Imagine for a moment that you’re a kid again.
Maybe you have a lemonade stand or your parents give you a small allowance each week. It’s not much, but it’s enough to cover the general operating expenses incurred by a seven-year-old.
Enter “Cal,” the school bully who lives down the street.
Cal is the most feared eighth grader in your school. He’s twice your size and his egotism is matched only by his avarice. He’s always broke, so his favorite pastime involves punching you in the stomach and taking your money.
If this scenario sounds familiar to you, there’s a decent chance you’re a local government official or service provider in the state of California.
Thomas Jefferson would be appalled by the past 40 years of California’s political history.
A firm believer that government is most responsive when it is closest to the people, Jefferson would undoubtedly recoil at Sacramento’s relentless assault on local governments. Indeed, the only thing more predictable than serial budget crises in Sacramento is the subsequent attempt to close the gap with local revenues.
If you think the state’s multi-billion dollar budget shortfalls are some abstract, far-off problem, think again. Local governments – cities, counties and special districts – have become the piggy banks of last resort for a state government that has come unhinged. Since 1991, California cities have lost more than $10 billion in property tax revenues to the black hole in Sacramento.
Even though nearly 84 percent of California voters approved Proposition 1A in 2004 – which protected local funding for public safety, health, libraries, parks and other locally delivered services – the state continues to tap into local funds to balance its budgets.
What does this mean to you? It means you’ll have to wait an extra 30 minutes for the bus you take to work each day, if your line hasn’t been cut entirely. I
