You hear a lot about “anti-tax sentiment” but when voters are given the choice of raising taxes or cutting services, they usually want the taxes.
St. Louis voters overwhelmingly — 63% to 37% — voted to increase taxes to support mass transit programs. Voters also approved a number of property tax increases to help schools.
In other local elections yesterday, Kennett Missouri voters passed a tax increase 66% to 34% and Provincetown, Mass voters approved new taxes.
In January Oregon voters approved income tax increases on the wealthy and corporations “to prevent further erosion of public schools and other state services.”
If the honest case is made and the public is allowed to see that we have a revenue problem in California, not a spending problem, the public will be more willing to open its pocketbooks to fund the services they want and expect.
California should just let the tax question go to the voters without such restrictions on democracy as a 2/3 requirement. As these election results show, for most people obviously “taxes” isn’t a dirty word. If conservatives want to say it is why won’t they just allow an “up or down” vote?