Payton
Schwarz
English 2
A State in
Crisis. The Effects of Proposition 30 on
California Residents
Everyone
can admit that the state of California is in trouble. We have less money than ever before compared
to our ever-rising population, and the education system is seeming to feel the
brunt of recent cuts done to the state’s funding. With classes becoming more crammed, waitlists
getting longer, tuition rising, and the quality of education degrading- the
state is running out of options other than drastic budget cuts in an attempt to
save, or bring in more money to California.
With the rich getting richer than ever before, and the poor becoming
poorer, the choice is quite clear. Tax
the rich.
Proposition
30 is an attempt by Governor Jerry Brown to bring in much-needed revenue to the
State by creating a new tax bracket for those who make $250,000+ annually, as
well as raising sales tax by .25%. These
measures are temporary as the income tax hike will last for 7 years, and the
sales tax hike for 4. These measures are
estimated to bring in roughly $6 billion annually to the state, which will
divided amongst K-12 schools and community colleges. With the state of California banking on
Proposition 30 passing, there have been pre-determined “trigger cuts” of $5.4
billion that will take effect immediately if Proposition 30 is not passed, due
to the fact that there will be a near $6 billion gap in the budget.
The
effects of Proposition 30 not passing could be devastating. “Failure of Proposition 30, backed by the
governor, would trigger a $250-million funding cut to the Cal State
system. The 5% tuition hike – equal to
$150 per semester – would raise an estimated $58 million in revenue in fiscal
2012-13, officials said”(LA Times). These drastic measures are going to have to
take place in order to try and make up for the lost funding that 30 would bring
in. The “logic” behind this, is that
raising tuition and cutting funding will bring in revenue. While technically this is true, it also has
the potential to worsen the system as it will make college that much more unaffordable
for the common household. Speaking from
experience, I have several friends currently in this predicament. They want to enroll in school, but they don’t
want to go into debt up to their eyeballs getting an education that could prove
to not help them when they graduate.
Students are no longer guaranteed a job out of college, and will be in
debt hundreds of thousands of dollars fresh out of college – so as the rest of
us, the 99% are suffering, the top 1% will see zero impact on their day-to-day
lives. Proposition 30 will ensure that
the rich get taxed the appropriate amount, even though sales tax will rise by
.25%. So yes, a little shared sacrifice
is necessary to get a bigger reward at the end, in form of a very lucrative
fund known as the EPA, which is responsible for the expenditure of the
Proposition 30 revenue.
Another
measure that needs to be addressed in regards to the rich becoming richer than
ever before is Proposition 13, which was instated in 1978 to help cope with the
ever-rising property tax values at the time.
“…Proposition 13 declared that property taxes could rise no more than 2
percent a year… Each new wave of homebuyers would be assessed taxes at a higher
sales price… Proposition 13, as a revenue generator, depends on ever rising
house prices. Our grown children will
only be able to offer a higher purchase price if they have higher
earnings. That crucially depends on
their level of education.” (Sacramento Bee).
So now, people with “old money” are remaining on top of the game with a
rock-bottom tax rate while the rest of us are guaranteed to be purchasing real
estate at a higher tax bracket than the generation before us. This needs to end. The monetary oppression the majority of the
nation is feeling is stemming from a very select group of individuals that have
the majority of the wealth in their pocket.
These individuals see capitalism as a game, and dollars are the
game-pieces. And they’re on a steady
pace to owning all the pieces, leaving us to be wage-slave-gulag-workers, more
so than we already are.
The
effects of Proposition 30 & 13 have affected me personally and those close
to me. School continues to get more and
more expensive as my classes get more crammed than they already are. Plus
having a family of realtors isn’t helping the situation. Home prices are plummeting, but the property
tax remains the same, even for those in the top 1%. The eventual outcome of lack-there-of reform
can, and will lead to the disappearance of the middle class, leaving
individuals to be under-paid employees to those who are calling all the
shots. This cannot happen to a country
whose primary foundation used to be personal freedom, liberty, and the pursuit
of happiness. These oligarchic
individuals are doing no favors to this nation and deserve to be taxed the
appropriate amount - which will only total to a 1%-3% increase depending on
income.
Some
say that the sales tax hike is unfair to those who are not making a six-figure
paychecks, but unfortunately California desperately needs these revenue, and a
.25% rise in sales tax will total out to 1 penny, for every $4 spent. Plus, the sales tax increase is only for four
years, while the income tax hike will remain in effect for 7. And with the fact that Prop 30 is temporary,
if it turns out that this measure is bunk, it will automatically be repealed
after its set time is expired. But, if
it reveals that this measure helps the state, as it should, there is the
potential to make it permanent. Also,
addressing the critics that “the state cannot guarantee where the money is
being spent”, this is plain false. The
newly created EPA group will, by law, distribute the funds 89% to K-12
education and 11% to community colleges.
The
choice here seems pretty black & white.
The premise against Proposition 30 is that it supposedly “Does not
guarantee ANY new funding for schools” and that it “raises sales and income
taxes on ALL Californians as much as $50 Billion over the next seven years.”
(stopprop30.com). As we’ve covered
previously, the writing of Prop30 guarantees that the money will be distributed
appropriately throughout K-12 and Community Colleges. With the new tax bracket the rich will be
forced to be pay into the system that they themselves have taken advantage of. The day in age we live in today is an odd
one, a country that was founded on freedom and liberty is turning into an
oppressive business, that wants nothing more than submissive, ill-educated
employees. We as Americans need to fight
back and earn back our equality that has been stripped from us in the form of
dollars and cents. Vote yes on
Proposition 30 and to repeal Proposition 13.
