In December, Victor Davis Hanson wrote a piece on the Two Californias, with important insights into the decline of the (once-)Golden State. The title reminded me of the two (big) problems elected officials in Sacramento need to confront if they want to restore the state’s luster, the state government’s spendthrift ways and its anti-business regulatory and tax system.
To his credit, Governor Jerry Brown is addressing the first problem, but seems, alas, oblivious to the second. Blogging at the Washington Post, Jennifer Rubin points out that the Democrat is attacking the state’s spending problem head on. She doesn’t, to be sure, agree entirely with how he proposes to close the gap, but commends him for at least taking on the task. While she “would strenuously dispute the notion that California lacks for revenue,” she does note that Brown is at least “is making an effort to address his state’s economic woes and is largely focused on spending reduction.”
Although aware of the state’s fiscal problem, Brown appears clueless as to the state’s business problem. With unemployment at or above 12% for over a year and businesses fleeing the state or seeking to expand in other jurisdictions, the government needs to take action to reduce the regulatory burden on job-generating private enterprises. Instead, Brown is committed to doing just the opposite.
As Hugh Hewitt reminded us on Monday in the Washington Examiner, Brown “will superintend” the writing of state rules that will impose additional burdens on companies seeking to bring products to market. He is an outspoken advocate of the state’s draconian (in the eyes of industry) environmental policies. Instead of cutting them back, he was, as state attorney general, ever eager to see them enforced.
With these and other state laws zealously enforced (instead of quickly repealed), Hugh sees a growing exodus of job creators:
With taxes already sky-high and the regulatory environment among the worst in the nation, some manufacturers will simply join the exodus of job creators to Texas and elsewhere. But the long arm of California’s regulatory zealots won’t let them go at the state border — not if their products are going to circulate in the Golden State.
For a state with 12 percent unemployment, the zeal for new job-killing laws and rules seems insane, but proponents have told themselves the new dictates are “technology-forcing” and thus job creators.
Kudos to Brown for his willingness to cut the state’s budget. It’s unfortunate, however, that he is even considering tax hikes, policies which would do the opposite of what he needs to do to face the state’s second problem.
Instead of seeking to strengthen the state’s hand in the marketplace, state officials should be working to reduce its meddling. And then, the Golden State would begin to regain its luster.
Here in the central valley, our unemployment is hovering around 17 %, among the worst in the nation. We would LOVE to see the 9.7% “enjoyed” by everyone else.
The ironic part is that California’s draconian environmental laws end up hurting the environment by driving industry to places that tolerate much, much higher levels of pollution.
Of course, if you believe as I do that environmentalism is a cover for dismantling free enterprise and redistributing economic capital to less developed countries, then you realize the foregoing is a feature, not a bug.
Gosh! You say California is really bad for business. Maybe that’s why its economy only ranks eighth in the world.
Take the US economy (14.16 trillion) and subtract California and the rest of the US (all 49 states) is left with 12.31 trillion.
Your bitch Texas comes in a mere 15th with all its commerce-friendly PRO-business regulatory and tax system.
Retire this saw, s’il vous plaît.
On the basis of Auntie Dogma’s one cherry-picked statistic, I have concluded there is nothing wrong with California’s economy and therefore no need to do anything other than increase the amount of taxation and regulation on California industries and that, furthermore, all states should adopt a model of highly regulated, highly taxes economies with unionized public employees funded lavishly while schools fail and infrastructure crumbles.
All hail the California economic miracle! So sayeth Auntie Dogma.
VtK is right… perhaps we should pick the most onerous taxes and regulations from California, New York, New Jersey, Illinois. et al and we could come up with a revolutionary new economic model…. prosperity unknown throughout the universe.
Hell, even Texas could contribute some stupid laws (like the one that says computer techs have to have a PI license).
Kids, kids, kids. You’ve got other statistics? Bring’em on.
Texas Governor Perry’s attitude toward education is going guarantee that business that require anything other than grunt labor stay out of Texas.
Perry on education: “Well, there is a lot of fat to cut from our public schools, especially those in our biggest urban areas like Houston and Dallas. I am concerned that some the highly diverse Magnet public schools in this city are becoming hotbeds for liberalism. Do we really need free school bus service, Black History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, Asian-Pacific Heritage Month, ESL, special needs and enrichment programs like music, art or math Olympiad? I think we should get back to the basics of the three Rs, reading writing and arithmetic. I mean when is the last time a 6th grade science fair project yielded a cure for a disease?
No music, art, diversity, or maths competitions? Say ta-ta to the Creative Class! Perry couldn’t eff up education in that state anymore if he took away Friday Night High School Football.
My bad. I forgot to mention. Perry wants to come up with a bunch more tax-payer money that he can hand over to private Christian schools.
Interesting thing about education. Upon graduation, once receives two pieces of paper: one that says you’ve been educated, and the other that spells out one’s debt repayment schedule. Folks like to knock Texas, even folks from Austin who really wouldn’t know Texas from Massachussetts. But businesses recognise that Texas is the place where they really want to be.
There’s two ways of saving California. Turn the water back on in the central valley. Get rid of all regulations, state-wide. Never happen, so we’ll leave the light on for ya.
No no no. Wrong wrong wrong. How can you be so ignorant? California’s brilliant Democrat politicians have informed us that unemployment checks are the most effective economic policy ever devised by man. And, clearly, California is far ahead of the rest of the country in implementing this strategy.
And best of all, the environmental impact of an unemployment check is only a fraction of that of a person going to work. For California, it’s win win win.
The cool part about that lavish California education spending? They can spend $578,000,000 building one inner-city middle school. Wow! Isn’t it awesome that that money was spent to build a middle school instead of being wasted in the private sector? The elites know so much better what is good for us!
