While President Obama continues his tax the millionaires (actually those who make $250,000 per year) mantra in order to pay for the payroll tax holiday set to expire in 30 days, California Governor Jerry Brown hoping to tax all residents in the not-so Golden State.

The Democratic leadership and union members in Sacramento are putting the final touches on a November 2012 ballot initiative that would make Californians the highest-taxed state in the nation.

Currently, California is facing monumental billion dollar budget shortfalls and Governor Brown wants residents to vote for a tax increase to narrow the gap. In June of this year, state legislators voted on a supposed-balance budget, but underestimating expenditures has left a $12.8 billion hole for the state.

Democrats are hoping good-natured residents will elect to increase the state sales tax by half-a-cent for the next four years.The tax measure would also levy a 1 percent income tax on income earners who make $250,000, 1.5 percent on income over $300,000 and a 2 percent income tax on those earning more than $500,000. Effectively the state income tax would increase from 10.3 percent to 12.3 percent making California the most expensive state to live. Governor Brown anticipates the increase will raise $7 billion, still shy of the $13 billion budget deficit.

California tax crusader, Richard Rider of San Diego Tax Fighters points out the hard reality for Golden State residents. “If passed, California will advance from the third highest income tax state to numero uno. Any sane rich person HAS to be thinking of moving out of the state.”

Rider explains that Maryland already enacted a smaller tax proposal with some glaring results. “About three years ago, Maryland raised its millionaires income tax. The following year, one out of every eight millionaires no longer filed Maryland income tax forms. A few died – the rest left. The net Maryland tax revenue from millionaires declined – and the state economy suffered from the loss of the big spenders. And the Maryland tax increase was only a FRACTION of the huge percentage increase being proposed by Governor Brown.”

To find out how dreadful California taxes are compared to the nation, please click Richard Rider’s Breaking Bad blog for complete up-to-date tax information; http://open.salon.com/blog/richard_rider/2011/11/30/breaking_bad_ca_vs_the_other_states_rev_112611

San Diego’s Stop Taxing Us has also indicated that the state doesn’t have a revenue problem, but a spending problem.

"The State of California is in the middle of a budget crisis and revenue is not the problem," said Dr. Gary Gonsalves, MD, the co-founder of Stop Taxing Us. "We have structural spending issues which must be fixed if the government of California is to live within its means." Gonsalves cites one of the biggest offenders is the state pension crisis and transfer payment programs. This is just a math problem. We can't raise taxes anymore; the people won't stand for it. If we can't raise taxes, how can we balance our budget? We have to cut spending."

Rhonda Deniston, a director of Stop Taxing Us, argued against the higher taxes being proposed in Sacramento. "Every time California raises taxes, productive individuals flee the state, taking businesses and jobs with them."

In an effort to curb California’s spending problem, Stop Taxing Us has proposed “The Promise to California Taxpayers. We intend to offer the Promise as a way for fiscal conservatives, regardless of party affiliation, to articulate clearly that raising taxes is something they will never, ever do. We want to make it easy for candidates to tell the voters where they stand. Additionally, we want California taxpayers to know which candidates protect them and, should the unfortunate happen...that is... if a candidate breaks his/her promise in office, we want to let the taxpayers know that their governing actions were inconsistent with their campaign rhetoric," said Brian Brady of Stop Taxing Us.

For more stories; http://www.examiner.com/county-political-buzz-in-san-diego/kimberly-dvorak

© Copyright 2011 Kimberly Dvorak All Rights Reserved.