is being made about the reactor and one of the options is to close it” because its use ? solely for research ? has been declining for about 10 years. Whether it is decommissioned will depend on a number of factors, such what will happen to the nuclear material from the reactor and whether federal money will be available to shut the facility down, Miller said.

University officials asked the U.S. Department of Energy in late 2005 to look into closing the reactor, and it’s likely nothing would happen before the summer of 2007, Miler said.

Graham said he’s pleased that the school is making changes to the building that will make the reactor more secure, and closing the reactor down would be even better.

“I’m not suggesting that any of this is my doing,” he said. “It’s just that the university is behaving prudently.”

GOP STARS TO ATTEND YOUNG REPUBLICANS DINNER

Nixon White House staffer Bruce Herschensohn and longtime Orange County GOP Chairman Thomas Fuentes will headline the Orange County Young Republicans’ 2006 Freedom Awards today in Costa Mesa. The group also will name a man and woman as 2005 volunteers of the year.

Admission is $50, and the event begins at 6 p.m. at the Center Club, 650 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. For information call (949) 246-8047 or visit www.ocyr.org/freedom.htm.

CAMPAIGNING ANEW

Newport Beach lawyer Steve Young isn’t waiting to get his Congressional campaign moving. The Democrat, who lost a December special election for the 48th District House seat to Republican state Sen. John Campbell, is launching his 2006 campaign for the seat Saturday with events in three cities.

He’ll start the day with a beach clean-up ? it is Earth Day, after all ? at Laguna’s Main Beach. Free hot dogs, burgers and cake will be offered at Young’s picnic in Centennial park in Tustin at 2 p.m. For more information on Steve Young’s campaign events, call (949) 640-4400.

TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY SEEKS VOLUNTEERS

The Orange County Transportation Authority wants volunteers to fill seats on the committee that advises the authority’s board on transportation projects and studies. Committee members also act as liaisons between the board and the public.

Volunteers must be interested in transportation and be able to devote at least 20 hours a year to meetings and activities for the authority. Terms on the committee are two years. To apply or for more information, call (714) 560-5347 or go to www.octa.net. Applications are due May 12.dpt.20-pollandscape-CPhotoInfoS81Q4G4220060420imgyu2ncKENT TREPTOW / DAILY PILOT(LA)UC Irvine professor John Graham stands by the rental truck he parked in front of the campus nuclear reactor in 2005. The reactor may be shut down.