California Tax Revolt Still Stands Despite Efforts to Gut Proposition 13
Although California turned a darker shade of blue on November 3, 2020, one victory for taxpayers came with the defeat of Proposition 15, a complicated, mundane, but ultimately very consequential measure on the California ballot. Had Proposition 15 passed, it would have changed the way commercial properties are taxed, creating a “split-roll” tax by changing […]
In 2020, California Lawmakers Failed to Protect Californians Against Lawsuit Abuse
Another legislative session has come to close here in California and, once again, lawmakers have let Californians down. Why? There is a fundamental issue that has been hurting our great state for many years that lawmakers simply refuse to address: lawsuit abuse. You may be thinking that lawsuit abuse is an issue reserved for courtrooms […]
Workers and Small Businesses Will Pay the price for More Business Closures
Despite the governor and public health officials citing family gatherings as the main cause of the increase in COVID cases, it’s once again the workers and small business owners that is paying the price. We have repeatedly asked the governor and his administration for contact tracing data that would show how business openings have affected […]
How Might the Supreme Court ACA Case Affect California?
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments today on California v. Texas, another challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). At issue is whether the ACA’s individual mandate—which requires most Americans to have health insurance or pay a tax penalty—is constitutional now that the 2017 tax bill has reduced the penalty to zero, and whether this, […]
In LA, Defunding the Police Experiment Begins
Last week the Los Angeles Police Department laid out plans to deal with a smaller budget forced on the LAPD in part by a $150 million cut as a result of the police reform movement. The risks of changes in policing strategies will be measured against citizens’ safety. While it’s too early to judge the […]
Lessons for Pollsters in the Election
When it comes to elections, just like sports, the spread does matter. Democratic strategist James Carville said the day before Election Day on MSNBC that “we’re going to know the winner of this election by 10 tomorrow night.” The big surprise on Tuesday was that the race was much more competitive than we were led […]
California and Its Contradictions
California remains deep blue, but the good news from this week’s elections is that it has not yet achieved complete ballot-box unanimity. California voters appear to have turned two or three house seats red, and statewide voters rejected some of the most extreme progressive proposals governing contract workers, affirmative action, expansion of rent control, and […]
How long will Newsom have one-man rule?
California has been a one-party state for the last decade, with Democratic governors and supermajorities in both legislative houses doing pretty much as they pleased without paying any attention to the relative handful of Republican legislators. However, one-party rule gave way to one-man rule eight months ago when Gov. Gavin Newsom declared an emergency due […]
Taxing Big Tech?
If the Proposition 15 commercial property tax increase remains behind and ultimately is rejected when all votes have been tabulated, pro-taxers in the legislature will look for other avenues to increase revenue. One such approach might be taxing big tech, which has weathered the pandemic storm better than most industries. Don’t be surprised if other […]