Budget and Finance
Back to homepageThe Establishment killed cig tax Prop. 29
June 25, 2012 By John Seiler The backers of the Proposition 29 cigarette tax increase finally snubbed out the butt of their vigil over the June 5 vote. It lost by just 28,000 votes. Proponents blamed the $47 million spent
Read MoreNBA Championship goes to no-income-tax Florida
June 22, 2012 By John Seiler Hail the tax-free champions! Yesterday LeBron James won the NBA championship for the Miami Heat. Back when James jumped from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Miami Heat a couple of years ago, one reason
Read MoreState seeking to grab private pensions
June 21, 2012 By Katy Grimes Because California is doing such a bang-up job of managing the state employee pension systems, some lawmakers are pushing to create and manage another retirement program–for the private sector. According to Sen. Kevin de
Read MoreAssembly committee kills bond misuse bill
June 20, 2012 By Katy Grimes SACRAMENTO — California’s bond debt is on steroids, but it’s the taxpaying residents who will be responsible for the financial meltdown. California politicians are well known for their budget fund shifts, “borrowing” from agencies and
Read MoreTequila shots for an ‘honest budget’
June 18, 2012 By Katy Grimes As Legislative leaders worked so diligently to pass the sham budget last week, their motive was obvious—they wanted to be paid. Even when they miserably fail at the only aspect of the job they
Read MoreS&P forces Democrats to balance budget
June 13, 2012 By Katy Grimes This morning Assembly Speaker John Perez, D-Los Angeles, and Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, anounced big solutions for the state’s budget problems. They said the Senate and Assembly budget proposals, due on
Read MoreBad actors, lousy script, in CA budget ‘play’
June 13, 2012 By Katy Grimes California’s budget process has become a charade–it’s like watching a really amateurish play, with bad actors who do not know their lines, haven’t read the script fully, but know that someone dies at the
Read More‘Big three’ budget talks behind closed doors
June 11, 2012 By Katy Grimes SACRAMENTO — This is budget deadline week in California. Which explains why every known special interest group in the state is at the Capitol, protesting against the looming proposed spending cuts. Hundreds of home
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CA shakedown headed for a breakdown
June 4, 2012 By Katy Grimes California legislators looked as if they were working hard last week, with hundreds of bills to debate and vote on. But it wasn’t difficult to see that much of it was for show. They
Read MoreFuel stations for nonexistent cars
May 31, 2012 By Joseph Perkins If you build it, they will come. That was the cockeyed reasoning behind a state grant program to encourage construction of hydrogen fueling stations long before hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are actually motoring along
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