Dam Has Broken! Water Policy is Flowing!
Ending years and years of negotiations, countless start and stop efforts, and some of the longest most bitter committee hearings in the Capitol, today’s early morning light saw the California State Legislature finally come to agreement on a package of bills that contain sweeping changes in water policy and an $11 billion bond that must be approved by voters. Reaching resolution on a measure to fix our current system that was designed for 15million Californians so that it will meet the demands of the soon to be 50 million Californians while increasing storage and protecting the delta had proven in the past to be too great a load to lift – but this time it finally came to fruition.
Not wasting any time the Governor and legislative leaders held a press conference only hours after the package of bills were passed. Quick to point out that the legislature finally had reached a resolution of a critical issue the message was clear – all major interests were at the table – environmental, business, labor, agriculture, and water providers – sending a message that the voters of California need to ratify this effort at the polls. The bond package will create tens of thousands of jobs and protects hundreds of thousands more. Now comes the heavy lifting, passing the bond that is needed to fund the storage and conveyance pieces of this package that will assure water supply and delivery. The bond will be on the ballot in November of 2010.
Local Tax Measures Fare Better Than Recent State Tax Proposals
What do we make of many local tax measures passing in these tough economic times? According to the preliminary review by the League of Cities’ Local Government Finances Almanac, two-thirds of fifty-seven local taxes and bonds passed Tuesday.
Local voters said “yes” to a number of tax measures less than six months after statewide voters rejected continuing a number of temporary tax increases that were part of the February state budget deal. The “yes” on taxes also comes in the shadow of polls that indicate voters are not interested in raising taxes or making it easier to raise taxes.
It is telling that the “yes” votes occurred for local tax measures, while the “no” votes carried the day against continuing state taxes. With the legislature suffering a 13% approval rating, not too many people trust legislators with their tax money. On the local level, voters have a better sense of how their money is spent.
Tough Times for Gay Marriage Efforts
The folks looking to put a same-sex marriage initiative on next November’s ballot should take a close look at Tuesday’s election results before they plop their card tables and petitions out in front of supermarkets across California.
Tuesday was a tough night for gay rights across the country and there were plenty of indications things could get worse before they get better.
In Maine, voters repealed a law that would have allowed gay and lesbian couples to marry, a law that had the backing of the Legislature and the governor. Opponents of the repeal raised more money, ran a better grassroots campaign and even had a nine-point lead in the polls three weeks before the election. But they still lost, 53 percent to 47 percent.
The news was better in Washington state, where voters backed a referendum upholding a law granting registered domestic partners the same “rights, responsibilities and obligations” as married couples.
Earl Warren on Water
During a recent research trip to the state archives, I came across a speech that Gov. Earl Warren gave to the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco in September 1949
It was a tough time in the state. Unemployment had reached 12 percent a few months earlier, though it was beginning to decline.. There had been a serious drought the previous year. Warren outlined major challenges for the state: terrible traffic, schools in shambles, overcrowded prisons. But what worried him most was water.
“As we look forward to the next century and to the next 10,000,000 who will certainly come here [Note: he underestimated; California’s population was just over 10 million at the time], there are certain problems that we must solve.
“The first, in my opinion, is the problem of water.
“Every person added to our population adds to our need for a water supply. It has been that way since the beginning of civilization in California.
“It will probably always be our greatest problem.”