Average taxpayers in California are probably aware that the state budget was in the news again over the weekend. But even folks who follow both Presidential politics and local issues probably couldn’t be blamed if they tune out stories about the California budget. It’s not that they don’t care. It’s just that public finance issues can be horribly confusing and difficult to follow.

In terms of timing, the process itself is easy to grasp. The annual budget year runs from July 1st to June 30th of the following year. That’s why people refer to a single budget using two years. For example, the budget currently being discussed is the 2016-2017 budget. The Constitution requires that the Governor present a budget in January and that the Legislature enact the budget by June 15th. Because state bean counters and analysts don’t have a full grasp of the economy or revenue projections in January, the Governor’s budget goes through an update, or “revision,” in May. It was this May “revise” that the Governor presented on Friday that has been in the latest news cycle.

But perhaps the most confusing aspect of the state budget is the fact that many of the… Read More

During the U.S. Senate candidate debate in San Diego, Attorney General Kamala Harris inferred that she was fearless, but not reckless when it came to investigating and charging someone with a crime. Specifically, she said, ““When with the swipe of a pen you can charge someone with a crime,” sounding equally thoughtful about the fact that such capricious actions can change lives forever.

This assertion was obviously intended to assure Californians that she understood the seriousness of her present office, while trying to effect a transfer of that seriousness to the office she seeks. It’s clear that she’d prefer everyone forget her recent “official acts” that federal courts, newspapers, and public interest groups across California and the Nation have found to be profoundly political in nature.

Attorney General Harris showed no regard for the damage her “swipe of a pen” could inflict when she filed a politically-charged demand against the Americans for Prosperity that a federal court swiftly dismissed. Her level of concern for harm was clearly the last thing she observed when she announced her investigation of Exxon-Mobil for hiding the… Read More

Sadly, here’s a NON-news story I run in May of every year. For the 12thstraight year, CEO Magazine ranks California as the worst state in which to do business. Over 500 CEO’s are polled in the annual survey. Every year, New York tries to challenge us for the bottom spot, but every year, they fail to dislodge us from our lowly perch.The best state? Texas. Again.Here are some CEO comments concerning California that the magazine highlighted: CEO Comments “California currently produces our highest unit costs of any state in the country for our high-end commercial construction output.” “States like California just don’t get it. At the rate they are going, who’s going to pay the bills with such a anti-business, leftist government and businesses leaving every month for Arizona or Washington state?” “California has been running businesses out of the state for years, and in fact, their policies are getting worse. Class action lawsuits abound, it’s a crazy environment for small businesses out there.” … Read More

A common gun control canard is that “guns cause suicides.” They point to our nation’s high gun ownership rate, and our “resulting” high incidence of suicide. Only one problem — the U.S. DOES NOT HAVE A HIGH SUICIDE RATE. Japan, which bans guns, has a suicide rate more than double ours. Indeed, among the 26 OECD “civilized” countries — ALL of which have much lower rates of gun ownership — the U.S. has the 9th lowest suicide rate. Sigh. Facts are such troubling things. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/world/suiciderate.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_of_guns_per_capita_by_country … Read More

A California Appellate Court struck down California’s compulsory contracting statute as unconstitutional, and set aside the ALRB-ordered contract against Gerawan Farming and its workers.

A three-judge panel justunanimously struck down California’s Mandatory Mediation and Conciliation secrecy law as unconstitutional, handing a win to Gerawan Farming and employee Lupe Garcia.Mandatory Mediation and Conciliationwas signed into law by Democratic Gov. Gray Davis in 2002.

The May 9, 2016 decision by the Fifth District Court of Appeals in Fresno just handed farmworker Lupe Garcia a win in his battle for constitutional rights against the United Farm Workers and the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board.

Garcia challenged his right to attend portions of the binding formation process known… Read More

It just seems impossible to me.

Congressman Ami Bera, a smart physician, the former chief medical officer for Sacramento County, and a member of a tight-knit family and the son of wealthy and accomplished immigrants from India, received in 2010 and 2012 some 130 illegally laundered contributions to his campaign for Congress involving 90 people – all family and friends, who received illegal kick-backs for their contributions to Ami from his father, a retired 83 year-old engineer. Bera’s father has pleaded guilty to two counts of election fraud. The illegal money amounted to some $270,000 contributed by fake “straw” donors, to avoid the limits on individual contributions that is the keystone of the Federal Election Commission Act’s purpose to eliminate the influence of single large direct contributors to Federal elections. What is impossible to me is: how could Ami Bera NOT know, or have even an inkling, that 90 members of his family and friends, led by his own father, cheated in giving him all that money for his campaign? Having run for office myself in the past, and also being a member of a tight knit family that included an immigrant… Read More

Droughts are naturally occurring; water shortages are government-created and political. A proposed California ballot measure titled “Water Priorities for All,” would shift bond money earmarked for California’s bullet train and use it instead to build new dams and enlarge existing dams.

The initiative would also amend the State Constitution to include language prioritizing residential and agricultural water use over environmental and recreational claims on river water while leaving water rights untouched.

The ballot measure is under attack by a coalition of seemingly environmental opponents. The Committee to Stop the Special Interest Water Grab, led by David Guy, president of the Northern California Water Association, Tim Johnson, president of the California Rice Commission and a “contract administrator” at California Rice Industry Association, and political operative Steve Maviglio of Forza Communications, a Democratic strategist and big supporter of High Speed Rail and the Twin Tunnels, have launched an all-out assault campaign against the California Water Priorities Initiative.

All communications against “Water Priorities for All” have come… Read More

It’s election season and the media has made certain that voters’ attention has been focused on the presidential primaries. But there are hundreds of state and local races, critical to our future that garner very little media attention. On June 7 California Primary voters will take the first step in selecting those candidates who will be elected in November.

Candidates for Congress, the Legislature, county boards of supervisors, city councils, and school boards will become the officials who will have a great say over the caliber of service government provides and the quality of life for all. Some office seekers will be self-serving, interested in being somebody important. Others will genuinely want to accomplish something positive for their constituents. Some will want to provide good value for taxpayers’ dollars, while others will become beholden to special interests who benefit from higher taxes and more spending.

Deciding who is whom, is the challenge.

To read the entire column click here http://www.hjta.org/california-commentary/just-four-weeks-to-go/… Read More