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President's 2027 contains a sharp cut to the Federal Transit Administration's Capital Investment Grant program which funds Bay Area transit boondoggles like BART to San Jose and Caltrain to Salesforce Transit Center. Both projects are scheduled for grant agreements in 2027.

And yet progressives' push for higher taxes in California continue unabated. "High-tax states continue to lose tens of billions of dollars in taxable income to low-tax states." @hjta. wsj.com/opinion/states… via @WSJopinion

The truth on California’s gas taxes & fees: Californians pay the HIGHEST gas taxes in America—70.9¢/gal, more than DOUBLE the national average.

The Budget and Government Efficiency Committee will consider the issuance of Tax and Revenue Anticipation Notes (TRANs) at today’s meeting. TRANs are frequently issued by local governments to cover day-to-day expenses until sales or property tax revenue is received (essentially a payday loan taken out by the city, with the associated interest and administrative costs). If approved, this would be the first time since 2013 that TRANs have been issued by #SanDiego. They are needed because of the city’s weakening financial position. sandiego.hylandcloud.com/211agendaonlin…

We're hearing a lot about waste, fraud and abuse in state spending these days. Yet state government doesn't do a very good job finding it - and they don't do much about it when uncovered. Read my latest for @PacificResearch Right by the Bay to learn why. pacificresearch.org/why-dont-we-fi…

Newsom's next claim is that the parrot is still alive. "Fact-Checking Newsom’s Absurd Low-Tax California Claim." @hjta. dailysignal.com/2026/03/18/new…

Court orders changes to biased ballot question written by the proponents of Contra Costa County sales tax measure. mercurynews.com/2026/04/03/law…

Regrettably true. "California Judges Are Major Contributor to State's Poor Business Climate." @hjta. californiaglobe.com/fr/california-…

The 60 Minutes high-speed rail piece is pretty fair. Notable that Newsom refused an interview request. My biggest quibbles: Brightline West will not open for service in 2029. Best case per @Lucid_Stew is 2031. The current $126 billion CaHSR estimate pays for SF-LA in > 4hrs.

"San Diego has slipped into the same bad governance morass in which other major cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco find themselves. This is especially true when it comes to taxes. For San Diego politicians, there is double trouble. First, San Diego imposed a first-ever trash fee on single-family homes, which has generated a lot of hostility among the city’s homeowners both because of the amount of the fee as well as the deception used to bring it about." "San Diego’s second tax controversy is even more confounding. On March 3, the San Diego City Council backed placing a huge 'vacant house' tax increase on the June ballot. "Not only is this unwarranted tax unlikely to achieve its stated objective of increasing housing availability, but it will also result in litigation that the city is bound to lose. A similar tax in San Francisco was recently rejected in a Superior Court ruling that determined it was both unconstitutional and pre-empted by state law. That case is on appeal, but the legal footing for the levy is on very shaky grounds." hjta.org/california-com…

This @60Minutes piece on California's high speed rail disaster is incredible. From the comparison to costs in other countries to the questions about where the money went (consultants, lawyers, vendors), and how much supporters like Gavin Newsom have moved the goalposts. ⏰

The words "in theory" do a lot of work in this sentence.

As teacher union activists blame Covid-era learning-loss for current poor performance of California schools, it's fun to recall their allies in closing schools. Here's the incorrigible @hiltzikm from 2020: "Inside Orange County's bizarre school-reopening vote" latimes.com/business/story…

Republican Candidate for CA Governor Steve Hilton says if elected, he’ll push to completely cut state income tax on individuals making $100k or less. He acknowledged it would require CALeg negotiation. “I’d love to see Democrats stand against cutting taxes for working people.”

30% of the cost of California’s $6 gasoline is from state-specific taxes, mandates, and surcharges. With almost half of U.S. imports coming in through California, every American pays for California’s self-induced energy crisis.

When you realize it's a union jobs program and not a transportation project, the state’s commitment to throwing endless money at it makes a lot more sense.

For context for Steyer's '1 million homes in 4 years' goal, Gavin Newsom ran for governor in 2018 aiming to build 3,500,000 new housing units in California by 2025. Per the CA Department of Finance's housing estimates, he fell 2,786,200 housing units shy of reaching his goal.

The city of #SanDiego has a history of mismanaging prime real estate. In 2021 the city approved a 99-year lease with San Diego Unified School District to allow San Diego High School to remain on city owned land. While leasing land to the #SDUSD in not necessarily against the interests of the taxpayers, the terms of the lease have been questioned. “No competent real estate lawyer would advise the owner of land to lease it for such a long term. Conditions change over time, and no knowledgeable person would give up control of a parcel of extremely valuable property for 99 years.” fox5sandiego.com/news/local-new… sandiego.hylandcloud.com/211agendaonlin… sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/04/04/wha…

The Transit Industrial Complex loves to tout the benefits of the $2.4 billion investment in Caltrain electrification. Yet farebox recovery remains well below 2019 levels and the Board is threatening to decimate service without a new taxpayer bailout.

Opinion: Editorial: Fullerton wants to tax public to fix dumb mistake ocregister.com/2026/04/01/edi…