Budget and Finance
Back to homepageJohn Chiang Blazes Future of CA Politics
JUNE 27, 2011 By JOHN SEILER As they said in old-school physics, nature abhors a vacuum. Passed last November, Proposition 25 marginalized California Republicans by dropping from two-thirds to a majority the threshold for passing a state budget. That left the
Read MoreCalifornia's Mess Not Texas' Fault
June 27, 2011 As California’s budget battle continues, Republicans and Democrats have engaged in a rhetorical battle regarding the relative merits and demerits of our lovely state and one of the nation’s other megastates, Texas. This debate started after a
Read MoreReally, CA legislators are brain trusts!
JUNE 24, 2011 By ALI MEYER California legislators can’t seem to get a balanced budget passed or fix the state government’s ongoing problems. They are known for passing ridiculous legislation and taxing things you didn’t even know existed, so you
Read MoreForecast: California Economy Stagnating
JUNE 23, 2011 By JOHN SEILER California’s economy is growing at a slower pace even than the stagnating U.S. Economy. California jobs creation is sharply lower than U.S. jobs creation. The state, basically, has missed the modest recovery of the
Read MoreInternet Tax Would Kill Small Businesses
JUNE 23, 2011 By KATY GRIMES A bill awaiting signature by Gov. Jerry Brown could hasten the spread of Internet taxation bills across the country, putting small business owners at a disadvantage with compliance of more than 7,500 different taxing
Read MoreWill Redevelopment Be Demolished?
JUNE 23, 2011 By WAYNE LUSVARDI As California politicians are deciding whether to have a clean break from the state’s addiction to redevelopment, or to substitute some other methadone-like economic policy drug to replace it, the global economy is subtly
Read MoreLegislators Ordered to Forfeit Pay
JUNE 22, 2011 By KATY GRIMES Do the job right or don’t get paid. That was State Controller John Chaing’s message yesterday to the California Legislature. Chiang told media that the math did not add up in the budget passed
Read MoreBudget Battle Poisons Pesticide Rules
JUNE 22, 2011 By WAYNE LUSVARDI Politicized environmental regulation is becoming a protection racket to collect votes. To pass Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget, farmers along the Central Coast of California are having overkill pesticide runoff regulations imposed on them to
Read More'Amazon Tax' Would Kill 25K CA Businesses
JUNE 21, 2011 By KATY GRIMES A growing number of states, including California, are demanding that online retailers such as Overstock and Amazon collect and pay sales tax. eBay, the world’s largest online auction company and not necessarily a retailer, is
Read MoreCalif. Economy 47th Worst of States
JUNE 21, 2011 By JOHN SEILER California’s stagnating economy suffered more bad news by ranking 47th of the 50 states for economic outlook. The ranking comes from the new, fourth edition of “Rich States, Poor States: The ALEC-Laffer State Economic
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