Well, it’s down to the last days of this 2 year term, with the session officially ending on Nov 30 at midnight but in all practicality [?] ending before Thanksgiving. The assembly has session scheduled for 3 PM Tuesday and the Senate last I heard was maybe 4 PM. With all the new tax ideas that have been tossed in the last few weeks since this special session was called, there will be much for taxpaying Californians to be thankful for by having this term finally lurch to an end.
We’ve seen ideas for a tax on domestically produced oil, a tax on services never taxed before; an increase in the car registration fee by 12 clams; an increase in the sales tax of 1% in early talks, now up to1.5 %. [The perfect lead life ring for the economy going into the most important retail season of the year] And, when you’re washing down your fiscal sorrows at the local watering hole, a drink tax on top of that.
But the capper that brings it the last few degrees of the full circle is the reinstatement of the Gray Davis car tax back to triple of what it is now…which of course fueled the sputtering recall in June of ’03 to then become qualified for the ballot, largely due to the triggering of that tripling of the car tax. It resulted in Gray’s last ride home to SoCal on Southwest to be 3 years early. [That really helped the airlines on-time record average for the year] Yup, tripling the Vehicle License Fee to fix the state budget overspending problem…if it were to pass, then the 360 Degree Circle Of Futility will be complete. So popular too, about 75% oppose in a poll I saw.
But, it isn’t going to pass this time. Contrary to some belief, there is still no sympathy amongst Republicans, even the termed out ones that some believe, after Nov 4, would now be easier to pick off for a new tax. Right. Gimme a break, it’s called a belief system, that these taxes just pop open a lead parachute and bring the economy down even faster.
We’ll see what kind of package gets tossed together for tomorrow. Republican ideas to incentivize investment and economic growth have been largely cast aside by the majority. No budget spending limitation in sight so far…but we can hope. If the Yes New Tax-ers have now shifted strategy and think it will be easier with the new members that will soon be sworn in, read: 
Republican freshmen in the Assembly, don’t count on that either. Even with 30 Republicans in the Assembly, instead of the 32 we had for my 6 years, I don’t see any of the new crew wavering on this issue. Picking off 4 will be as tough as 6 was. They won’t get any help in the Senate as odds are our side keeps 15 Republicans in the Senate…and the Senate Dems pickoff move to first hasn’t worked over there on the red carpet either.
Odds are we won’t move much tomorrow in response to the budget special session we are in. It is our job to try, but the sides are very far apart on spending vs reducing spending, or taxing vs. economic growth boosts. It has been a long year, like no other in recent memory, the 2 houses meeting longer and further into the calendar than usual. No fall/winter recess this time! Time, the calendar, is the only real constant here. When we thought we were done with the budget after 85 days, badda bing! it blows up 3 weeks later…so we’re back from recess, one last hurrah before I term out…or as Michael Corleone said in Godfather, part three, "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!"
I hope we can plant some seeds of economic recovery with this weeks effort and, then, hand if off to those that will be sworn in Monday to build on for the long term reform that is so desperately needed to have California perform like it used to and still can.