Sacto and local CA govt revenue crisis

[Hormiguero_IHB]

how can a return of barely over 300K state median not mean a massive revenue crisis for every level of our govt? aren't we going to be paying debt on 17 billion dollars of notes over the next year as Arnie finally sabotages the provision against state debt in our constitution once and for all (not like Sacto demos are blameless on that one, of course)?



And the counties, of course, must be taking it on the chin, especially SD, Riv, SB, Ven.



maybe this is the only silver lining of prop 13 - it smooths out events like this because a good half of the market has assessments even under these levels.

 

[No_Such_Reality_IHB]

California's ballot this fall contains 17 billion dollars worth of bonds and programs that will result in $3 billion dollar of committed and mandated payments annually for the next thirty years.

 

[no_vaseline_IHB]

California is a great example of what happens when you give the great unwashed mass of voters what they want and proclaim they'll never have to pay for it.



More prisions? Okay.

Lower vehicle fees? Okay.

Caps on property taxes? Okay.

A trainload of minimum spending for schools and other social services? Okay.

Term limits so that everybody is constantly running for reelection (and thus nobody wants to hang their neck out)? OKAY!



What a fine shit sandwich we've created for ourselves!



What we need is more spending, lower taxes, and a huge loan to cover the difference. That'll do it. Or maybe the Feds can nationalize CA's state budget.

 

[FairEconomist_IHB]

CA has revenue backwards. Taxes require a 2/3 majority in the Assembly and Senate, but bonds only need 50%+1 in a popular vote. Result: we're borrowing ourselves into the poorhouse but nobody's taking any heat for it. Very backwards. Taxes should be easier to pass than bonds because taxes have more significant political consequences.

 

[no_vaseline_IHB]

I am bringing this back from the dead rather than start a new thread.



<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/us/10prison.html?ref=us">http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/us/10prison.html?ref=us</a>



<blockquote>The California prison system must reduce overcrowding by as many as 55,000 inmates within three years to provide a constitutional level of medical and mental health care, a federal three-judge panel tentatively ruled Monday.</blockquote>


Cliffs Notes: Get your wallets out and pay higher taxes to support our fetish with locking up cos, or expect 60,000 new "friends" in your neighborhood over the next 3 years. Either way.

 

[Oscar_IHB]

[quote author="no_vaseline" date=1234331523]I am bringing this back from the dead rather than start a new thread.



<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/us/10prison.html?ref=us">http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/us/10prison.html?ref=us</a>



<blockquote>The California prison system must reduce overcrowding by as many as 55,000 inmates within three years to provide a constitutional level of medical and mental health care, a federal three-judge panel tentatively ruled Monday.</blockquote>


Cliffs Notes: Get your wallets out and pay higher taxes to support our fetish with locking up cos, or expect 60,000 new "friends" in your neighborhood over the next 3 years. Either way.</blockquote>
Or... make a whole slew of crimes "capital offenses" and add an express lane to death row. Sure, some innocents are gonna die but it's better they die in prison than on the fair streets of the Golden State. Crime's bad for tourism.

 

[no_vaseline_IHB]

[quote author="Oscar" date=1234331975][quote author="no_vaseline" date=1234331523]I am bringing this back from the dead rather than start a new thread.



<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/us/10prison.html?ref=us">http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/us/10prison.html?ref=us</a>



<blockquote>The California prison system must reduce overcrowding by as many as 55,000 inmates within three years to provide a constitutional level of medical and mental health care, a federal three-judge panel tentatively ruled Monday.</blockquote>


Cliffs Notes: Get your wallets out and pay higher taxes to support our fetish with locking up cos, or expect 60,000 new "friends" in your neighborhood over the next 3 years. Either way.</blockquote>
Or... make a whole slew of crimes "capital offenses" and add an express lane to death row. Sure, some innocents are gonna die but it's better they die in prison than on the fair streets of the Golden State. Crime's bad for tourism.</blockquote>


While your at it, we can just repeal the law of Gravity. That would fix everything!