The Julian News 11
December 13, 2017
California Commentary
Don’t Let California Become Chicago Well, it happened again. Homeowners in Chicago now face yet another property tax increase to pay for the city’s mounting pension debt. Local taxpayers have already been slammed with nearly $1.1 billion in property tax increases, primarily for police, fire and teacher pensions. That’s on top of a 29 percent tax on water and sewer bills to save the Municipal Employees pension fund; a 56 percent telephone tax hike in 2014 and another 28.2 percent next year for the Laborers fund. Other “revenue enhancements” include a new garbage collection fee, a bag tax, and increases in water, sewer and city sticker fees, hotel and parking taxes and parking fines. A few weeks ago, the Chicago Sun-Times reported that another shoe is about to drop — a property tax hike scheduled in 2020 to pay for police and fire pensions. Many Windy City residents have had it. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the greater Chicago area leads the nation in population loss and has had two such years in a row. This is what happens when taxes become so burdensome — people vote with their feet. Not surprisingly, the numberone destination for residents of Illinois fleeing their high-tax state (the fiscal woes are not limited to Chicago) has been Texas — a state with low taxes and greater economic opportunity. Without a radical shift in policy away from high taxation and toward economic freedom, Chicago is bound for the same fate as Detroit, a city which reached its population peak in the 1950 census at over 1.8 million people, and decreased in population with each subsequent census. As of the 2010 census, the city has just over 700,000 residents, reflecting a loss of a staggering 61 percent of the population. Well, it happened again. Homeowners in Chicago now face yet another property tax increase to pay for the city’s mounting pension debt. Local taxpayers have already been slammed with nearly $1.1 billion in property tax increases, primarily for police, fire and teacher pensions. That’s on top of a 29 percent tax on water and sewer bills to save the Municipal Employees pension fund; a 56 percent telephone tax hike in 2014 and another 28.2 percent
by Jon Coupal
next year for the Laborers fund. Other “revenue enhancements” include a new garbage collection fee, a bag tax, and increases in water, sewer and city sticker fees, hotel and parking taxes and parking fines. A few weeks ago, the Chicago Sun-Times reported that another shoe is about to drop — a property tax hike scheduled in 2020 to pay for police and fire pensions. Many Windy City residents have had it. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the greater Chicago area leads the nation in population loss and has had two such years in a row. This is what happens when taxes become so burdensome — people vote with their feet. Not surprisingly, the numberone destination for residents of Illinois fleeing their high-tax state (the fiscal woes are not limited to Chicago) has been Texas — a state with low taxes and greater economic opportunity. Without a radical shift in policy away from high taxation and toward economic freedom, Chicago is bound for the same fate as Detroit, a city which reached its population peak in the 1950 census at over 1.8 million people, and decreased in population with each subsequent census. As of the 2010 census, the city has just over 700,000 residents, reflecting a loss of a staggering 61 percent of the population. Proposition 13 also provides protection to taxpayers generally by requiring voter or property owner approval for new or higher taxes. Without Proposition 13, Californians could soon experience what it is like to live in Chicago without ever having to leave their homes. It may be too late for Chicago as it seems destined to suffer the same fate as Detroit. But it’s not too late for California. We are a great state with virtually unlimited potential, a vibrant populace and bountiful natural resources. Moreover, the pension crisis that grips California would be manageable with the right policies. When the Titanic was headed for the iceberg, a one-percent course change 10 miles away would have prevented the disaster. Will California make a course correction now before it’s too late? *** Jon Coupal is the president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.
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• It was 20th-century French journalist, poet, aristocrat and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupery -- best known for his novella "The Little Prince" -- who made the following sage observation: "A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."Ê • Eggplants weren't always the deep purple color we know today; originally, the vegetables were white. The color, paired with the ovoid shape, is how the eggplant got its name. • If you live in Rochester, New York, you're doubtless used to dealing with the hazards and inconveniences of snow and ice. It's America's snowiest city, after all, averaging 94 inches every winter. • Those who study such things say that paternity leave can have significant domestic impacts. Research shows that men who take a few weeks of leave when they have an addition to their family spend more time on domestic chores and taking care of the kids than men who don't. They cook more, and they're even 50 percent more likely to do laundry. The most interesting finding, though, is the fact that these changes are long-term; the effect tends to last the rest of a man's life. • Those who suffer from nescience are unlikely to know what "nescience" means Ð an absence of knowledge. • The first wristwatch was made by an English clockmaker in 1571. Described as "a wristlet in which there was a clocke," the watch was presented as a gift to Queen Elizabeth I. • If you're like the average human, you have about 615 hairs for every square centimeter of your skin. *** Thought for the Day: "A man said to the universe: 'Sir I exist!' 'However,' replied the universe, 'The fact has not created in me a sense of obligation.'" -- Stephen Crane ® 2017 King Features Syndicate, Inc.
® 2017 King Features Syndicate, Inc.
*** If life is a comedy to him who thinks and a tragedy to him who feels, it is a victory to him who believes. — Anonymous ***
*** Strong souls live like fire-hearted suns, to spend their strength in furthest striving action. — George Eliot ***