The economy is getting better, the budget contains good news and revenues are way up -- except from corporate taxes.
From Capitol Weekly's Greg Lucas: "It’s a litany of good news in Gov. Jerry Brown’s election-year budget. Safety net programs are being shored up. Debt is being repaid. Revenues are rising."
"Except for corporate taxes..."
"At $8 billion this year, the taxes collected from most of California’s major businesses are $4.4 billion less than what they were in the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2005. In 2003, the Franchise Tax Board reported that corporate taxes were less than they were in 1985, when adjusted for inflation."
The potential for a catastrophic drought is jangling the nerves of many, but it's not like droughrt and California are strangers.
From the Mercury-News' Paul Rogers: "Through studies of tree rings, sediment and other natural evidence, researchers have documented multiple droughts in California that lasted 10 or 20 years in a row during the past 1,000 years -- compared to the mere three-year duration of the current dry spell. The two most severe megadroughts make the Dust Bowl of the 1930s look tame: a 240-year-long drought that started in 850 and, 50 years after the conclusion of that one, another that stretched at least 180 years."
"We continue to run California as if the longest drought we are ever going to encounter is about seven years," said Scott Stine, a professor of geography and environmental studies at Cal State East Bay. "We're living in a dream world."
"California in 2013 received less rain than in any year since it became a state in 1850. And at least one Bay Area scientist says that based on tree ring data, the current rainfall season is on pace to be the driest since 1580 -- more than 150 years before George Washington was born. The question is: How much longer will it last?"
When voters approved Proposition 39, they thought they were closing a corporate tax looophole and providing $1 billion annually for an array of good programs. It's not quite working out that way.
From EdSource's Kimberly Beltran: "According to figures released this month by Gov. Jerry Brown’s Department of Finance, the state is expecting to receive about $700 million annually from the Proposition 39 initiative – far less than the $1 billion-a-year anticipated when the measure was sold to voters last November..."
"Based on 2010 income tax data, the Brown administration estimated that Proposition 39 would bring in $928 million in 2013-14 and nearly $1 billion annually the next four years. But 2011 data showing a drop in those revenues forced the governor to revise Prop. 39 figures downward to $675 million in the current year and $726 million in 2014-15 budget.
California has women as both U.S. Senators, an incoming Assembly Speaker who is a woman, a woman attorney general and women as key committee chairs in the Legislature. But there has been a drop in the number of women in the Legislature and women's advocates fear it may signal a trend.
From the AP's Don Thompson: "The number of women in the 120-member Legislature has fallen from a peak of 37 in 2006 to 32 this year, and groups that promote women running for public office are concerned the trend will continue this election year. They also worry about how the drop-off will affect policy decisions in future years..."
"There is a general perception that California is doing well because women who are in office hold such powerful positions, she said. Both the state's U.S. senators are women, it is home to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Assemblywoman Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, is poised to become the next speaker of the state Assembly, and California's attorney general and secretary of state are women."
"Yet Duval fears women could lose three to five legislative seats this year, accelerating what has been a gradual decline. Moreover, newly expanded term limits (to 12 years in each chamber) mean incumbents could lock out female challengers for more than a decade."
Food stamps, once seen as the purview of the elderly, children and the disadvantaged, have a far broader base -- working families.
From the AP in Politico: "In a first, working-age people now make up the majority in U.S. households that rely on food stamps - a switch from a few years ago, when children and the elderly were the main recipients..."
"Food stamp participation since 1980 has grown the fastest among workers with some college training, a sign that the safety net has stretched further to cover America’s former middle class, according to an analysis of government data for The Associated Press by economists at the University of Kentucky. Formally called Supplemental Nutrition Assistance, or SNAP, the program now covers 1 in 7 Americans."
And from our "Great Stories of Product Placement" file comes the heart-warming tale of the guy who risked his life to save his Xbox console.
"As ABC15 reports, the man's Olathe, Kan., home was on fire."
"He woke up during the night to discover this phenomenon. He made it outside before the fire engulfed him."
"However, what engulfed him shortly afterward was a burning desire not to be parted from his Xbox. So, as if it were a scene from one of his favorite games, he rushed back inside to rescue his system."
"He found it and rushed back out of the house again."
It brings tears to your eyes ....
