Comments on: Restored Gann Limit Would Balance Budget https://calwatchdog.com/2011/03/25/restored-gann-limit-would-balance-budget/ Mon, 28 Mar 2011 15:53:08 +0000 hourly 1 By: David in Irvine https://calwatchdog.com/2011/03/25/restored-gann-limit-would-balance-budget/#comment-4440 Mon, 28 Mar 2011 15:53:08 +0000 http://www.calwatchdog.com/?p=15463#comment-4440 “When the fountains of Government abundance began to dry up, when, through lack of funds and the impossibility of negotiating fresh loans, the State was forced to check the extension of the bureaucracy, and to put a stop to public works, then, and then only, did [Californians]realize what it meant to have allowed themselves so carelessly to be made one of the most heavily taxed nations in the world.”

This was written by Guglielmo Ferrero in 1898(yes, 1898!!). OK, so I substituted Californians for the original Italians. But the tendency to financial and adminstrative overreach, the corruption and the essential immorality of the Welfare state was known to humanity before the New Deal, the Progressive era, WWI, etc. California is Stuck on Stupid, and while a spending limit would be welcome, the notion that the State is a nurturing mother and we can discharge our moral duties via the taxing power of the State and through its agency is the core problem of our population.

]]> By: Peter https://calwatchdog.com/2011/03/25/restored-gann-limit-would-balance-budget/#comment-4439 Sat, 26 Mar 2011 14:31:12 +0000 http://www.calwatchdog.com/?p=15463#comment-4439 Basic problem – the Gann limit doesn’t work this way. It applies only to state spending of tax proceeds, and it doesn’t matter if they go to the General Fund or special funds. It also doesn’t apply to most of the state budget, as it exempts “subventions” to local governments and schools, debt service, gas taxes, and a host of other items. So, while a simple cap like the one demonstrated in this article might have results similar to what John suggests, the Gann limit would not.

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