For a scant few moments this week, I felt that our state legislature had finally gotten the message. Leadership begins at the top and painful cost-cutting measures should start there. The reason for my jubilance came in the form of Senate Bill 44 which wouldve begun the elimination of those frivolous do-nothing boards and commissions which merely serve as weigh-stations with six figure salaries for termed out over-the-hill lawmakers. A companion bill was introduced in the Assembly.
I thought to myself by golly, I do believe theyve finally gotten it. Theyre finally serious about really cutting unnecessary and wasteful spending. The Integrated Waste Management Board would be just the beginning, then, like dominoes, the others would fall.saving the state literally millions of dollars. It would be the blowing up of the boxes instead of just moving them around promise made by Arnold if we would all just elect him as our new governor.
Then came the vote; Senate Bill 44 was defeated by the Senate Environmental Quality Committee, and Assembly Bill 1150 was killed by the Assembly Natural Resources Committee. Heres how Steve Weigand of the Sacramento Bee put it: Faced with the choice of saving between 2 and 3 million dollars a year, or preserving a potential AND LUCRATIVE POST-LEGISLATIVE RETIREMENT HAVEN, Democrat lawmakers in both houses torpedoed both bills.
That action, folks, is tantamount to slapping every taxpayer in this state in the face. Our democrat-controlled legislature just doesnt get it. In the wake of forced furloughs, layoffs, home foreclosures, etcetera..our state legislature feels the solution is higher taxes on those who still have a job. And to rub salt in the wound, they want to extend the recent tax increases an extra two years.and theyre asking voters to approve that idea by voting yes on Proposition 1A.
Someone once told me Californias state legislature was a laboratory for liberal ideas. Frankly, I believe its time voters shut that laboratory down. Look what its done to the Golden State.