How do you like this idea: the price of gasoline could be coming down in California. Pretty nifty. Of course, the plan, floated by Democrats in Sacramento, has a few strings attached. Our Sacramento bureau chief Timm Herdt (therdt@VenturaCountyStar.com) is writing about the Democrats' idea to cut gas taxes by about 11 cents a gallon. They'd make up with revenue with a quarter-cent increase in the sales tax. Then, next year, they'd return 3 cents to the gas tax and put that money in a special road construction fund. Timm will also find out what the opposition has to say about the idea.

Our coverage of the rituals surrounding the death and funeral of Pope John Paul II continue, with amazing photos of the public procession at St. Peter's in Rome. As a sidebar to that story, staff writer Sylvia Moore (smoore@VenturaCountyStar.com) talks with members of the local Polish community about the pope.

We are also waiting on information coming from Caltrans, which was holding a press conference in Los Angeles today to release details of its plans to improve the 101/405 interchange. Staff writer Grace Lee (glee@VenturaCountyStar.com) is covering that for us.

And staff writer Zeke Barlow (zbarlow@VenturaCountyStar.com) previews tomorrow's state Supreme Court hearing on the constitutionality of the California Coastal Commission.