So-Cal Jobless Rate Worst in Nation
California’s budget situation is simple to understand. Revenue is less than spending. Members of the Legislature will have to grapple with the culture of overspending so prevalent at the Capitol. The Board of Equalization is tasked with collecting sales, use and property tax. The Legislature isn’t making this easy.
Sure, they love it when we act aggressively to find and collect tax dollars. Sadly, they make it difficult for taxpayers to accumulate earnings to be taxed. Our State’s prosperity is tied to the prosperity of its people. Nowhere in history has anyone ever been taxed into prosperity.
The United States Department of Labor just released their unemployment statistics. California, once a leader in innovation; is now a leader in desperation. According to the Bureau, eight areas, seven of which are located in California, recorded jobless rates of at least 10 percent.
The unforeseen impact of the Gay Marriage ruling
Will the California Supreme Court decision on same-sex marriage have impact beyond the issue of marriage? Much of the current debate is focused on the decision’s legalization of same-sex marriage and a November ballot initiative whose sponsors seek to reverse its effect by putting a ban on gay marriage in the state constitution.
But the future of gay marriage in California is not really in doubt. Same-sex Polling shows that those of us under 40 overwhelmingly support legalization of gay marriage; this generational view is so strong that it won’t be denied.
The unknown is whether the decision will impact other issues.
Steinberg: Put $20 million in the bank if you’re serious about changing Prop 13
Senate pro-tem in-waiting Darrell Steinberg thinks any attempt to change Proposition 13 will require a $20 million dollar investment in a bank account — to indicate that interests are serious in changing the landmark taxpayer protection initiative with a ballot measure.
Steinberg told callers to a Courage Campaign Conference call that there is a desire to change the two-thirds vote and other provisions of Proposition 13. However, he acknowledges it would be difficult in the legislature unless all legislators understood there was a serious effort to make the change. How would he prefer they convey that? Open a bank account and put in $20 million to see the fight through to the end.
Here’s a head-scratcher
The Brookings Institution just published a national ranking of metropolitan areas, based on their per-capita carbon emissions, and guess what? Six of the 12 "cleanest" large cities are in California. There’s more: when measuring per capita carbon emissions from residential energy use, 10 of the top 12 metro areas are in California.
Now this shouldn’t surprise anyone familiar with California’s tough residential energy efficiency standards and our reliance for electricity on natural gas, hydro and nuclear power (rather than coal). And here’s one of the state’s best-kept secrets: our annual vehicle miles traveled per capita is the fifth-lowest of the 50 states.