Government Spending

EDITORIAL: HJTA helps draw battle lines over taxpayer rights in Orange County

dcota — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:23:54 -0700

Charter Amendment 617, a controversial budget initiative in Huntington Beach, will be on the ballot this November thanks to financial backing from the HJTA. Standing up for local taxpayers shows that the HJTA is ready to "put its money where its mouth is," says the Orange County Register.

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NEWS: Huntington Beach Councilman Devin Dwyer finds tax ally in HJTA

dcota — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:16:40 -0700

In 2002, the citizens of Huntington Beach voted to put 15% of their city budget toward infrastructure improvements. But city lawyers found a loophole that let them spend the money otherwise. Now, with help from the HJTA, Councilman Devin Dwyer hopes to close that loophole and teach the city a lesson in fiscal responsibility.

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EDITORIAL: Conjuring Magic To Cover States’ Debts: Fiscal Reality Sets In

SSuttie — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 14:26:15 -0700

New American editorial on the harsh realities cities and states are having to face in terms of budget shortfalls, whether it be spending cuts, tax and fee increases, or filing for bankruptcy.

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ARTICLE: California's High Speed Rail Dream

tgaul — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:36:11 -0800

CNNMoney.com reports on the recent progress of legislators to get approval for California's $40 billion high-speed rail project. However, as studies sponsored by HJTA and other taxpayer organizations have shown, the plan has a faulty business model and could turn out to be one of the most monumental wastes of taxpayer dollars in recent history.

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ARTICLE: L.A. County’s $6M Office Supply Habit

tgaul — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:15:22 -0800

The Daily News reports on an effort by Los Angeles County officials to cut their runaway office supply budget. Thanks to a system that allows employees to choose their own supplies, the county spends $195,000 a year on pens alone. Kris Vosburgh, Executive Director of the HJTA, applauds the effort by County CEO Bill Fujioka to stop this waste of taxpayer money.

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ARTICLE: State Spends $75MM on Vehicles and Furniture in Budget Crisis

tgaul — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:03:02 -0800

The Los Angeles Times reports that government agencies like Caltrans, spent around $75 million last year on what could be seen as frivolous vehicles and furniture. This occurred after a direct order from the governor to cut spending on these types of expenses.

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EDITORIAL: America Crashing and Burning, California Style

tgaul — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 09:19:32 -0800

This featured story on BigJournalism.com tracks the unfortunate government policies, which have have ravaged California's economy and caused businesses to leave the state in droves. Some of these policies, such as tightly regulated business and lavish spending on the public sector, are now being seen on the national level through the Obama administration. Using California as an example, the U.S. economy could be in serious trouble in the coming years. Read more >>

ARTICLE: For Government, Let the Good Times Roll

tgaul — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 08:14:29 -0800

On the National Review Online, editor Rich Lowry has written a report on the the contrast between the financial prosperity of private citizens and that of government employees. In the last year, the percentage of government employees making more than $100K a year has jumped to around 20%, while the rest of the U.S. is experiencing the worst unemployment in recent history.

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ARTICLE: Pension Warning From Source

tgaul — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 09:53:20 -0700

This article, published by the Orange County Register, explains how CalPERS' top actuary has warned that a large group of state employee pensions are completely unsustainable and are driving California's debt. The California Foundation for Fiscal Responsibility recently published a database that shows more than 5,100 Retirees that receive more than $100,000. Clearly something must be done to change the pension system.

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ARTICLE: Governor Suggests Major Pension Reform

jmonma — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 13:51:26 -0700

As the new budget goes into effect, California's future financial health remains in question. Thus, as a next step, the governor has called for large-scale reform of state pensions that cost the state several billions of dollars. As this article on WKTB.com discusses, this step is controversial but may be necessary to secure the state's financial future.

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