It seems like every day brings a new story about how states across the country are struggling with public employee pension and health care benefit costs. In Ohio the issue is at the forefront due to the upcoming vote on Issue 2, and I’ve written about the huge challenges confronting Rhode Island and Illinois. Now [...]
Posts Tagged ‘California’
California DREAMing
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, California, California budget deficit, DREAM Act, Illegal immigrants, Immigration, Jerry Brown, Politics, State Budgets on June 9, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
You have to give the California state government some serious credit for apparently being completely divorced from fiscal realities. The Golden State is facing a crushing, multi-billion-dollar budget shortfall — so much so that Governor Jerry Brown has ordered state departments to turn in their cell phones and BlackBerrys — and yet the state is [...]
States In The Red, Looking For A Way Out
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, bankruptcy, California, California budget deficit, Congress, Illinois, Politics, Public Employee Unions, Retirees, senior citizens, Seniors, State Budgets, State employees, Tea Party on January 21, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
As even a casual follower of the news knows, many states are struggling with huge budget problems. Ohio is one of them. Usually the problems are the result of declining tax revenues, increased government spending and support obligations, and the fact that bills are starting to come due on grossly underfunded state employee pension and [...]
First Decriminalization, Then Legalization, Then Taxation?
Posted in America, crime, tagged America, California, California budget deficit, crime, Legalized Marijuana, Marijuana, Marijuana Decriminalization on October 1, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Yesterday California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill decriminalizing the possession of less than an ounce of marijuana in California. The new law takes effect in January. Thereafter, possession of an ounce or less will be a simple infraction punishable by a maximum $100 fine. Interestingly, Schwarzenegger justified his signing of the bill solely on [...]
Greece Fire
Posted in America, The Economy, World, tagged Budget Deficit, California, California budget deficit, Federal Debt, Greece, Greek Debt Crisis, National Debt on April 28, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Standard & Poor’s has cut Greece’s credit rating to “junk” status. In so doing, the ratings agency indicates that it considers it unlikely that investors who purchase the bonds will ultimately be paid the principal amount of the bonds and all required interest payments. What is the meaning of this for the United States? The [...]
Greece And California
Posted in Politics, The Economy, World, tagged California, California budget deficit, economy, European Union, France, Germany, Greece, Greek Debt Crisis, Politics, World on March 7, 2010 | 1 Comment »
The Greek debt crisis is putting enormous strains on the European Union. Greece is heavily in debt. Its 2009 budget deficit was projected to reach 13 percent of its Gross Domestic Product. Greek’s mounting debt problems prompted fears that Greece would default, causing investors to sell Greek debt instruments, which in turn put pressure on [...]
Not Serious
Posted in Politics, The Economy, tagged Arizona, Budget Commission, Budget Deficit, California, economy, Florida, Making Hard Budget Choices, Michigan, Nevada, Politics, President Obama on February 19, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
After posting a piece this morning, immediately below, about why the “bipartisan budget commission” is a bogus idea that reflects badly on the capabilities of the President and the Congress, hours later I read this piece about how the President would announce today, in Nevada, $1.5 billion in new spending to “help spur local solutions” [...]
Pension Princes
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, California, California budget deficit, Politics, Public Employee Pensions on January 23, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Here’s an article that provides a bit more detail on California’s budget woes and the extraordinarily generous pensions that State has provided to many public employees. This kind of article demonstrates why the federal government should not bail out California or, for that matter, any other state. There is no reason why taxpayers in Ohio, [...]
Higher Revenue (Cont.)
Posted in Politics, tagged California, California budget deficit, Legalized Marijuana, Politics, taxes on January 12, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
I’ve written before on California’s budget problems and the lure of revenue from legalizing, and then taxing, the sale of marijuana. That posting has turned out to be a bit prescient, because a committee of the California General Assembly has now approved a bill to legalize and tax the sale of marijuana. Interestingly, the proposal [...]
Saying No To California
Posted in America, Ohio, Politics, tagged America, bailouts, California, California budget deficit, economy, Federal Government, Ohio, Politics on January 4, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
I’ve posted before on the ongoing fiscal problems in California, which faces massive budget deficits (see here and here, for example). Predictably, the politicians responsible for running the state have been unable to summon the political fortitude to make the combination of spending cuts and revenue increases necessary to balance the state’s budget — even [...]
It Takes Crust
Posted in Politics, The Economy, tagged budgets, California, California budget deficit, economy, Politics, recession, Tax Withholding, taxes on November 5, 2009 | 1 Comment »
Whenever someone would do or say something that was outlandish and grossly overreaching, my grandmother would say: “That takes crust.” I think she would have used that phrase to characterize the latest scheme developed by California lawmakers to try to close a huge budget shortfall. They have announced that they will increase, by 10 percent, [...]
California Vs. Texas
Posted in America, Politics, tagged America, California, Politics, taxes, Texas on November 2, 2009 | 1 Comment »
This thought-provoking article compares the performance of the “high-tax, high-benefits” model of state government (exemplified by California) to the performance of the “low-tax, low-benefits” state (represented by Texas). The author’s conclusion is that Texas is winning handily — and his conclusion is supported by population migration statistics, which show people leaving California and moving to [...]
Splendor (And Questions) In The Grass
Posted in America, tagged America, California, Legalized Marijuana on October 8, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
California — the state that has legislated pretty much everything through ballot initiatives — may well have three marijuana legalization initiatives on the 2010 ballot. California’s medical marijuana business culture is interesting. I was unaware that,as the article reports, there are “hundreds of medical marijuana dispensaries across the state” as a result of the 1996 [...]
Not-So-Golden (II)
Posted in America, Politics, tagged budgets, California, Politics on August 10, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
It’s actually kind of sad when a Californian writes that Californians need to get over themselves.
Higher Revenue
Posted in Politics, The Economy, tagged Budget Deficit, budgets, California, Gambling, Legalized Marijuana, Ohio on July 16, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
The California Board of Equalization, which is charged with administrative authority over the State’s taxes, estimated that a legislative proposal to legalize the growth, sale, and consumption of marijuana as a means of bridging California’s budget gap would raise nearly $1.4 billion per year. Such a sum would not, of course, cover the entire California [...]
