Governor looks to secure two Republican votes for tax changes

by Brian Leubitz

Well, step one for Jerry Brown is complete, as he got 2 Republican votes in the Assembly, but the job is far from complete.

The Democratic governor’s revised tax plan raises about $1 billion in corporate taxes, mostly from out-of-state companies, and redirects that money toward tax breaks for California businesses and individuals.

He enlisted two Assembly Republicans to support the package, but he still must find votes from at least two reluctant Senate Republicans for his plan. The Legislature is scheduled to close its regular session tonight.

Brown and lawmakers hailed the plan as a jobs creator, though they offered few projections on its economic stimulus impact. Brown was joined at a news conference by GOP Assemblymen Nathan Fletcher and Cameron Smyth, who voted Thursday evening to put the legislation, Assembly Bill 1X 40, over the top in the lower house. The measure passed on a 54-10 vote, with the bare minimum for the needed two-thirds majority. (SacBee)

Sen. Dutton is apparently not ok with taxes being raised on anybody, even if the taxes are just being shifted.  Apparently taxes on any one person can only go down in the world of Sen Dutton, and then proceeded to call for a special session to review the measure beyond Friday.  Because then, you know, he could stall it forever and make sure nothing happens.  That’s kind of his deal, don’t you know.

The likely targets for this measure will be Sen. Cannella, maybe Sen. Aanestad, and whomever else Jerry can drag along for the ride.  2 votes is doable, but certainly will take much arm twisting.

To avoid ballot fight, State to agree to deal with the online giant

by Brian Leubitz

Amazon had put up over $5 million in a show of force for a potential referendum.  But, they never really wanted to go to the ballot.  And it looks like both parties avoid an expensive ballot fight with an agreement scheduled to be finalized before the end of session:

Under the handshake deal, Amazon won a delay until at least September 2012 but will eventually collect state sales taxes.

The arrangement could lay the groundwork for a national online sales tax law. Amazon and major brick-and-mortar retailers like Wal-Mart and Barnes & Noble agreed to lobby Washington over the next 11 months for an Internet sales tax law that applies across 50 states. …

If no federal deal emerges by July 31, 2012, Amazon would have to begin collecting California sales taxes starting on Sept. 15, 2012.

State lawmakers intend to pass a new bill in the next two days that would delay implementation of the online sales tax law until that date, according to Calderon and several sources. If Congress strikes a deal by July 31, 2012, online retailers would begin collecting taxes starting on Jan. 1, 2013, under whatever federal requirements are approved.(SacBee)

While the governor has previously said that he’s not really all that excited about a deal with Amazon, given that this was negotiated by the Senate leaders, it would seem hard to block.  

The bigger issue is how are we going to deal with the $200 million hole this blows in the budget.  And the fact that we basically only get a promise to lobby for a sales tax measure?  Well, that and a quarter might be able to get you a gumball.

But the reality is that Amazon wasn’t going to collect any sales tax anytime soon.  And were they to collect and submit the signatures, the law wouldn’t go into reality until approved (if approved).  So we are essentially dealing with a bunch of posturing.  Amazon knows that they are going to have to collect sales tax at some point and are hoping to delay it as long as possible. And oh, sure, it wouldn’t hurt to have one national standard.

With Amazon and the big retail giants on board, there is likely to be significant movement on the bill.  We’ll end up getting money into the system at some point by 2013, and we can stop messing with this fight.  Covering another $200 million, well, that won’t be so easy.

After some nudging from a list of Democratic activists, longtime San Francisco politician aims to increase stability in Democratic Party

by Brian Leubitz

As you may know, I am a regional director for the state Democratic party.  As a San Franciscan, I have tremendous respect for the work that Sen. John Burton has done for our community and for the state.  He is a progressive that will fight for his beliefs.

But it turns out he knows how to lead a state Democratic party.  He knows how to hire a good team and let them run a solid organization.  Since he assumed control, the party has been in a much better financial situation, has spoken out on issues that it was too timid to discuss before, and oh, by the way, also managed to sweep statewide during a tough election year.

And as somebody who, as a statewide field director, relied heavily on the state Democratic Party’s field operation last year, I know that John Burton and his team know how to mobilize voters and win elections.  It was for these reasons I was glad to sign on to a letter asking him to run again, and equally glad to hear that he’s running again.

California Democratic party chair John Burton, 78, hasn’t officially announced it yet — but he has made the decision to run for another term to lead the party in 2013, the Chronicle has learned.

