Budget and Finance
Back to homepagePublic Pensions Crowding Out Services
APRIL 12, 2011 By WAYNE LUSVARDI A Chinese folk tale tells of a sculptor that placed fake money on a tree to trick villagers into cutting it down for him. But so many people believed the tree to be sacred
Read MoreForced March to the May Revise
APRIL 11, 2011 By JOHN SEILER Things are looking bleaker by the day for Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed $12 billion tax hike. So far, Republicans have remained rock solid against it, denying him the two GOP sellout votes he needs
Read MoreCan Ticket Surcharge Cure Paralysis?
APRIL 11, 2011 By WAYNE LUSVARDI Can tacking a $3 surcharge on all traffic tickets in California cure spinal cord injuries? Assemblyman Bob Wieckowski, D-Fremont, apparently thinks so. Wieckowski’s proposed AB 190 would tack on a $3 surcharge to every
Read MoreSouthern Cal Expelling Families
APRIL 7, 2011 By JOHN SEILER Using data from the 2010 U.S. Census, analysis from various think tanks will be trickling out. One of the most revealing just was released by the Brookings Institution on America’s child population (boldface in
Read MoreSD's Chance to Erase Pension Abuse Image
APRIL 5, 2011 By STEVEN GREENHUT The city of San Diego has long been the poster child for pension abuse, but now it has a chance to become the poster child for pension reform thanks to a new ballot measure
Read MoreBudget Battle A Bad Movie Sequel
APRIL 4, 2011 Have you ever watched one of those predictable, boring movies where you wish you could just skip the obligatory chase and romance scenes and get to the “I see it coming” ending already? That’s what I feel
Read MoreBrown's Pension Reform A Yawner
APRIL 1, 2011 By STEVEN GREENHUT It’s hard to know whether to be relieved that Gov. Jerry Brown has finally recognized the state’s massive pension problem or to be appalled at how long it took for him to address and
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Budget Tax Soap Opera Continues
APRIL 1, 2011 By JOHN SEILER The latest episode of the soap opera “As the Tax Increase World Turns” is putting another 1 percentage-point tax on the wealthy. It’s being promoted by the California Federation of Teachers union, which sponsored
Read MoreCalifornia Suffers Most Cities in Decline
APRIL 1, 2011 By WAYNE LUSVARDI Facetiously speaking, Gov. Jerry Brown couldn’t have picked a better time to put taxes on the ballot, rather than work out a budget deal with the Republicans in the State Legislature. The economy is
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Bring Out the Budget Scissors
MARCH 31, 2011 By JOHN SEILER The voters have spoken: Cut the budget even more. Gov. Jerry Brown and Democrats in the Legislature have spent several months insisting that voters must have the opportunity to approve extensions of Gov. Arnold
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