California lawmakers need to look at other pots of unused state funding. For instance, redirecting First 5 money to other children’s programs such as health care, using Proposition 63 (Mental Health Initiative) funding for mental health services and selling the state’s many surplus properties.
A recent study done by the American Legislative Exchange Counsel reveals a significant number of people are leaving California. This is significant because it marks the first time in California history that more people are leaving than moving into the Golden State.
The latest Census Bureau data indicated that in 2005, 239,416 people left, with similar numbers of emigrants in 2003 and 2004.
The native-born out migration flows have become so systemic that the cost to rent a U-Haul trailer to move from Los Angeles to Boise, Idaho, is $2,090 — six times more than the cost of moving in the opposite direction.
The weight of California’s tax burden is very clear when you compare the amount of taxes each Californian pays relative to residents of other states. According to the most recent data available from the U.S. Census Bureau, Californians pay an average of $2,392 in state taxes, the highest per person of the eight largest states.
The real growth killer is California’s steeply “progressive” income tax with a 10.3% rate applied to high-income residents — the highest in the nation outside New York City.
The richest 10% of Californians pay almost 75% of the income tax burden in the state.
California’s employers are also feeling the pinch. This year, California’s business tax climate ranks 47th in the nation, based on 113 factors analyzed by the Tax Foundation.
