Jon Coupal is President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
Californians have abysmally low levels of civic engagement as evidenced by the recent election where voter turnout set an historic low. And the widespread disengagement of California’s younger voters is even worse.
True, in 2008 California’s youth turned out in large numbers to elect Barack Obama as President. And in 2012 they turned out again because, in addition to Obama being up for reelection, Proposition 30 was on the ballot. Proposition 30, which gave California the highest income tax rate and highest state sales tax rate in America was, ironically, entitled Temporary Taxes to Fund Education.
During the Proposition 30 campaign, Governor Brown traveled to several university campuses to push the massive tax hike promising that passage would prevent tuition hikes. California’s college students, being as gullible as they are idealistic, believed the promise hook, line and sinker. So much for critical thinking.
But perhaps California’s younger voters are finally getting wise to all the broken promises of tax-and-spend politicians and that might explain, in part, why they stayed home in this last election. And sure enough, their increasing cynicism is proving to be well founded.
To read the entire column please click here http://www.hjta.org/california-commentary/uc-pension-crisis-creates-teachable-moment/