This article originally appeared in the May-June 2008 issue of the Children's Advocate, published by Action Alliance for Children.

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Children's Advocates Roundtable

State budget crisis: Get the facts

Tax system weak

Two Steps Back: Should California Cut Its Way to a Balanced Budget?, by the California Budget Project, explains why California is now facing a “budget gap” of $16 billion. One reason is recent tax cuts and imbalances. For example:

• Tax cuts made since 1993-94 cost the state $12 billion this year.

• The 1998 cut in the vehicle license fee accounts for more than half that total: $6.1 billion.

• Corporations pay a smaller share of their profits in taxes than 25 years ago—if they paid at the same rate now as in 1981, the state would have $7.3 billion more.

• The sales tax has declined as a share of personal income—because more income is now spent on services, which aren’t taxed, and on goods bought by mail or over the internet. If we paid the same percentage now as in 1966-67, the state would have $15.9 billion more.

• The lower your income, the higher percentage of your income you pay in state and local taxes—the poorest 1/5 of California families pay 11.7%, the richest 1/5 pay 7.1%.

See the report at www.cbp.org/pdfs/2008/
080207_chartbookmasterbullets.pdf

These tax issues are why Lenny Goldberg of California Tax Reform Association says, “We don’t have a spending problem, we have a revenue problem”—the reverse of Governor Schwarzenegger’s statement.

For information on ways California could increase revenue, contact California Tax Reform Association, 916-446-4300, wwwcaltaxreform.org.

Proposed cuts would hurt

• The 100 Percent Campaign has posted fact sheets on its web site explaining the impact of proposed cuts to health care, www.100percentcampaign.org.

• The California Budget Project web site provides fact sheets including “The Impact of Budget Cuts on Children, Seniors, and Women,” and “Who in Each County Would Be Affected by the Governor’s Proposed Budget Cuts,” www.cbp.org.

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Fighting cuts to children’s programs

The Children’s Advocates Roundtable is mobilizing its 300 member organizations to fight proposed budget cuts that would hurt children. This network is encouraging its members to organize local delegations to visit legislators in their district offices and explain the impact budget cuts would have on children, with personal stories to illustrate the issues. The Roundtable’s key message is Our Children, Our Duty, Our Future.

For info: Children’s Advocacy Institute, 916-444-3875

Children and family organizations are gearing up to fight the budget cuts, including Children Now (510-763-2444), the Children’s Defense Fund (510-663-3224 or 213-749-8787), the California Partnership (213-385-8010 or 415-314-7704), Parent Voices (415-882-0234) and many more.

Together for California’s Future is an unusually broad coalition including organizations of seniors, parents, teachers, firefighters, law enforcement officers, school employees, health care advocates, environmentalists, people with disabilities, caregivers, and working families. They are working to “coordinate activities that make real the human impact of the cuts,” says Anthony Wright, executive director of Health Access. “We need to press legislators to stop cuts by promoting an alternative to a cuts-only budget that also includes taxes and revenues.” If legislators refuse to consider new revenue, “we need to hold them accountable for the cuts that would inevitable.”

For info: Jeanine Rodriguez, jrodriguez@seiucal.org. To join the coalition, email dbasurto@cta.org for an endorsement form.

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Paid sick leave movement grows

Action: A growing movement for paid sick leave in California is rallying support for a paid sick leave law, AB 2716 (Ma).

Background: Two of every five California workers—and three-quarters of low-income workers—have no paid sick days at all. When they or their children are sick, they have to work anyway, or face loss of income. AB 2716 (Ma) would guarantee a minimum number of paid sick days for all workers. The California Working Families Coalition, which includes labor, community, religious, women’s, and legal organizations, is coordinating a campaign to get the legislature and governor to pass this bill.

Meanwhile the National Partnership for Women and Families is coordinating a national paid sick leave campaign.

