Wrong way to run a budget
Re “The May ballot scam,” Opinion, March 29
I support Propositions 1B through 1E, which reallocate dedicated funds to help balance the budget, because I voted against the programs in the first place. As a public-sector budget analyst, I am appalled by efforts to impose taxes and/or add spending to the budget (including bond issues) through the initiative process.
These special-interest taxes -- no matter how noble the purpose, they are special interests -- deny the governor and Legislature flexibility to prioritize. If anything, these upcoming propositions don’t go far enough -- they should abolish the guaranteed funding for these programs and let them compete with every other line item in the budget.
Former Mayor Richard Riordan asks: “Can you really support propositions that will drastically cut services to the state’s neediest -- especially after legislators increased the state sales tax, a regressive tax that places a larger burden on the poor?”
The answer is yes. Perhaps if these special funds didn’t exist, the sales tax might not have needed to increase as much.
Raymond White
Pasadena
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