California:The Betrayal of Taxpayers

At the end of September, Assembly Bill 8 was signed by Governor Brown and became law. This is horrible news for taxpayers because California motorists will now be paying $2.3 billion in additional taxes and charges. Adding insult to injury, taxpayers will find their hard earned dollars being used to subsidize programs such as the purchase of all electric cars, like the Tesla that, even with the taxpayer provided discount, can be afforded only by a handful of wealthy individuals. Money will also be lavished on the hydrogen network designed to service vehicles of which, about 250 currently exist.

The bill for ordinary California drivers may not be immediately noticeable because these “surcharges” are buried in vehicle registration and charges for the disposal of tires and other auto services. But they are there nonetheless and, like a death by a thousand cuts, working class Californians are paying for questionable programs that citizens in other states simply don’t have to suffer.

With all the burdens Sacramento imposes on taxpayers — we already have the highest state sales in all 50 states, the highest marginal income tax rate and the highest gas tax — these additional taxes may not get much attention from the general public — at least not at first.

But the real problem for taxpayers with the approval of this kind of legislation runs much deeper than its immediate cost because it was passed in the Legislature using the technique of bribing unconvinced lawmakers to vote yes by offering the prospect of reduced regulation on businesses important to those lawmakers’ districts. Nine Republicans, who usually put taxpayers’ interests first, were persuaded to support AB 8 by the lure of reduced regulations.

While the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association believes that business is shouldering an unreasonable burden of regulations, especially compared to other states, these regulations should be judged individually on their merits. The offer of reform should not be used by the majority party to solicit payoffs — higher taxes — in return for doing the right thing.

However, against type, it is Republicans in the Capitol who provided the votes to guarantee this bad legislation became law. And it is not the first time. Sadly, we are sensing a trend. Last year, the Legislature placed a new one percent tax on the sale of lumber, with four Republicans providing the votes to put the measure over the top. Here, the bribe was that some restrictions on the timber industry would be lifted.

Via: California Political Review

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California: Business Scores the Legislature and Governor

A mixed record for business in this year’s legislative session got a bit of a boost when the governor signed a slew of bills intended to help business. While the latest flurry of bill signings is good news, big issues still concern the business community.

The ballyhooed effort at the beginning of the legislative session to improve the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) ended in a whimper. What CEQA reform was achieved came about because politicians in Sacramento wanted to make it easier to build a basketball arena in downtown Sacramento. Broader CEQA reforms were benched.

Minimum wage was increased against business opposition as businesses, especially small businesses, struggle to recover from the recession. Business is still battling the burdens of heavy taxes and regulations, which has prompted some businesses to consider relocating outside the state.

But there were some steps forward.

Among the bills signed by the governor was AB 227 that would allow businesses in violation of Proposition 65 anti-toxic regulations to have a couple of weeks to fix any problems. This bill will reduce the threats of bounty-hunter lawsuits and give businesses a fair chance to correct honest mistakes.

Some regulations were swept away for California’s high-tech companies. New laws will make it easier for digital retailers to deal with smart phone payments.

Importantly, investors who received notices following a court decision that they must pay a total of millions in back taxes got relief from the legislature who passed a bill to overturn the decision. The governor signed the bill.

During the session, the legislature moved to drastically reduce the time to approve business filings at the Secretary of State’s office. The issue highlighted California’s slow paper filing system to get businesses up and running. The average waiting time was 43 days. The legislature demanded the time be trimmed to five days and quickly passed AB 113, signed by the governor.

The California of Chamber of Commerce also had a successful session in opposing its list of Job Killer bills. Of the 38 bills the Chamber tagged as Job Killers, 37 did not become law.

The governor also signed SB 12 by Senator Ellen Corbett, which will enhance the state’s marketing effort with a newly created “Made in California” label to highlight the state’s reputation for creating innovative products.

Via: California Political Review

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Gov. Brown bans lead ammo in hunting, vetoes other gun control bills

SACRAMENTO -- Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday signed 11 gun control bills including a ban on the use of lead bullets by hunters, but vetoed seven measures restricting firearms that were introduced in response to the massacre last year at a Connecticut elementary school.

