Summer No Education City

Posted on April 30, 2011 by mmunson

Due to declining state funding the local community colleges in particular the one that serves my community cut down the summer classes where students are fearful that they will be shut out this summer.

I was hoping to get 1 of the classes I needed for my teaching credential program pre-requisites, but I guess I might have to take all 4 classes in the fall. OH NO!

I was disappointed that they didn’t have online sections where 60 or so students could fit in the section compared to 30-40 in a section.

Hopefully the state budget will get remedied so we don’t have to go thru this rationing of education for awhile. Or perhaps Chaffey College should do a trimester system so we can squeeze our classes and do not need to worry about summer session.

Face It, This is Going to Stink

Posted on March 12, 2011 by mmunson

I am going to surrender my $37 in “overpayment” to the state of California.

With the community college system going to take another nosedive, I feel sad for anyone including myself who may need services from them.

We already chopped off enough from our education and other public services where pretty soon our public services will be in dire straits like an anorexic suffering permanent complications. $40 a unit for the community colleges, $11000 for CSU and $17500 for the UC system in the near future? This is gone too far.

I am declaring my $37 as my use tax for all the Amazon and Tigerdirect purchases I have made. However the FTB needs to add the ability to pay the e-waste recycling fee that I never paid for my monitor. It may not be the total amount, but honestly I am hurting. However I am not going to be the person who just thinks Amazon is the official duty free store for Californians.

We need to work together. We may not go drastic like the governors of Ohio, Florida and Wisconsin, but we could come up with solutions to make the pain hurt less.

Continue reading →

Position on the budget.

Posted on February 26, 2011 by mmunson

I believe we do need the Brown tax measure to make sure we do not face total budget austerity, but if the taxes do not help the overall picture there should be some escape hatches.

If California state unemployment can not get lower than 9 percent by June 30th 2013, then the tax increases would be null and void.

If state revenues are declining, even though we have tax increases then we should null the tax increases.

Brown’s tax measure needs Republicans to get on the ballot, but maybe he should just get his labor union friends to put on the ballot the old fashioned way so no Republican could be blamed for the tax increases.

I do support the Republican position on state budget negotiations for one single reason, much crazier and nuttier Republicans will replace the Republican state legislators who will get marched out of Sacramento for violating the base of the party and John and Ken. If you like the new crop of legislators elected in Montana you will like California’s new Republicans in 2012.

If any Republican wants to work with Governor Brown, add some escape clauses to the tax increases and we can put something good in a bad situation.

More Heads on Sticks

Posted on February 24, 2011 by mmunson

Two of our local State Senators Refuse to join the Taxpayers Caucus

Posted on February 23, 2011 by mmunson

From John and Ken:

Will they end up capitulating to Governor Brown?

These Legislators have NOT joined the Taxpayers Caucus! Call them and ask them if they intend to put taxes on the ballot!

Senator Bob Huff – refused to join
(916) 651-4029
(909) 598-3981

29th Senate District: Arcadia, Bradbury, Brea, Charter Oak, Chino, Chino Hills, Claremont, Diamond Bar, Glendora, La Verne, Mayflower Village, Monrovia, North El Monte, Placentia, San Dimas

Senator Bill Emmerson – refused to join

(916) 651-4037
(951) 680-6750

37th Senate District: Hemet, Palm Springs, Beaumont, Moreno Valley

The Cure for Sacramento

Posted on August 17, 2010 by mmunson

Democratic Party state legislators got their priorities wrong in Sacramento. The state budget and job creation should be the ultimate priority instead of the distractions of plastic bag bans and boycotts of Arizona. While the Republican Party State Senate minority leader should get off his soapbox of banning marriage equality and get on-board on fixing the state’s budget crisis.

I would like representatives that actually are focused on the big issue that means most, the economy. I would like California to be a place where business owners want to set up shop in, not flee away from. We need fewer regulations that kill jobs in a state with one of the worst unemployment rates in the nation.

We need to promote private sector industry so they could provide the employment opportunities that will bring forth tax revenue for the public services the people in California rely upon such as education and law enforcement so we can afford to fund our budget. A true economic recovery does not exist with public sector jobs alone.

The people of our communities need to speak out to our representatives and tell them they want Senator Dutton’s private sector job creation package brought back and passed as soon as possible and no more distractions while we are late on another state budget.

Caught In Another Budget Bind

Posted on July 6, 2010 by mmunson

Crossposted from iepolitics.com

Senator Dutton has written yet another eloquent column about why we should pass Republican Party budget solutions, but Democratic Party legislators want to do it their way no matter how many more Californians will become unemployed or how massive the state’s budget problems will become in future years.

Even though Republicans may have the winning issues on the state budget and law and order, our state is so gerrymandered where the Democratic Party will likely be able to pass their state budgets in a veto-resistant manner after the next two elections. The Democratic Party has State Senate District 12 and 15 in the cross hairs so they can be ready to pass budgets without Republican Party influence.

