Gov. Jerry Brown is now advocating a new 1–2 percent increase in the top income tax rates in California, which I think would put them at or over 12 percent. If it is true, as often reported, that 2,000–3,000 residents are leaving California per week, and that many of them are top earners, will the additional taxes entice them back, or do we simply wish them, and many of the jobs they create, good riddance?
This year there were all sorts of sensational news stories in California — some state workers earning over $500,000, mandates for schools to teach gay history, extension of state scholarship eligibility to illegal aliens, the presence of thousands of sinecures on state boards (which Schwarzenegger failed miserably to curtail). Whether insignificant or not, they all had one thing in common: State government dreams up an idea that sounds progressive and then simply passes it, without commensurate worry about how it is to be paid for
In Brown’s case, even though he is to be congratulated that government has shrunk back to pre-2008 funding levels under his watch, he still seems to have little clue that when a state creates a climate of more and more regulation on productive companies from Silicon Valley to Napa, idles thousands of acres of rich farm land, turns down leases for new gas and oil exploration, curtails the timber and mining industries, raises taxes on those most likely to hire, and turns the entire question of the consequences of illegal immigration into a taboo subject, then less revenue will enter state coffers and we end up repeating this doomed cycle of raising taxes on those who will either leave or curtail production.
And he seems to think that cutbacks in a vastly expanded government de facto represent real hardship rather than asking whether such huge 21st-century growth in government, entitlements, and compensation was ever necessary in the first place: pruning a vastly expanded state government of the last few years does not in and of itself translate into cruel slash-and-burn cutting. And at no point do we in California ask exactly why California has far lower test scores in its schools, far higher prison populations, and far worse infrastructure than states with far lower income tax rates — or whether the state has a safer, better educated, and more productive population than it did decades ago when tax rates were much lower. Californians are not heartless, but they are on to the con of a vast public administrative elite, compensated well above counterparts elsewhere, preaching that the poor, elderly, and sick alone will suffer if the greedy do not allow their taxes to be hiked.
As a Native Californian, who thankfully moved out of the state to SC, I see that the old cliches are still being employed to raise taxes: It's for the children and the elderly.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseObjectives are being met. They did not like the people, so they are changing the people. Self-reliant Americans are leaving, dependent Americans are staying. Dependent immigrants are flooding in. California will be a fully-fledged and Federally Subsidized Socialist Republic. Our first, but not our last.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseMr. Davis Hanson writes "If it is true, as often reported, that 2,000–3,000 residents are leaving California per week, and that many of them are top earners, will the additional taxes entice them back, or do we simply wish them, and many of the jobs they create, good riddance?"
Why hasn't he bothered to check for any sources to confirm the statement above is true? Where does he get the information that all such people leaving are "job creators"?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI am a native Californian. I left in 2005. My salary was over $100,000 per year. I don't know the veracity of the "2,000-3,000" claim. I don't care. There are too many "looters and moochers."
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseHow is it a good thing regardless WHO they are? They're losing what is certainly many productive citizens, and hence, their tax base.
Healthy economies have growing populations, not shrinking ones. What's your point in even questioning this?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseMr. Hanson should have cited sources to support his assertion, such as this one:
External Link
Year after year, more folks leave California than move there from other states.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse5.4 businesses per week leaving CA:
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It's not just people leaving California, but also people deciding not to become residents that cost the state wealth. I know people who have vacation homes in California who have to very carefully monitor the amount of time they spend in these homes to avoid being declared residents. If they didn’t have such fear, they conceivable could spend more time, and money, in California instead of fleeing back to their state of residence to avoid the confiscatory tax rates.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseANOTHER tax hike.
All the interior West Governors should send Moonbeam a thank you note!
The definition of insanity is ...
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI'm a life-long resident who's old enough and well off enough to live out the rest of my days here. But I worry about my kids, even though they've got good jobs.
This proposal is beyond crazy. California already is highly reliant on the taxes paid by the very highest earners. While I don't travel among the truly wealthy, I personally know two people whose businesses allow them to operate anywhere and who have established residence in Nevada. They took a look at their tax returns (9.3% marginal rate, with exemptions and deductions largely phased out) and said, 'Gee, why don't I use that $40,000 a year to buy a nice primary residence (cough) in Incline Village.'
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI hope when the leave, they change their voting habits, please don't come to my state and pull the lever D
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseFully 20 to 30% of the job ads that I am seeing on the various boards, are for companies in CA. Given the fact that CA's unemployment rate is well above the national average, they should be having no trouble filling many of those positions. Yet obviously those positions are going unfilled.
At least 2 or 3 times a day I'm contacted by a recruiter trying to hire for a CA position. I suspect that most other high tech candidates have similar experiences.
