They say children are the future, and so are bond repayments. Californians already rejected a school construction measure in 2020. This November they may once again answer “no” to a tax hike for the next generation.  Jon Coupal of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers' Assn daylights the disturbing data on Prop 2 in the Orange County Register: Prop 2’s $10 billion bond plus interest equals $18 billion, the union prices are 25-30% above market rate, and school districts will tax homeowners to pay the matching fund requirement.

We know this has happened to you. You're killing some time on your phone, scrolling through some local headlines, maybe clicking on a story . And after reading one sentence, you think: "this is b.s." The BBC provides a helpful 7-point guide to identifying precisely what type of b.s. that is.

Supe Ellenberg may wave away Newsom's enjoinments regarding our homeless neighbor's well-being as "not helpful," but the Governor's argument is rooted in a focus on the welfare and security of the unhoused.  The LA Times reports.

While County Supervisor Susan Ellenberg calls Gov. Newsom's request for SCC to get more serious about addressing unsafe encampments "not helpful," some Fresno County pols disagree, and start to debate more vigorous plans. Thaddeus Miller reports for the excellent Fresno Bee.

California voters are running on empty. Without input from the electorate, Sacramento changed the rules to increase the state gas tax yearly and siphon much of the money away from infrastructure. The Taxpayer Protection Act would have let voters pump the breaks on any new tax increases—but the state removed it from the ballot. With nowhere else to turn, US Representative Michelle Steel’s OC Register op/ed asks state leadership to suspend the gas tax.

To buy more time for SF’s flagging MUNI system, a November ballot measure will ask San Franciscans for yet another lifeline from ride-hail services. But even the so-called ComMUNIty Transit Act’s proponents admit that it’s a tourniquet for the SFMTA, the agency that runs MUNI. After two massive infusions of cash from state and local governments, SFMTA still faces a fiscal cliff in less than a year. SF Chronicle’s Ricardo Cano reports. 

On the heels of a savage state audit finding San Jose's Housing Dept had negligent oversight of fund disbursement to local non profits, comes a new city audit which finds more of the same dating back to 2021. And in SF, the never-ending parade of non profits discovered to have been fleecing the city continues. Info below from SJ Housing Dept memo and reporting from SF Standard. 

While some CA cities have dawdled since the Grant's Pass decision to change their flawed strategies toward addressing inhumane homeless encampments, Newsom appears ready to pressure those cities into greater action. NYT reports.