Unfortunately we will have to see California collapse before voters ever do consider the Republican Party as a viable choice, but even so there are many demographic groups who would rather vote for a dog instead of a Republican. Republicans are going to have to build a relationship with these demographic groups that Republicans used as wedge issues in order to adapt to the demographics of our state today.

Yes, it would be nice for California to live within its means. However we already maxed out our credit cards for us to do a Keynesian economic solution so we have to rely on the economic theories of Hayek. Maybe with a majority vote budget and Proposition 14 that already passed, Republicans would have to learn to develop mainstream candidates that could get elected in places such as Santa Clara, Glendale, Torrance and Ontario instead of having to rely on the fringe for popular support where they can comfortably sustain being in the perpetual minority.

I do not want California to end up like Illinois where they have gave up on paying their schools, medical providers and other agencies that rely upon state assistance. Unfortunately political power blinds both political parties where it is impossible for our legislators to come up with a solution because Republicans are zealots for no taxes at any cost and Democrats must feed the labor union beast. It is going to take sacrifice shared equally from both sides for a solution to happen.

Message to CA Legislative Republicans: The Road to Nowhere Leads to Nowhere

Posted on November 29, 2008 by mmunson

2006 and 2008 were not good for national Republicans, but 2008 sent a message to the Republicans in California that rejecting any tax increase at any cost does not pay at the ballot box. Republicans have lost their contested races in AD 10, 15, 78 and 80 while other districts are starting to lean towards the Democratic Party in the near future. The same message advocated in 2008 is only going to lead towards doom in 2010 for the Republican Party.

Although the Bush Presidency has brought less confidence towards the Republican Party in California, the agenda of the California Republicans is to just say no. The obstructionist view on taxation is the reason why our state budgets never get passed on time in recent history. We have serious financial difficulties in forming a budget in California where we have an estimated shortfall of $28 billion through the middle of 2010 where we already cut spending in various categories far enough especially in public education and public transportation where cutting further could be crippling.

Stalling our state budget is irresponsible for the Republican Party, when we as a state can not pay our bills our credit rating will be downgraded where it will cost more money to finance our state budget. I thought the Republican Party was for saving money.

Unfortunately the Republicans signed a no tax increases under my dead body pact and we are stuck with 2/3rds requirement where the minority party has the power to sink a budget. California never has had a timely budget and maybe we need to hand the keys over to the Democratic Party. Let the Democratic Party stand alone with the merits of their financial proposals, if the budgets are balanced and do not cause the wealthy to flee from our state where revenue remains then they will win for the near future. However if the Democratic Party’s fiscal proposals fail, then the Republican Party would have a reason to take over Sacramento.

Californians are discovering that voting Republican is not in their best interests. Californians want their schools and universities functioning, they want their public transportation systems running and other public services such as fire protection that people in our state depend on. Republicans need to show how can we run these public agencies efficiently and not wither them on the vine.

Tax money should be spent wisely to bring forth the most public good. Let us figure out how to run these services for the least possible price while maintaining quality. Republicans should demand a second California Performance Review and demand that reforms get implemented in exchange for preserving the quality of services we offer in our state.

Republicans and the state budget for 2009

Posted on November 19, 2008 by mmunson

How can we take the Republican Party seriously when they do not want to do anything substantial to solve the state budget crisis? Yes, the regulations requiring for a 2/3rds passage of tax increases and budgets only makes the job difficult and leads to prolonged stalemates. Californians rely on various public services from public education, fire fighting and disaster assistance to name a few services that would be imperiled if we have massive cuts that will happen if new revenue cannot be found.

We have had a spending problem because our Republican Governor and the Democrats became too cocky when our economy was driven by the housing bubble, not knowing that the good times will sustain. Now the bubble has burst and revenues are down where we have a 12 billion dollar deficit to deal with before the next budget has passed.

Republicans have been rabidly against any tax in any shape or form. However tax increases should be utilized to help close the deficit and fund needed public services. We should utilize spending caps and have a reserve fund for the next economic crisis so we would be secure in these difficult times. Maybe we should dare the Democratic Party in California to implement a budget without any Repubican restraint and see if it cripples the state economy, making the budget a 50%+1 affair would allow us to have the Democratic Party have ownership of their economic policies. If the budget is passed by 50%+1, and the state economy still goes down in the toilet then the Republicans would have a mandate for change.

The same playbook from 2008 should not be used in 2010, Californians understand the implications of Republican fiscal policy and did not reward them with any substantial gain or loss in Sacramento. Fiscal restraint while helping to maintain public services will be the winning strategy for the future.

Inland Utopia

Life in the Inland Valley

Tag Archives: state budget