By Assemblymember Marie Waldron
Are you upset about the high cost of living in California? Some call it the ‘Sunshine Tax’, the price we pay to live here, but that price has become unbearable and our families, seniors and students are struggling to make ends meet.
Housing costs are a major factor. Depending on where you live, government fees and regulations can increase the cost of a new home by $50 to $150 thousand per unit, and permitting can take years, costing additional thousands. How can we even begin to discuss affordable housing without taking a serious look at costs imposed by government?
California’s excessive taxes add to the burden. Our gas, sales and corporation taxes are among the nation’s highest, hurting hardworking Californians, but even more taxes may be on the way. There are serious proposals to tax water and to tax the miles we drive commuting to work. All this – even though the state has a $9 billion surplus, and please, the `Sunshine Tax’ is just a figure of speech. Hopefully it won’t be included in the plethora of new tax bills likely to be introduced in January.
Keeping property taxes low by protecting Prop. 13 keeps Californians in their homes. Attempts are already on the 2020 ballot to dilute this protection on commercial properties which would simply be passed on to consumers or retailers.
Education costs keep rising. I support freezing tuition and offering more Cal Grants to California students to help pay for higher education.
As the owner of a small business, I have opposed all excessive taxes, fees and regulations that negatively impact families and small businesses. Thankfully, through the efforts of our caucus members and moderate democrats, several tax and ‘job killer bills’ were blocked this year, but the battle continues. California’s working men and women have had enough!
Minority Floor Leader Marie Waldron, R-Escondido, represents the 75th Assembly District in the California Legislature, which includes the communities of Bonsall, Escondido, Fallbrook, Hidden Meadows, Pala, Palomar Mountain, Pauma Valley, Rainbow, San Marcos, Temecula, Valley Center and Vista.