Why, I’ll bet Texas doesn’t have even one half-billion dollar Middle School.
“Construction of the imposing Robert F. Kennedy School Complex west of downtown Los Angeles was approved by voters in 2006, leaving school officials no choice, they say.”
Uh-huh! Voters availed themselves of their Constitutional right and decided they wanted to bankroll the most expensive school in American history. It’s their wallets. Blame them.
Let’s see now … who was the Governator in 2006 and what party did he belong to???
>>>Get rid of all regulations, state-wide.
Yeah, baby. And Nutmeg Whitman could have the 25 cent an hour maid of her dreams.
If Reagan was alive, he’d be ashamed of you guys. He talked the talk, but when it came down to it, California came first. Prop 13 happened along later with the sole intention of hamstringing Jerry Brown.
Arnold was indeed a lousy governor… mainly because he signed off on all the environmental regulations, tax and spending increases demanded by the Democrat legislature.
Interesting, isn’t it; a week ago Auntie Dogma was pissing and whining about high speed rail and comparing the US to the Chinese.
Oddly enough, the Chinese, who focus on reading, writing, and math, are out-creating Dogma and its “creative class”.
Why is it that Dogma’s “creative class” is so completely getting it’s butt kicked? And why should we care about Dogma’s “creative class”, given that it makes excuses for and lionized people like Roman Polanski who drug and rape children?
You know who else was big on the idea of promoting the “creative class?” Michigan’s former governor Jenny Granholm. The state lost jobs every year she was governor, even while the rest of the country was booming. (Especially in Texas, where fully 50% of all new jobs were created in the US between 2000 and 2008.) Because of her sterling track record, she was named an economic adviser to the Obama Regime and now will be lecturing at UC Berkeley on the topic of job creation.
But I am sure, in response, Auntie Dogma will have some slogans and talking points to spout.
And interestingly enough, Texas has the same number of Fortune 500 company headquarters as California.
“Grunt labor”, indeed. Maybe if Welfare Dogma ever had worked for a living, he would know better.
And the current call is for Texas to make changes so it doesn’t go the way of California.
Imagine that. Welfare Dogma lied.
My brother went to school in Klein ISD. You name the extracurricular and they have it and then some. For example, they don’t just have music, they’ve got marching band, jazz band, orchestra, choir and whatever it was they called glee club. Does a school really need all that? Wouldn’t a kid be better off doing homework than going to non-stop practices every night?
Just a few years back it was sixth. Now it is eighth, and falling. Texas is rapidly growing. Businesses and people are fleeing California in droves to get away from the failing policies.
And please do not forget that the American taxpayers have been bailing California out for several years now. You ARE already bankrupt. Liberals in Washington DC want the states to be able to declare bankruptcy, because liberals simply cannot govern, Republicans are refusing, and refusing to bail out any states. There is a move afoot to compromise and revoke the statehood of any state that declares bankruptcy — with all that means, including no Senators, and no representatives in congress, and so California may very well soon become the California Territory — with no Barbara Boxer, no Diane Feinstein, no Nancy Pelosi — and I’m not altogether sure that wouldnt be a very good thing for all parties involved.
and no Henry Waxman! cant forget him!
My son is doing three after school extracurriculars now… Drumline, Weight Training, and the Spring Musical. He thinks he’s gonna need to drop one because he can’t juggle all three. And two of the three come with activity fees, so it ain’t cheap.
The four lowest-rated states for small business are Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and California. Is it any wonder that these same states are all in huge financial trouble? The academics and the political-class just don’t “get it”….
And here in NJ we now spend ten to twelve times as much per student than when I grew up here…and the CPI is only up 400%. That means we’re spending 2-1/3 or 3-times as much per student; and getting halve the result. And most other “essential government services” are performing about the same while the government mandates and regulatory environments squeezes small business and entrepreneurs more and more.
Miss Dogma, alas you provide no context for your bile. And you just plain get things wrong.
Prop 13 was not enacted to hamstring then-Governor Jerry Brown, but as a response to his inaction in the face of rapidly rising property tax rates.
Not sure what the purpose is of your tirade against Texas as the post is about budget woes and unfriendly business environment in California & its very high unemployment rate (more than 4 points higher than that in the Lone Star State).
If things are so hunky dory in the (once-)Golden State, how come businesses are fleeing (some to Texas) and jobs are scarce?
And my brother wants me to move down there with him. I’m not sure if I should.
And my brother wants me to move in with him down there. hu ha
Simple. Texas has a better success story. Liberals hate success. It’s not “fair” to the colossal failures they generate.
The only problem is when you get tons of Californians they all want the goodies that ruined their home state. Austin is fun of them and I hear its beginning to suck to live there.
I think we should just stop caring about the fucking environment. What good does the environment do for us anyway?
I mean, all of North America will be covered in glaciers by 12010, so why bother saving the Delta smelt, since it will be extinct anyway?
It is ironic that a gay business owner would be better off, business-wise, in a homophobic state like Texas than a homophilic state like California.
Daniel, Prop. 13’s genesis was not merely ever higher property taxes on old persons who could lose their houses (as some persons enjoy repeating). There was a “small” matter of wide-spread corruption in the counties’ property tax assessment offices which incensed the voters. Unfairly and unequally assessed properties do not a happy citizenry make. There was also the California Supreme Court case Serrano vs. Priest prior to Prop. 13 which ruled unconstitutional the use of property taxes to pay for the schools. As I recall The League of Women Voters in 1978 had a competing ballot proposal which was not passed, but addressed the complicated issue of funds flow from the local to Sacramento with a bit more foresight.
And I realize you don’t like Jerry Brown, but to be fair the escalating property taxes and county assessor corruption had started long before he was governor. Neither Pat Brown nor Ronald Reagan did much to deal with those problems either.