Budget director for California’s governor, fiscal conservative Mike Genest trashed Steve Poizner’s gimmick 10-10-10 plan in the latest George Skelton column in the Los Angeles Times.
Genest continues: “There’s no basis to believe that a tax cut now would be affordable given the budget situation the state faces. I know Rush Limbaugh is going to hate me.”
As for deeper spending cuts, Genest says: “You can always cut spending by 10%. The question is do you want to. We just tried to close parks, and that didn’t work out. We tried to take money away from women’s shelters and had to relent on that. . . .”
Poizner’s loyalists, in releasing this ridiculous plan, like claiming “high taxation” and “high regulations” are forcing businesses to flee, but that contention just doesn’t add up.
Many think any fleeing has more to do with high property costs, traffic congestion and subpar public schools.
“If high income taxes were chasing away rich Californians, high-income households would be more likely than low-income households to move to states without income taxes, but they aren’t,” the Public Policy Institute of California reported in July. And two years ago, the institute found that “when California businesses relocate, most stay within — rather than moving out of — the state.”
(Hat tip: Robert Cruickshank, Calitics)