Many who can, have left the state, and few who don't have to, are willing to move there.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe situation will only continue to get worse.
I'll verify the constant contact to hire for CA.
At wages sometimes below and rarely more than 20% higher than I make in Atlanta, GA. In other words, they want me to move to CA and be worse off.
I don't want to leave Atlanta (I worked for a couple of years to get here) but this people are just crazy. I'd expect at least a 50% premium over Atlanta to move to CA.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI'm seeing the same thing, but why would I move there when I can work in Austin or Northern Virginia?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAs if by fate, an email via Dice:
"I have 30 openings in LA for Permanent/FTE Perl Back-end developers. Each role is a bit different in nature.
Estimated total compensation, for these roles likely around 90k-115k salary.
Would you like to consider
Start Date: ASAP"
So, I make the high end of that in Atlanta, GA as a perl back end developer (glue and control for C++ code doing large mathematical modeling as well as light math in Perl).
From BestPlaces.com (External Link
)
"A salary of $105,000 in Atlanta, Georgia should increase to $146,681 in Los Angeles, California"
Los Angeles is 40% more expensive than Atlanta.
Housing is the biggest factor in the cost of living difference.
Housing is 94% more expensive in Los Angeles.
Of six areas of comparison LA is cheaper in 0. The closest is miscellaneous with Atlanta 99 and LA 106.
Why would anyone take any of those jobs.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseMarc - Spot on. A major competitor in my industry had several senior level positions open - but unfilled - in their LA office for over a year. I was approached about it but determined that the lifestyle I have in Florida would require 2X my current salary just to break even in LA. The company eventually decided to service the Southern California region from their Phoenix office. Go figure.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIt is truly sad, very regretful.
But we can see the formula, which fuels the disastrous Democratic Partisan failure. It is a recipe born on playing on fashionable acceptance, the ultimate in identity games. The Democratic Partisans who dominate most Media venues manipulate what is deemed popular and acceptable. They exploit an American Public with repetition, distortion, fraud, playing on the most emotive followers. Many only adhere to the narrative because of their natural human desire to belong. Often, a target is employed, a fictional enemy is promoted to distract many from analyzing the true content of the offering. The political gaming is managed with this tired strategy for nearly every issue. Soon, you see some of the most well intentioned Americans repeating the most absurd, such as "tax cuts are evil". Thus in the end, a very misguided concept like raising taxation again in California actually succeeds.
We see this game played over and over. Even with the enormous failure of collectivism (socialism, communism, etc.) throughout the Globe, the Democratic Partisan Machine is pushing the worst upon all in the USA. The irony of the collapsing Greece, only becomes sheer irony when one contemplates the enormous mess created by Democratic Partisans in California.
At least in NJ, the Democratic Party had created such a disaster, the larger majority of the Public rejected the deceitful theme, and elected a sound Gov. in a rare moment of sanity.
But today we see similar fashion embraced on the once sound side. The same emotive push, the overwhelming sense of belonging, is creating a pure identity game within the once powerful Conservative offering. Folks are actually lavishing their devotion upon a disgraced Beltway Insider named Newt Gingrich who raked in 1.8 Million via Fannie and Freddie for the Nomination. All in the sake of a very distorted image. If you question the obvious folly with this terrible offering which is guaranteed to return Obama to the White House for another 4 years - you are met not with substance, reason, logic, but with the same stylish debasing we often see employed on the Democratic Side.
It is no wonder why we continue to see the enormous problems facing the American Public encouraged instead of being addressed, as few seem to be focused on reality, reason, logic.
The superficial reigns in this point in American History, and it is heading us all towards a cliff.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYou know what, Old Fan? I saw your handle on a long comment, and I just skimmed the buildup to find the part where you would suddenly veer in another direction from the original post's topic to either (1) make a pitch for Romney or (2) bash his current biggest rival.
You did not fail me, sir.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseSo - Old Fan's done this before? And he made it seem so easy. From California voters to New Jersey voters to New Jersey's governor to ... Newt Gingrich who made money from Fannie & Freddie.
Poor George. I mean Mitt. So nice. So decent. So bland.
Even G.H.W.Bush could manage to liven things up a little by barfing on the Emperor of Japan.
Maybe Mitt could dream up some sniper fire when he visited Staples HQ.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseWe in Northern Nevada rejoice each time California raises taxes or devises new regulations. It buoys our property markets and bolsters job creation in the Silver State. So, please come to Reno, Carson City, Incline Village, etc (all just 2 hours or so from Sacramento). Just don't forget to jettison your big government and leftist ideas before you arrive, so as not to despoil your new home.
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