Learning Lessons in California
So now it seems California is having trouble meeting a pretty fundamental requirement of government: repaying its citizens who paid more than their share of taxes last year.
I especially love this nugget:
The controller’s office estimates that the delay in tax refunds will free up $1.99 billion over the next month to pay for education, debt service, and other payments that legally have first claim to state funds.
(Emphasis added; apparently, it’s not taxpayer money in California, but rather these funds belong to the state. Finders keepers, eh?)
Okay, so I’m no economist. But who thought that the right formula for fiscal success for a government would be to drive away revenue and job producing industries and businesses with burdensome regulations and confiscatory taxes while encouraging the growth of the non-productive sector by expanding hand-outs and government programs and give-aways?
-Colorado Patriot (Nick), From HQ
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I also read today that gas stations in California will close rather than comply with onerous environmental regulations. The state legislature recently slapped gas stations with requirements to install tens of thousands of dollars in new equipment in order to achieve a 0.008% reduction in the release of volatile chemical pollutants. Independent station owners can’t afford to comply.
Great policy for a state already on the edge of double digit unemployment.
Comment by V the K — January 30, 2009 @ 12:24 pm - January 30, 2009
I wonder how many people will be refiguring their W-4 withholding for 2009?
What would Sacramento do if the no-interest loans (over-withholding) from the shrinking number of (net) taxpayers started to dry up.
Comment by SoCalRobert — January 30, 2009 @ 11:06 pm - January 30, 2009
There is another aspect of California’s failure of rational governance that no one is talking about …. yet – water management. We may very well be staring down the barrel of the Dust Bowl of the twenty first century.
More Here.
Comment by Sonicfrog — January 31, 2009 @ 11:37 am - January 31, 2009
SoCaRobert: “I wonder how many people will be refiguring their W-4 withholding for 2009?”
As always, unintended consequences will squelch attempts to grab more of our money.
One solution is to have the government play by the same rules it requires its citizens to accept: Pay interest on the money and pay a fine if the money is not distributed in a timely manner.
Comment by DoorHold — February 2, 2009 @ 11:43 am - February 2, 2009