by Jon Coupal
As inflation takes a bigger bite out of your turkey than you do, it may be hard to find reasons to be grateful. But the truth is we still have much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.
Here’s a few reasons why.
In the Legislature, success is often measured not in how many pro-taxpayer bills are passed but by how many anti-taxpayer bills are stopped. And, in that regard, this past year was better than expected.
A bill that would create a California Universal Basic Income and proposed to pay for it either through a value-added tax, raising corporate taxes or implementing a tax on services died in committee. Another bill that would have created a wealth tax failed to receive a hearing before deadline. An attempt to raise the already highest in the nation income tax rate for Californians making over $1 million to as high as 16.8%, was held in its first committee. A bill to create a single-payer healthcare system, and double the state budget in the process, was tabled.
In all, eleven bills HJTA opposed failed to make it out of the legislature. Five bills we supported were signed by the governor. One bill we opposed was vetoed by the governor. Five bills we supported failed to get out of the legislature. Eleven bills we opposed were signed by the governor and one bill we supported was vetoed by the governor.
HJTA went 17 for 34 this legislative session. We batted .500. Not bad for a taxpayer group in California. For that, we should be grateful.
The Legislative Analyst’s Office is also forecasting that the state will have a $31 billion budget surplus next year. The state getting $31 billion more of your money than it needs may not sound like a reason to be grateful, but it just goes to show what we already knew – that Californians are taxed enough. That seems as good a reason as any for no new taxes next Legislative session. We can be grateful for that.
If the polls are to be believed, the midterms are shaping up to be a tremendous win for fiscal sanity. If we’re lucky, maybe some of that sanity will find its way to California. We’re pushing our luck now but if we can at least slow the printing press over at the Federal Reserve, we might be able to get a handle on this inflation. For that, we would be grateful.
Proposition 19 tricked voters into repealing Propositions 58 and 193 without realizing the impact it would have on their own families. To restore those constitutional protections for California families, the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association has filed an initiative with the attorney general’s office. The “Repeal the Death Tax Act” would reinstate Propositions 58 and 193. Parents would once again be able to transfer a home and a limited amount of other property to their children without triggering reassessment and a property tax increase.
We have a big task in front of us. We must collect approximately 1.3 million signatures from registered voters to be certain of having the 997,139 valid signatures needed to get this initiative on the November 2022 ballot. The deadline is mid-April. To find out more, visit: www.HJTA.org/RepealTheDeathTax
We would be grateful for your support. Together we can restore the dream of leaving your kids better off than you had it. Our children will be grateful.
And, if all that isn’t enough, we still live in the greatest country in the world at the greatest time (yet) in history. There is much to be thankful for in this season of Thanksgiving.
Jon Coupal is president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
Originally published in the Press Telegram: https://www.presstelegram.com/2021/11/22/can-taxpayers-be-grateful-this-thanksgiving/
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