The plain-spoken, tough-talking Burton — one of the most battle-scarred of California political veterans — was urged earlier this month to run for another term by a host of party activists and insiders. Their efforts were expressed by two party leaders, CDP regional director for San Francisco Brian Leubitz — who’s also the Calitics blog director — and Alice Huffman, NAACP president, in a letter earlier this month. The group expressed “strong support” of Burton’s next term and urged him to announce his decision for another term.(SF Gate)

The day he was elected as chair, Sen. Burton called on President Obama to bring our troops home from both Iraq and Afghanistan. And he has continued to challenge the Democratic Party to dream big. He’s done well, and the party will be lucky to have him and the strong team that he’s built (and convinced to stick around).

By the way, Burton had some choice words for the Republicans debating in our state right now.  Check that out over the flip.

In Advance of Tonight’s GOP Presidential Debate in California, Democrats Release New Numbers on Job Losses in California Which Would Result From GOP’s Extreme Budget Policies

GOP’s Support of Tea Party Budget Plan Would Cost 931,570 Californians Their Job

Sacramento – In advance of Wednesday night’s GOP Presidential debate at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, the California Democratic Party released an estimate of the number of jobs which would be lost in California, based on a new analysis conducted by the DNC, as a result of the GOP Presidential candidates support for radical economic policies.

The DNC’s analysis found that just the balanced budget amendment called for in the GOP plan, if in place in 2012, would result in the loss of 9.5 million American jobs including 931,570 jobs right here in California. The loss of so many jobs could blow a hole in the U.S. economy and further damage recovery prospects while adding millions of Americans to the ranks of the jobless.

Statement of California Democratic Party Chairman John Burton:

“Tonight’s debate will be a showcase for an extremist agenda that promises much but ultimately results in more corporate profits for the few and the privileged and more layoffs for Californians struggling to get by. The draconian cuts to Social Security, education, health care, Medicare, infrastructure and job training supported by these Republican candidates would cost millions their job.

Californians are still busy digging their way out of the mess produced by the last bad batch of Republican policies and we don’t need more of the same.”

Link to DNC Report

Governor aims to pass a tax reform measure before close of session

by Brian Leubitz

The Governor has been itching to get some sort of job plan going. Unfortunately, many of his ideas require a 2/3 vote, and Sacramento Republicans, like their counterparts in DC, seem more intent on blocking Democratic initiatives than getting anything done.

But this isn’t even a measure that is increasing taxes:

Brown last month proposed eliminating a corporate tax benefit that allows companies to pick the less-expensive of two tax formulas when calculating tax liability. He proposed using the money, about $1 billion, to fund a sales tax exemption for purchases of manufacturing equipment, and he proposed expanding an employer tax credit.

Even before Brown announced the plan, Republicans criticized it and Democrats acknowledged it was not likely to pass. The change would require a two-thirds vote in the Legislature, and Republicans blocked a similar proposal in budget talks with Brown earlier this year.

“Any time you have legislation, it’s the work of more than one hand,” Brown said at the biotech company Gen-Probe Inc. “There are some Republicans that are already on board, and there’s active discussion by those individuals with other legislators of that party. So, I’m reasonably optimistic we’re going to get something by the end of the week. It will reshape itself as it goes through the legislative process.”(SacBee)

Of course, the Republicans talk about “job creators” like somehow being rich equals creating jobs.  Corporations aren’t creating jobs, but Brown is trying to do something to spur spending.  Anything.  The elective tax structure hasn’t really shown to be a boon for anything but corporate treasuries, and creates no real incentive to create jobs in California.

Meanwhile, the Republicans moan about job creation, and then won’t do anything to create jobs. Color me shocked.

Measure by Jared Huffman would allow non-profits to run parks

by Brian Leubitz

I’ve brought up the subject of “privatization” of state parks in the past, and mentioned that I’m quite fond of the Willow Creek extension to the Sonoma Coast state park that is managed by a non-profit, LandPaths.

However, a new law passed by Asm. Jared Huffman would allow state parks to be run by a nonprofit organization.  To put it lightly, there are progressives on both sides of this issue.  But the CA State Parks Foundation has been pushing for this legislation.

“Nonprofit organizations have been supporting the state park system throughout its more than 100 year history, and AB 42 provides another venue for that critical support,” said Traci Verardo-Torres, Vice President of Government Affairs for the California State Parks Foundation, the organizational sponsor of the bill. “Across the state, park advocates and concerned Californians are coming together to identify creative, collaborative solutions to keep our parks protected and open for public access. Allowing nonprofits to help keep state parks open will help parks that would otherwise close, and will engage Californians in safeguarding the resources that belong to all of us.”

