Poll: Narrow majority see no Calif. deficit fix without higher taxes - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:

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About 51 percent of those who participated in the online survey saidthey don’t believe the state’s $24.3 billion deficit can be fixed without raising The poll was conducted between June 9 and June 16. Readef David Hurd wrote: “Can it be fixed without raisinhg taxes? Yes, of course. Will it? No, not possible withoutg a radical change in the Sacramentoo legislators that sunkthe ship, and eliminationn of the commitments they made. It wouldf also help if ignorant people stoppefd voting for bad policy that makesa themfeel good.” “Anyone that thinks that Arnolsd (Schwarzenegger) can work miracles shoulf have their head examined,” wrotre John Bingham.
“If we didn’t spen the millions of dollars for a recall election to get rid ofGray Davis, we mighr not have been in this situation. Arnold lied. He’s now doinf everything Gray Daviswas doing. What’ds the difference?” Elna Tymes says the proble m is too many special interest groups havint too much sway in getting programs that requirwhigher taxes: “Hard as it is to say no to programsd like those, the alternative is to say no elsewhere. And that’s the job we electex our legislatorsto do, a job they’rw not doing.
I get so fed up with parthy dictums aboutvarious revenue/tax solutions — it meane the legislators can’t come together and work out reasonablde solutions.” Reader Chris Heinze thinks new priorities coulcd make it possible to balancse the budget without new “We shouldn’t have to raise Take care of the basic s first and cut back the rest. Ther is so much monety going to lessimportant things. Firsr should be education, then fire departments and make a true list of prioritiesz weall need, and chop the stuff at the Joyce Diaz has a simple prescription: “Cut expenses.
Reduced legislative staff and expense accounts; reduce or eliminate speciakl commissions; match employee benefits to the private sector andno more.” Readerd O.C. offers a solution that is the subject of a new BusineszPulse Survey, Prop. 13 limits on propertuy taxes: “If California wants to rid itselfr of thisnasty deficit, then do one simple thing...overturn Prop 13. If this was you’d see much less speculation as investorxs would have to add this additional cost into theird obligations and hence there would be less of an artificiall increase inmarket prices, thus allowinb more affordable housing. ...
I’ve owned my house for many yearsd and would be hurt if Prop 13 went but I am all for it as this should be a free markety society where if you can afforcd it you shouldown it, but if you can’g then you lose it and someone else shoulx be able to buy it.”