Brown rejected a proposal to ban the sale of semiautomatic rifles with detachable magazines, and bills that would have expanded the list of crimes that would bar the offender from firearms possession. He signed bills requiring more safety training for gun owners and better tracking of guns that are lost or stolen.

The ban on lead bullets was proposed by Assemblyman Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) because the substance is toxic and can poison those who eat animals shot with the ammunition.

“We are thrilled that Governor Brown has made AB 711 the law of the land,” Rendon said in a statement. “There is simply no reason to continue using lead ammunition in hunting when it poses a significant risk to human health and the environment.” That bill goes into effect in July 2019.

The one bill singled out for a possible lawsuit by the National Rifle Assn. had been passed would have banned the future manufacture, importation and sale of semiautomatic rifles with detachable magazines, and require those who already own such guns to register them.

Brown said California already has some of the strictest gun control laws in the nation, including an assault weapons ban. The ban on rifles with detachable magazines goes too far, he said in a veto message, because it would outlaw the sale of guns used by hunters and marksmen.

“I don’t believe that this bill’s blanket ban on semiautomatic rifles would reduce criminal activity or enhance public safety enough to warrant this infringement on gun owners’ rights,” Brown said.

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) introduced the bill to plug a loophole in the state’s assault weapons ban by preventing rapid reloading through the use of replaceable magazines.

“There is no legitimate reason for hunters or sportsmen and women to have battlefield-style rifles that can quickly spray dozens and dozens of rounds through the rapid reloading of detachable magazines,” Steinberg said, noting those kinds of weapons have been used in some recent mass killings.

Via: LA Times

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Insurance Manager: ‘We Have Yet To Have Someone Successfully Register On The Marketplace’

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Overloaded websites and jammed phone lines frustrated consumers for a second day as they tried to sign up forhealth insurance under the nation’s historic health care overhaul.

That was putting pressure on the federal government and the states that are running their own insurance exchanges to fix the problems amid strong demand for the private insurance plans.

“I think I’m through with Hawaii Health Connector,” said Richard Gamberg, 61, of Honolulu, after tweeting messages to officials and complaining to state lawmakers on Wednesday. “They’ve got ads in the newspaper, they’ve got ads on the TV — it just flabbergasts me.”

He was among the would-be customers in Hawaii who were still unable to buy insurance policies online Wednesday, forcing them to turn directly to insurance companies to examine their options. In Oregon, officials said a faulty online calculator would not be fixed until late October.

The delays that continued Wednesday offered one good sign for President Barack Obama and supporters of his signature domestic policy achievement, demonstrating what appeared to be exceptionally high interest in the new system. But the problems also could dampen enthusiasm for the law as Republicans use it as a rallying cry to keep most of the federal government closed.

“It’s day two of health care reform, and we have yet to have someone successfully register on the marketplace,” said Matt Hadzick, manager of a Highmark retail insurance store in Allentown, Pa., where people could go to register for the online insurance marketplace. “The registration process is very slow, and at one point it just shuts down.”

Via: CBS DC

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California lawmakers approve measure to allow driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants

In the waning hours of the 2013 legislative session, the Assembly on Thursday sent Gov. Jerry Brown a bill allowing undocumented immigrants to receive driver’s licenses.

The surprise 55-19 vote moved California a signature away from putting into law a measure that immigrant advocates have sought fruitlessly for years, with past attempts thwarted by legislative vote and gubernatorial veto.

“This is a moment, members,” sponsor Assemblyman Luis Alejo, D-Watsonville, said in closing remarks on the Assembly floor, “that years from now you’re going to look back on.”

In a statement released shortly after the vote, Brown signaled he will sign the bill.

“This bill will enable millions of people to get to work safely and legally,” Brown said in the statement. “Hopefully, it will send a message to Washington that immigration reform is long past due.”

Earlier Thursday, the state Senate resuscitated the left-for-dead bill on a 28-8 vote and returned it to the Assembly, marking an apparent reversal: Alejo had said Wednesday that he would defer action on the measure until January.

