Toothless regulations in topless bars: California and the U.S. are in the throes of the Covid-19 pandemic. Every day, more Americans are dying from the disease than the number killed on 9/11. ICU capacity in Southern California is reportedly at zero percent. Countless Californians are about to have their worst Christmases ever. Yet policymakers must resist the...
All’s not well with Swalwell: Axios reported this week that California Rep. Eric Swalwell, a Democrat from the East Bay, may have been compromised by a Chinese agent, with whom he had a personal relationship. Swalwell responded to the leaked disclosures by (surprise!) blaming Trump. His response is ironic given that Swalwell was one of the biggest purveyors...
California’s ballot initiative process allows citizen activists to bypass politicians who are controlled by special interests. The ability for citizens today to connect and organize using online resources means it has never been easier for a determined group of individuals, without access to big donors, to nonetheless successfully qualify reform measures for the ballot and...
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck hard back in April 2020, California’s teachers’ unions went into overdrive. The United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA) released a lengthy document outlining what they believed to be “Safe and Equitable Conditions for Starting LAUSD in 2020-21.” In a report published by the California Policy Center that same month, Larry Sand explained the deal...
Gov. Newsom’s dirty laundry: California political news was dominated this week by Gov. Newsom’s recent dinner at the $350-a-plate Napa restaurant French Laundry for the 50th birthday bash of lobbyist and Democratic fixer Jason Kinney. Newsom’s hypocrisy is especially galling given that state public health officials told Californians this week to cancel their Thanksgiving plans. Rule number one of crisis communications...
California voters approve billions in local taxes and borrowing: In his latest analysis, CPC contributor Edward Ring summarizes the results of California’s local tax and bond proposals on last week’s ballot. He highlights how the broad support for local tax and bond measures contrasts with the opposition to similar measures in the March 2020 election, which...
In March 2020, for the first time in a generation, Californians did not approve the overwhelming majority of new tax and bond proposals that were put before them. Out of 125 proposed local bonds, only 31 percent passed; out of 111 proposed local tax increases, only 41 percent passed. Early returns from the November 2020 ballot show Californians...
Will California’s Election Day victories survive the ballot harvest? Californians seem to have rejected Proposition 15, a massive property tax increase on Golden State employers that would make many low-margin small businesses unprofitable, reduce job opportunities when they’re needed most, and raise consumer prices when so many are struggling to get by. The tax would force...
As the electorates in political battlegrounds across America endure what may be weeks of turmoil, in California the post-election environment is that of a mature one-party state. The population is quiescent, having at last count rejected President Trump by a more than two-to-one margin. In California, it doesn’t matter that only 11.5 million votes have been reported, when 21 million...
Californians pay the highest overall taxes in the United States, with more to come. The Democratic supermajority in the state legislature is considering AB 1253 that would raise the top income tax rate to 16.8 percent, and AB 2088 that would impose an annual 0.4 percent tax on any California resident’s net worth in excess of $30 million. On...
Editor’s note: A Southern California businessman copied us on his open letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom. Given his reasonable fear of political retribution – from state tax investigators, for instance, or regulators – we honored his request to remain anonymous. Dear Gov. Newsom, I am writing as a lifelong resident of California. I was born...
For about twenty million years, California’s forests endured countless droughts, some lasting over a century. Natural fires, started by lightning and very frequent in the Sierras, were essential to keep forest ecosystems healthy. In Yosemite, for example, meadows used to cover most of the valley floor, because while forests constantly encroached, fires would periodically wipe...
By Michael Davis This school year, my family will be joining the throng of Southern Californians making long commutes, but for us it will be for the sake of our children’s education. We live in Pasadena, but our kids will be going to Orange County Classical Academy, a new charter school in the City of...
While California’s ethnic studies mandate for k-12ers is dead for now, there is still much in the works to be concerned about. California governor Gavin Newsom is a force of nature. He leads a state which has record homelessness, rising crime and exploding pension debt. But wait, there is so much more! Ruling more like...