Why You Should Vote “No”

California’s finances are fundamentally broken

 

by Assemblywoman Diane Harkey

 

The May 19 special election is upon the horizon, with many already casting their vote via mail. But if you are one of those who may be still trying to decide what to do, I have some thoughts to share with you.

 

First, California’s finances are fundamentally broken, and were we a municipality or business we would declare bankruptcy and renegotiate everything on the table. Unfortunately, the state cannot declare bankruptcy but we can be turned over to Federal Receivership – not a very good option for anyone, I fear.

 

So, how did we get here and what are our options? In my opinion, we arrived at this unmanageable state by ballot-box budgeting, which you are being asked once again to perform. Simply stated, we see statewide propositions on the ballot each election asking voters to set aside certain portions of the state’s tax receipts for a myriad of causes, requests for bonds (state debt) for anything from high-speed rail and water projects to housing and schools. We also vote on and restrictions on business enterprises, requests for public safety improvements, and the list could go on and on.

 

The bottom line–the requests come to the voters in a piecemeal fashion, and people with busy lives are forced to cast votes (with limited information and time to research) that lock in spending, funding and onerous laws and regulations. Hence, the legislature cannot legislate and the voters are angry with having to solve every major issue, not knowing who to trust, and without full information or time with which to decide.

 

Now, you are being asked once again to figure out how to pull the state out of its chaos. While some of the propositions would truly help fill a hole or two in the cash flow shortage we are anticipating by July, none would strike at the core of the problem. Yes, Governors and Legislators, present and past, have overspent, but our tax structure and budget mandates (voter approved propositions) encourage it. We must reform the way California does business–reassess our taxation and debt structure and prioritize our needs and wants.

 

California sees a huge growth in taxes during boom times due to capital gains and income taxes, and huge drops when the music stops and we hit a recession. Our funding for education is locked in based on Prop 98 mandate and likewise hits peaks and valleys. Funds for health and human services (disabled, elderly, and special needs) and other programs that grow with increasing state revenues in good times, suffer with cuts in the worst times. Public safety is also always a prime target when the going gets tough. And with the state’s ever-increasing debt load, our debt expense will be taking an ever increasing portion of the tax pie in the future.

 

As you can see the problem is huge and requires full attention and reasonable negotiations, that cannot be conducted by direct democracy or the public voting on a myriad of intertwining issues. So, while some of the propositions may indeed be helpful, my advice is to vote “NO” and tell the governor and the legislature to do its job; balance the budget, reform California’s broken system and stop asking you to make the tough decisions.

 

We are supposed to be a “Representative Democracy” which means you elect people to represent you and make governmental decisions on your behalf. If you don’t like what they are doing, you have the option to vote them out. After all, if voters do all the work, what do we need elected representatives for? Hum…a thought for another time.

 

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