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"A dozen elected leaders from the Sacramento region offered support Thursday for Mayor Kevin Johnson's efforts to keep the Kings from moving to Seattle.However, those leaders stopped short of offering public funding for a new downtown arena.\"I think if you ask just anyone in the world about any sort of voluntary contribution, I think they would prefer not to. But there is also a strong level of support for the team,\" West Sacramento Mayor Christopher Cabaldon told KCRA 3.Johnson met privately for about 45 minutes with Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, Sen. Ted Gaines of Roseville, Assembly Member Roger Dickinson of Sacramento, and others.Last year, the Sacramento City Council agreed to contribute $255 million to a new arena, with the funding coming through borrowing or leasing of the city's parking spaces.City leaders have said if new buyers for the team can be found, they will likely use a version of the arena financing plan.\"These are tough times. And when we look at how some folks are suffering throughout the country, I'm not sure how many players there would be -- as far as a municipal governments -- stepping up in a big way,\" Gaines said.Steinberg said he is still waiting for an answer he sent to state agencies requesting information about how much business they do with Microsoft.Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's chief executive officer, is part of the group that has agreed to buy the Kings and relocate the team to Seattle for next season.\"I just, again, think there is an inconsistency between deciding you're going to partner with California on one end and make a lot of money, and at the same time, you take some of that money, and you use it to rip a key asset out of the capital city,\" Steinberg said.He added, he was not looking to modify current state contracts with Microsoft and admitted, even if he wanted, he does not have the power to do so.\"I'm not in that position because the legislative branch of government does not execute contracts,\" Steinberg said.Johnson said he had spoken earlier in the day with NBA Commissioner David Stern.He said the conversation lasted more than a couple of minutes, but less than an hour.He said he updated Stern on his negotiations with a couple of wealthy investors who, Johnson said, are willing to buy the Kings and keep them in Sacramento.Johnson has previously mentioned Pittsburg Penguins owner Ron Burkle as a possible buyer -- and 24 Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov has expressed interest.However, the mayor declined Thursday to identify who he has called his \"whale\" investors.\"I do believe we'll be in a position hopefully next week to unveil who the two big -- or three or four -- that we've been looking at over time and who ultimately we're going to go with,\" Johnson said.Johnson also responded to reports that the Kings' minority owners might be able to block the sale to the Seattle group, specifically Bob Cook, whose share of the franchise is tied up in bankruptcy proceedings.\"It's going to create a little bit more of mess up in Seattle,\" Johnson said. \"It's going to make things ... It's mucking it up a little bit.\"However, the mayor added, that situation was not part of his strategy to keep the Kings."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.kcra.com/article/regional-leaders-offer-support-no-cash-for-keeping-kings/6401828>