Legislative director @HJTA. Talks property taxes, retweets state political news, and complains about baseball. Former journalist. California is not yet lost.
My latest column: Billionaire or not, CA is coming for your money. Despite soaring revenues, the state budget includes several new taxes hitting everyday Californians. The gas tax just went up again. & nearly half of Nov. ballot measures deal with taxes. https://t.co/kJuZej6eIZ
A victory for taxpayers as L.A. property owners REJECT the city's streetlight assessment. Memo to the city: Try arresting the copper wire thieves and then get back to us.
Inbox:
The group behind the billionaire's tax in California announces virtual press conference at 5:30pm tomorrow, the deadline for CA's Secretary of State to certify measures on the ballot.
Group will brief media "about the historic effort to prevent widespread hospital closures and save patient lives by ensuring billionaires finally pay their fair share."
Look what the L.A. County Board of Supervisors has planned for apartment owners. Up for discussion tomorrow, a proposal to prevent the sale of buildings to private owners by giving community groups a right of first refusal. Column: https://t.co/LW2vPKFq10
JUST IN: The second of two initiatives submitted with the intent of neutering the proposed billionaire wealth tax has enough valid signatures to be eligible for California's November ballot.
Organizers of the billionaires tax criticize @CAgovernor@GavinNewsom after he rejected their offer to pull their 5% billionaire tax measure from the ballot in exchange for him signing a one-time 2% billionaire tax into law.
🚨Sacramento County's budget has more than DOUBLED in the past 10 years ($4 Billion in 2016 to $9.2 Billion in 2026).
🚨Sacramento County also spends DOUBLE, per capita, compared to San Diego County.
📉Despite this largess, four members of the Board of Supervisors voted to CUT public safety while diverting million$ into failed & unaccountable homeless programs (ironically, the same Supervisors who voted to RAISE their own salaries by over 36%.)
Sacramento County employs over 10,717 workers (using 2024 data) - EXCLUDING public safety (ie not counting Sheriff, DA, Probation, Public Defender, Coroner, or Fire.).
❓What are taxpayers getting for all their money❓
📈More than 850 SacCounty public employees get over $200K in total compensation.
📈116 Directors & Chiefs (most over $200K)
📈339 IT workers.
📈151 HR workers.
📈247 Mental Health workers + 28 Psychiatrists
📈59 Pharmacists.
📈2,588 Social workers.
📈 144 HR/Personnel/Executive Secretaries.
📈1,156 Office workers & Administrative assistants.
📈 14 Public Information Officers.
📈 1 (one) Baker⁉️
@ZavalaA@EytanWallace@largesteven@NikkiLaurenzo@FlashReport@joncoupal@Sac_Tax
Essential read from @CalMatters today.: ‘This lawmaker’s proposal could make California the most secretive state in the country’
This same lawmaker is in charge of the Capitol Annex, Asm. Blanca Pacheco:
https://t.co/i6YDxqSZZh
If a private ambulance company takes a Medi-Cal patient to the hospital it gets $339 taxpayer dollars. But if a California fire district handles the same transfer, it expects $1600 (even if it subcontracts to the private provider).
https://t.co/LK5K3UYod0
There’s a reason to believe that if enacted, the wealth tax would not be a one-time levy. In 2012, voters passed a “temporary” surtax on the incomes of the state’s wealthiest residents. Public employee unions sponsored a measure to extend it to 2030. 1/2
https://t.co/YVDxLUbxID
A troubling grand jury report for the Los Angeles Zoo points to financial and other problems. The L.A. Zoo is the last major American zoo still run by city government, and the grand jury says that's part of the issue. https://t.co/9F9aR51i2b
Under AB 1821, getting public records would cost more and take even longer. Perhaps worst of all, it would allow government agencies to sue members of the public if the agency deems their request to be made with “malicious intent.”
https://t.co/PQP90XzHwT
You gotta hand it to California governments: they are constantly finding innovative new ways to get money.
In the Central Valley, one agency tried to get voters to pass a $35 cemetery parcel tax: a total non-starter for those of us who prefer cremation.
Fortunately, it lost.
JUST IN: Gov. @GavinNewsom says President Donald Trump has directed the U.S. Dept. of Justice to investigate Newsom and his wife, @JenSiebelNewsom. Reaching out to U.S. DOJ for comment.