[Source: CalMATTERS] Some of California’s key environmental programs for battling smog and climate change have lost nearly $105 million as the state grapples with the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. In a letter shared with CalMatters, the state’s Department of Finance notified lawmakers of reductions to funds from the proceeds of California’s landmark cap Read More…
Category: California News
California minimum-wage jump to hit virus-battered companies
[Source: Associated Press] Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday the state would keep in place a planned jump in the state’s minimum wage to $14 an hour next year for larger businesses, saying it would help hard hit lower-income workers even as many companies struggle to survive amid the coronavirus crisis. The Democratic governor had the Read More…
Massive new tax increase proposed
[Source: California Globe] Gutting-and-amending a bill originally related to local governments in the Public Resources Code, Assembly Bill 1253 now proposes a massive tax increase on thousands of sole proprietors and high-income Californians. AB 1253 was amended on July 27, the Legislature’s first day back from its extended summer recess. Originally authored by Assemblyman Robert Read More…
California releases ‘Employer Playbook for a Safe Reopening’
[Source: CalChamber] On July 24, 2020, when the reported number of COVID-19 cases in California surpassed 425,000, Governor Gavin Newsom announced a new playbook — called the “Employer Playbook for a Safe Reopening” — to guide employers on how to provide a safe and clean environment for workers and customers to reduce the risk of Read More…
The profusion of notices stemming from Prop. 65 leaves shoppers potentially unprotected
[Source: Los Angeles Times] Vermont Soap’s feel-good natural products came with everything a California consumer had come to expect: an organic certification, a non-GMO seal of approval, a “cruelty free” bunny silhouette. And a warning that it harbored a “chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer, birth defects or reproductive harm.” Confused? Read More…
Appeals court makes tax increases easier
[Source: CalMatters] The March primary election was rough on advocates of new taxes. Hundreds of tax hikes — sales and parcel taxes, mostly — were placed on the ballot by cities, counties and school districts whose finances were being squeezed. However, voters rejected roughly half of them, reversing what had been a recent trend. The Read More…
Beware of sleight-of-hand in Prop 15 numbers
[Source: Fox and Hounds Daily] The Yes on Proposition 15 campaign has bandied about all kinds of figures on how many commercial properties will pay a bulk of the new record property tax increase if the measure passes. First, they showed a study that reported 6% of the properties will pay 78% of the taxes. Read More…
Judge rejects Trump administration challenge to California cap-and-trade program
[Source: The Hill] A federal judge on Friday upheld a California program that caps carbon emissions from the transportation sector after the Trump administration sued the state over it. The Justice Department last year challenged the cap-and-trade program, which aims to improve air quality and allows companies in the state to trade emissions credits with Read More…
State budget ‘balanced’ with massive new debt
[Source: CalMatters /Dan Walters] Gov. Gavin Newsom says the new California state budget is balanced, but in reality it has a huge deficit that will be covered by indirect borrowing. Last month, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a 2020-21 state budget he described as “balanced, responsible and protects public safety and health, education, and services to Californians Read More…