Let’s put the first caveat out there: we should not be dealing with this.  We should have enough money to run our state parks, and pay for our higher education.  But, because of both GOP extremism and some crazy governmental structures, we have to make choices.

LandPaths is a tremendous organization with some really dedicated staff who are willing to go to incredible lengths to get the job done.  And I’m sure the other organizations who are going to take up this challenge are good groups as well.  But this has to be a very temporary fix. This is most definitely not a permanent solution to anything, and we need to ensure that this kind of mess does not happen in the future.

You can view both online

by Brian Leubitz

UPDATE: The good folks at Prop 8 Trial Tracker have liveblogged the Prop 8 hearing.  Check it out, and then begin waiting for the ruling…

Well, not that they really have anything to do with each other, with the exception of the fact that Lynn Woolsey has supported marriage equality from way back in the day.  Woolsey voted against DOMA in 1996, as did many California Democrats. In fact of the 67 House no votes on DOMA, my quick counting showed at least 16 Californians, or nearly double the percentage of Californians in the House.

Anyway, as you probably know, Woolsey is retiring after this term, and she is sitting down with Michael Krasny of KQED’s forum to talk about her career right about now.  You can listen in the Bay Area on 88.5FM or stream it live online.  The program starts at 9AM, but you can catch the podcast later this afternoon as well.

No, the Prop 8 case is also up today.  The Supreme Court will consider whether the proponents of Prop 8 have standing to appeal Judge Vaughn Walker’s decision.  

The California Supreme Court will hear arguments Tuesday on whether conservatives who sponsored Proposition 8 are entitled to appeal last year’s federal ruling that overturned the 2008 same-sex marriage ban.

The court’s ruling, due 90 days after argument, will determine whether all initiative sponsors in California are legally entitled to defend their measures in state court when the governor and the attorney general refuse. (LA Times)

To be sure, it is far from clear which way this decision will go.  Prior case law, from my reading, seems to lean in the favor of no, they can’t appeal and do not have standing.  However, the issue is a little gray, and that’s why the question was certified to the CA Supreme Court.  Unfortunately, the Court did not choose to expedite the process, but we should have a decision before December or so.

However, you can also watch the argument live on CalChannel, either on your cable provider or online at calchannel.com.  The hearing starts at 10AM.

Insurance Industry Kills Bill That Would Have Forced them to Justify Hikes

by Brian Leubitz

Well, score another win for the insurance industry over consumers:

Feuer: “We’ve hit a temporary roadblock on the bill.  The bill remains on the floor of the Senate, however, and I’m going to work very hard between now and next January to change this dynamic.”

Health insurance companies and business groups have fought the measure fiercely.  The California Association of Health Plans says the bill would sharply increase costs to the state – without doing anything to lower the cost of health care. (Cap Public Radio)

Of course they say it would increase rates, because they can. Not because they have any data to show that is true.  Not because rates in states that have similar measures are higher, but because they can.

However unfortunate, there are enough anti-consumer Democrats to kill the bill.  Let’s be clear here, this is nothing about being moderate.  This is about insurance industry contributions controlling several Democrats in Senate, to the detriment of their constituents.  

The bill will be back in next year’s session, by then we can hope that these as yet unnamed legislative cowards can be convinced of the error of their ways.  We need leaders who will stand up for California consumers, rather than just bending to the will of AHIP.

Online Giant Looks to Avoid Sales Taxes

by Brian Leubitz

Amazon has been publicly piling money into a campaign fund to halt the new legislation that would force them to collect sales taxes.  But, if they could avoid a big fight with California’s brick and mortar retailers by pulling a quick deal, they’d prefer it.  One of the ways they’ve done that in a few other states is to promise some jobs in the state as long as they aren’t taxed.  Queue the rumors of a deal here:

While discussions are still preliminary, sources said legislative leaders have received an Amazon-inspired plan that would give the online retailer a two-year moratorium on the new tax. In return, Amazon would bring 7,000 jobs to the state, these sources said.(SacBee)

Obviously, the retailers are none too pleased, with good justification.  They are facing an uphill battle against a company that has a 8-9% price advantage right off the top.  Whether this actually amounts to a) any new jobs or b)

The problem with this is that Amazon is just shifting jobs from state to state for these deals.  It is a race to the bottom, while brick and mortar retailers continue to lose out, and our main streets continue to look bleaker and bleaker.