Vote For Prop. 30 - A Band-Aid Not A Cure

Public education and other state social services are in crisis. Every year the state faces a budget shortfall of billions of dollars. And year after year budget cuts are put forward as the only solution. The result has been more than 20 billion dollars cut from public education and social services in the past three years.

While the majority of Californians have been laid off or seen their wages fall behind the cost of living, there has been a huge shift in wealth into the hands of the rich. Over the past 20 years, the percentage of income of the richest Californians has risen from 12% to 20%, and corporate profits have soared. And they have benefited from huge tax breaks.

This November’s election ballot will be full of propositions, including Proposition 30, which is aimed at stopping budget “trigger cuts”, primarily to education. If Prop 30 passes it would raise an estimated $6 billion a year, which would then be used to fund education and other services. In subsequent years the money would be used to fund the K-14 system (which includes the community colleges). This is supposed to prevent deeper cuts to other state-funded programs.

Proposition 30 raises taxes on the rich.

• For the next seven years people reporting an income of more than $250,000 (or $500,000 filing jointly) will pay an additional one percent to three percent more income tax.

An increased sales tax

• For the next four years the sales tax will be raised ¼ of a cent for us all. This would mean a tax increase of 25 cents on every $100 we spend.

If Prop. 30 Fails – What They Propose To Cut

Vote For Prop. 30 And Then What?

A vote for Prop. 30 will not repair the damage done over the past years. It will not create a system of quality education and social services. But it will prevent these immediate cuts. It will also give some needed resources to the K-12 and community college systems that provide educational services to the majority of young people in the state.  But Prop 30 is only a stopgap measure, not a solution to the budget crisis. A real solution would require a lot more funding than Prop 30 can provide, and that won’t be gained by voting.

We should vote for Prop 30 but not limit ourselves to a few minutes in the voting booth.  We cannot afford to continue to rely on those in Sacramento. We can’t continue to hand over our resources to the rich. It is our future and the future of our children that is at stake. If we want real change than it will depend on what we do. We need to mobilize our own forces and make a real fight in our schools, workplaces, neighborhoods and in the streets.