Demise of Car Tax Initiative Leaves Transportation Finance Unresolved
News last week that proponents have dropped their initiative to increase the car tax for transportation projects was unsurprising, but only leads to the larger question of how to meet legitimate new needs for roads, highways and other transportation works. Recent private polling has found that voters are disinclined to approve new taxes for …almost anything. […]
Stop Sign of the Times
Many Californians may not have noticed, but their wallets just avoided getting hit by a speeding car tax. Last month, the Attorney General cleared a measure entitled the “California Road Repairs Act of 2014” to begin collecting signatures for placement on the November ballot. Backed by well-heeled transportation interests — including contractors, construction unions and […]
Reed’s Own Words on Pensions Come Back to Haunt Him in Suit vs. AG
San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed announced last week that he planned to file a lawsuit against California Attorney General Kamala Harris over the title and summary for his proposed measure to enable elected officials to reduce the retirement benefits of teachers, firefighters, police officers, school bus drivers and other public employees. The reason, Reed says, […]
Budget Madness: The Unilateral Phase Out of the Gross Receipts Business Tax
Eric Garcetti is considering a proposal to phase out the $470 million Gross Receipts Business Tax to stimulate the City’s economy and create jobs. Unfortunately, our cash strapped City cannot afford to forego $30 million in revenue next year as this unilateral phase out without any offsetting revenue will increase the budget deficit to $280 […]
‘Families Before Fish’ in The Farmland
A bill to address California’s drought and future water supply in the House of Representatives has Gov. Jerry Brown angry. Brown said the water bill is “an unwelcome and divisive intrusion” into California’s effort to manage the state’s drought, the Sacramento Bee reported Monday night. H.R. 3964 by California Congressmen David G. Valadao, CA-21, Devin Nunes, […]
City Has Work to Do on Jobs
For the past two decades, California’s most populous city has not been creating jobs fast enough for all of its working-age residents. With its population expected to increase by more than 800,000 by the year 2020, the city needs to accelerate a pro-jobs strategy in 2014 to support growth opportunities for the region’s most competitive […]