For info: Brenda Munoz, Labor Project for Working Families, 510-643-7088 www.paidsickdaysca.org/, National Partnership for Women and Families, 202-986-2600, www.everyonegetssick.org

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On the Ballot June 3rd

Proposition 98: Property Owners and Private Property Protection Act

This measure would

• Prohibit state and local governments from taking private property to turn over to another private owner

• Eliminate rent control and other renter protections, except for current tenants

• Prohibit taking private property for a public agency “for consumption of natural resources”

• Prohibit property regulations that economically benefit other people at the owner’s expense.

Supporters say: “Right now, government has the right to take private property—our homes, family farms, mom-and-pop small businesses—to build a sports stadium, big-box chain store, or a hotel,” says the Prop. 98 web site. “Proposition 98 is the only initiative that provides private property protections for ALL Californians by making it illegal for government to use force to take homes, small businesses, family farms and places of worship and transfer them to developers for their private use and profit,” writes the campaign. And supporters say “nothing in Prop. 98 would prohibit or limit legitimate land use decisions, zoning, workplace laws, or environmental protections.”

Supporters: Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, California Farm Bureau Federation, California Alliance to Protect Private Property Rights. Yes on 98: 916-556-1110, www.yesprop98.com

Opponents say: Proposition 98 “puts an already vulnerable population in a more vulnerable position,” says California Partnership organizer Armida Sawan. “Taking away rent control would mean at any point rents can rise.” California Partnership director Nancy Berlin adds, “Imagine how many more families will lose their homes!” Opponents point out that most of the funds for Prop. 98 come from apartment building and mobile-home-park owners.

In addition, opponents fear that language in Prop. 98 could bar needed water projects, which would “threaten water quality,” says Maggie Young of the League of Women Voters. She adds that Prop. 98 would “hurt the environment and thwart regulations that protect our neighborhoods.”

Opponents: Housing California, California Association of Police Chiefs, California Teachers Association, Sierra Club, League of Women Voters, California Partnership, Service Employees International Union. Yes on 99: 916-443-0872, www.eminentdomainreform.com

Proposition 99: Homeowners and Private Property Protection Act

This is an alternative to Proposition 98—it would apply only to owner-occupied homes. Prop. 99 would:

• Bar government from taking owner-occupied homes for private uses

• Include exceptions for public work or improvement, public health and safety protection, and crime prevention

• Prevent Prop. 98 from taking effect, if they both pass

Supporters say: Proposition 99 would undo the bad provisions in Proposition 98 that would hurt renters,” says Nancy Berlin. Both propositions would protect owners from transfers of their property to other private owners, but Prop. 99 “limits private property protection to owner-occupied houses,” says Young.

Supporters: Housing California, California Association of Police Chiefs, California Teachers Association, Sierra Club, League of Women Voters, California Partnership, Service Employees International Union. Yes on 99: 916-443-0872, www.eminentdomainreform.com

Opponents say: The campaign for Prop. 98 is leading opposition to Prop. 99 because it is more limited. Opponents point out that Prop. 99 "does nothing to protect small businesses, family farms, places of worship or renters. And, . . . it only protects single family owner-occupied homes that have been the primary place of residence for more than one year." In addition, they object Prop. 99's "poison pill" that would prevent Prop. 98 from taking effect.

Opponents: Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, California Farm Bureau Federation, California Alliance to Protect Private Property Rights. Yes on 98: 916-556-1110, www.yesprop98.com

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Sacramento in May: Advocacy days

May 7: Stand for Children (for child care), Parent Voices, 415-882-0234

May 7: Hunger Action Day, California Hunger Action Coalition, 415-777-4422 ( California Food Policy Advocates)

May 13-14: California Partnership Action Days (for low-income families), California Partnership, 213-385-8010, ext. 3 or 415-314-7704

May 15: Campaign for Quality Education (against budget cuts to schools), Californians for Justice, 510- 452-2728 or 562-951-1015

May 20: California Afterschool Challenge, California School Age Consortium, 415-957-9775

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