A lot of people are confused about the sole statewide measure on the ballot today: Proposition 13. This prop holds the same title as one from 1978, which was related to property tax initiatives. The 1978 version of Prop 13 was written to limit the property tax rate on residential and commercial properties, preventing them from rising to astronomical levels.
The 2020 version of Prop 13 is a $15 billion bond measure for the repair and modernization of California public schools at the K-12 and college level. This bond measure would end up costing the state an estimated $27 billion when all is said and done—as interest accrues on bonds.
These bond measures cost enormous amounts of money and the state government does not have a great track record when it comes to managing large scale projects like this one. The money from this bond measure will most likely end up in the pockets of special interest groups and bureaucrats while students and teachers are left behind. The state will repair a few schools to mint condition to show off to the media, while the rest will be neglected.
The outcome is clear: the money will be squandered, and when it runs out they will pass another measure to further increase funding and put an even larger strain on taxpayers.
To be clear, there is an attempt coming later this year to repeal the property tax caps instituted by 1978’s Prop 13 in “The California Schools and Local Communities Funding Act of 2020.” It would assess the property tax limit on commercial real estate to fund public education because there is nothing like using education and children as an excuse to rob hardworking Californians of their money. It would remove existing limits on commercial property taxes and potentially put an enormous strain on small businesses. However, this initiative will not be on the ballot until November, whereas Prop 13 (2020) will be decided this March.
These two initiatives, Prop 13 (2020) and “The California Schools and Local Communities Funding Act of 2020,” are two completely separate initiatives, but they would both have terrible effects on our state. They both seek to place huge burdens on Californians in the name of education. If the state would actually take the time to properly manage its budget and come up with intelligent solutions to the education problem in California, then bills like these would not be necessary.
Californians should vote against Prop 13 today and against The California Schools and Local Communities Funding Act of 2020 in November. These initiatives exist because Democrats think that there’s only one solution to problems in California: more taxpayer money.
