My view of the California budget
So the Democrats got very clever and managed to use a loophole
to increase our taxes, er fees.
By eliminating the tax on gasoline, and increasing other
taxes, they passed a revenue neutral bill, which is at
least arguably legal.
Then then passed another bill (maybe it was part of the same
bill, doesn't matter) that imposes a $0.39 fee on
each gallon of gasoline.
Apparently new fees don't have to be approved by 2/3rds of
the legislature, only increases in taxes do.
(The governor says he will veto the bill, but not because he
objects to the use of the loophole.)
What's wrong with this? A few things. It is an obvious
'fuck you' to the voters who passed the 2/3rds law (actually,
I think it's part of the constitution). Democrats have had
more than 30 years to attempt to repeal the 2/3rds law.
Not only have they never succeeded, but they've never even tried.
Second, it invites an even more stringent backlash. I'm in favor of some temporary
tax increases in lieu of massive cuts, but I would vote for
a proposition that clarified that this chicanery and anything
like it is verboten. It is totally clear what the intent of
the voters was back then, and it should be respected.
And if I would vote for it, I think there's a damned
good chance the masses of Californians who never saw a tax
increase they liked would pass it.
Third, it will obviously be challenged in court; there may be
an injunction issued not to impose the fee. And I heard or read
somewhere that if a petition to repeal the fee is certified as having
enough signatures to be put on the ballot then
at that point the fee would have to be halted until the
election deciding the issue (this seems screwy to me, but I
definitely saw that claimed somewhere). All this could cause
even more massive horribleness with respect to the state budget.
A plague on both their houses.
to increase our taxes, er fees.
By eliminating the tax on gasoline, and increasing other
taxes, they passed a revenue neutral bill, which is at
least arguably legal.
Then then passed another bill (maybe it was part of the same
bill, doesn't matter) that imposes a $0.39 fee on
each gallon of gasoline.
Apparently new fees don't have to be approved by 2/3rds of
the legislature, only increases in taxes do.
(The governor says he will veto the bill, but not because he
objects to the use of the loophole.)
What's wrong with this? A few things. It is an obvious
'fuck you' to the voters who passed the 2/3rds law (actually,
I think it's part of the constitution). Democrats have had
more than 30 years to attempt to repeal the 2/3rds law.
Not only have they never succeeded, but they've never even tried.
Second, it invites an even more stringent backlash. I'm in favor of some temporary
tax increases in lieu of massive cuts, but I would vote for
a proposition that clarified that this chicanery and anything
like it is verboten. It is totally clear what the intent of
the voters was back then, and it should be respected.
And if I would vote for it, I think there's a damned
good chance the masses of Californians who never saw a tax
increase they liked would pass it.
Third, it will obviously be challenged in court; there may be
an injunction issued not to impose the fee. And I heard or read
somewhere that if a petition to repeal the fee is certified as having
enough signatures to be put on the ballot then
at that point the fee would have to be halted until the
election deciding the issue (this seems screwy to me, but I
definitely saw that claimed somewhere). All this could cause
even more massive horribleness with respect to the state budget.
A plague on both their houses.