Jon asked me to comment on the debate over the "water" bond currently being proposed in the Legislature. Since there really is no water bond being proposed, the debate is a false one. We are already in a water crisis it is true. Democrats have done nothing to alleviate that crisis since sometime in Jerry Brown administration in the 70’s, that is true as well. About 6 bonds have passed since 1996 claiming to be water bonds, and they got Republican votes to get on the ballot because somewhere in the language of the bond, someone wrote the word water. Not one ounce of new water was created by any of those bonds, and not ounce of water will be created by the currently proposed bond. Simply calling a bond a "water" bond does not make it so. California needs new water, California needs it now, and nothing is being done about it, not by the administration, not by the Democrats, and not by those Republicans who insist that we have a "water" bond that doesn’t create an ounce of water.
Let’s start with a critical premise. A water bond that has above ground storage can be a revenue bond (which does not require a vote of the people), because the water sales created by that storage will pay for the bond. It is sort of like borrowing the money to invest in a new machine to expand your operations. The increased revenue justifies the borrowing, and no real taxpayer funds are at risk.
It also follows that any general obligation bond, which does require a vote of the people, will not have any revenue to pay it off, other than taxes paid, and therefore creates no new water sales, and no new water. It is not, therefore, a water bond, should not be called a water bond, and a vote for it cannot be justified by claiming we are in the middle of a water crisis, and we need more water. if it cannot be paid by new water sales, it is creating no new water. It is just that simple.
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July 24th, 2008 at 12:00 am
Solid analysis, Ray! Many thanks.
We need you back in politics.
If you are not one already, consider becoming a syndicated columnist. You need to be reaching out to broader audiences.