Comments on Abe Tries Again: California's struggles don't implicate the "blue s...

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Valid points, James, property taxes are certainly ...

2009-08-07T07:44:47.677-07:00

Valid points, James, property taxes are certainly more regressive than reasonably progressive income taxes, but it's California's requirements for super-majority approval of budgets and tax increases that are causing the most damage. Such requirements have undermined basic democratic principles, like majority rule. Though there are ways around them, similar rules in the U.S. Senate are allowing small anti-government minorities to block universal health care.

Meanwhile, though I'm not currently a property owner (and not low-income), I would support property and income tax increases that addressed fundamental social needs like strong public schools, good public transportation and community services targeted at low-income seniors and generally excluded communities. There are always ways to blunt the effect of property tax increases on low-income property owners.

I think your characterization of the 'blue sta...

2009-08-04T15:39:58.735-07:00

I think your characterization of the 'blue state economics' observation is missing a critical element. Politics has an effect, no doubt, but the essential element of California's economy that makes it so 'blue' is the progressivity of it's tax system. To achieve such high levels of progressivity within a politically mainstream tax system you have to base taxes in large part on income. The disparity in taxable property between the top 1% and the median is not nearly as large as is the income tax disparity. This makes proportional property taxation comparatively regressive. Moving to a system with a greater property tax component is thus a regressive adjustment. California's recent revenue shortfall is due in large part to the volatility mismatch between incomes in the upper brackets and the state's need for a stable tax base to support services. Moving to a higher ratio of property to income tax revenue would certainly reduce this mismatch, but it would also make the state less 'blue'.

Yes, raising taxes would probably help. California...

2009-08-04T05:55:03.653-07:00

Yes, raising taxes would probably help. California certainly needs to do something dramatic and soon. The state's public education system was once the best in the country by far, so were its public universities. California's transportation and energy infrastructure are badly deteriorated, too. Those things won't get fixed without revenue increases.

And the truth is that California's state and local tax burden is not dramatically different than the tax burden around the country. What is dramatically different are California laws that restrict property tax increases and permit small legislative minorities to block even reasonable compromises on budgets and taxes.

Oh, and you think raising taxes will solve Califor...

2009-08-03T19:14:44.910-07:00

Oh, and you think raising taxes will solve California's problems?

Rather, it'll just exacerbate high-tech and high-net-worth individual flight from high taxes.