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Are you enjoying living in Governor Gavin’s California?
Where you pay the highest price for gasoline and one of the highest tax burdens and the power goes out like we’re in a third world country. And he, the state air board and the Public Utilities Commission want to make this an all-electric state.
Please. Newsom loves to brag about the California economy and ignore the more than 27% of the people who live in function poverty. Sadly, they’re living in a third world country in stark contrast to the coastal elites that Newsom panders to.
And now grab a tight grip on your wallet when the November general election comes around.
Bay Area counties will vote on an unprecedented $20 billion bond for affordable housing that would raise property tax bills by $19 per $100,000 in assessed value or $119 for a less than average priced home at $1 million.
Then there’s the governor and the legislature who are compromising on two more bond issues despite Newsom’s favored bond in March—the only one on the ballot—squeaking by with a 50.6% margin. There was no organized opposition,
This time around, the Democrats in charge are pushing two with a price tag of $10 billion each, one responding to climate change and the other for school rehabilitation. Given that there’s no program to regularly provide funds for school facilities to be rehabbed when many were built 50-60 years ago, an education bond is reasonable. It’s also coming at the time when voters seem ready to snap their checkbooks shut.
The climate bond is pandering to environmental extremist groups who have been hammering for spending. Some elements are reasonable—improving drinking water for low-income communities for instance and funds to manage forests—why an ongoing maintenance function should be paid for by a 30-year bond that doubles in price is a question the spendthrift Dems should have to answer.
For perspective on spending, consider this offering from UCLA economist Lee Ohanian who writes a regular Tuesday column. Citing the Tax Foundation in response to the governor’s video state of state address, California ranks 49th (one from bottom) in state income taxes and has the highest tax collections for any state at $7,200 per person compared to the national average of $4,374. Considering job growth pre-pandemic until now, California lost 402,000 jobs while nationally jobs grew by 6.2 million. He also notes that the state budget increased 63% between 2019 and 2024 while the state lost about 500,000 residents.
Gavin and the Dems have a spending problem, not a revenue problem and we pay the highest electrical rates, gasoline prices and drive on some of the worst roads. Some ugly management issues.
Here locally, the City Council is considering placing a one-half sales tax increase on the ballot. Given the profligate spending by the council majority prior to the last few months and a ballot that will be crowded with spending measures, you must wonder how it will fare.
When it comes to stupid budget decisions that avoid dealing with tough issues, the Oakland City Council and Mayor Sheng Thao who is facing a recall campaign, take the sad cake. Presuming the sale of the city’s share of the Oakland Coliseum goes through, the council approved the mayor’s recommendation to devote all of that one-time money to balancing the budget for the fiscal year that started Monday. Talk about kicking the can down the road and making the situation worse in the future. The Oakland school board, along with others along the I-880 corridor, have ducked the need to close tiny schools for years.
The garbage accumulated on Union Pacific tracks in Los Angeles – busted open cargo containers looted packages, cardboard boxes, and acres of trash. In his own words. Newsum. “We look like a third-world country.”
California’s problems are not complex, the crime, homelessness, drugs, and economic disparity, are all liberal democratic party majority rule – orientation to California. The California Democratic party thrives in this CHAOS.