Via: Sacramento Bee

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Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/09/13/5732492/california-lawmakers-approve-measure.html#storylink=cpy

California’s Blue Utopia

(Editor’s Note: California Political Review has been following this situation for a few years now, and we are re-releasing past articles detailing the state’s challenges.)

The Progressive wing of the Democrat Party sits at the left end of their spectrum. JFK’s liberal positions would be regarded as moderate today. Progressives have a unique vision of what a blue state utopia would look like that begins with clean air, clean water, and green energy. Over the last twenty years, with the backing of the public employee unions that control the political process in California, the Progressives have managed to neuter the Republican Party and turn California Blue, owning every elective office in the state. They did not need much help according to Dan Walters, who stated, “Even the most anti-immigrant, anti-gay marriage, anti-tax, anti-abortion Republican activist must now recognize that with the party’s wipeout in last month’s elections, continuing down its recent path is a plunge into complete irrelevance”.

In 2012, the progressive Democrats captured a super majority in both houses so that with their Progressive governor, they no longer require a single Republican vote to pass any form of legislation, leaving conservatives an “irrelevant” minority.  As an independent businessman, I have created many jobs and opportunities. But despite my contributions to society, and the taxes I have paid over the last thirty plus years, the Progressives believe I need to pay more so that I pay “my fair share.” Only when I pay my fair share can their blue vision of utopia be fulfilled.

What is my fair share? Under existing Federal and State income tax rates, I will pay 50% of my income in taxes. In California alone, my “fair share” on a million dollars of income is $133,000 each year. In exchange for my taxes, I receive little from the state. In addition, I pay gasoline taxes that pay for the upkeep of the highways. I pay airline taxes that maintain the airports I use. I pay among the highest in the nation sales tax on what I consume. I pay property taxes for the schools my grown children no longer use (they have already left California). I pay utility taxes for the upgrade of infrastructure. I pay higher health insurance rates. I already pay more than my own way.

Via: California Political Review

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Bill Would Let Non-Physicians Perform Abortions

SACRAMENTO (AP) — Nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives and physician assistants could perform a type of early abortion under a bill approved Monday by the state Senate, leaving the measure one step from the governor.

The measure by Assemblywoman Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, would let those medical professionals perform what are known as aspiration abortions during the first trimester. The method involves inserting a tube and using suction to terminate a pregnancy.

The Senate approved AB154 on a mostly party-line, 25-11 vote, sending it back to the Assembly for a final vote on amendments.

Expanding the list of professionals who can perform those types of abortions would help make them available in areas that have few doctors, said Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, who carried the measure in the Senate. She said about half of California counties lack abortion providers.

“All women deserve access to care in their local communities,” she said.

The procedure is safest when performed early, yet women in rural areas often have difficulty arranging for and traveling to a provider, she said.

Via: CBS Los Angeles

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Foreigners to Serve on California Juries, Per Democrat Legislation

Sacramento — State lawmakers pressed ahead with controversial immigrant-rights legislation Monday, including a measure that would open up jury pools to non citizens who have proof of residency and a separate bill to protect unauthorized immigrants when they seek legal help to stay in the U.S.

The full Senate vote approved permitting non citizens to serve on juries as long as they are legal residents. If signed into law, California would become the first state in the nation to take such a step.

Supporters compare the existing ban to long-discarded policies barring women, nonwhites, older citizens and gays from the jury box. Noncitizens can serve as judges and lawyers, they add. Critics called it premature and unnecessary.

The 25-11 vote sends Assembly Bill 1401 back to the full Assembly for concurrence with Senate amendments.

Separately, the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee unanimously passed legislation carried by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, that would impose standards on lawyers and consultants who work with immigrants seeking legal status as Congress debates the “pathway to citizenship” and other immigration reforms.

Gonzalez said her Assembly Bill 1159 is aimed at pre-empting what she already sees as unscrupulous practices by lawyers and consultants advertising they can help those in the country illegally comply — even before the federal law is enacted. Billboards advertising such services are already up near the border with Mexico.

“This is a problem today,” she said.

Via: California Political News

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