Allan Bartlett's Proposition Recommendations For November

I received my state issued voter information guide in the mail last week. So it's time to go over my recommendations on the proposed propositions. Most are pretty straight forward. Before I go into the why, here's the quick Cliff Notes version to take into the voting booth...

Prop 19.....YES
Prop 20.....YES
Prop 21.....NO
Prop 22.....NO
Prop 23.....HELL YES
Prop 24.....NO
Prop 25.....NO
Prop 26.....YES
Prop 27.....NO


Prop 19 would allow people 21 years or older to possess, cultivate, or transport marijuana for personal use. I was a little torn on this one because of all the new bureaucracies that this will set up. However that is offset by the fact that prohibition has never worked for drugs and will never work. Marijuana is easier for our children to obtain than alcohol. Why on earth we would keep the black market alive for this product is silly. This is also a bellwether freedom issue for me. So on balance, I am a YES on Prop 19.

Prop 20 would take the power of the state legislature away of drawing the congressional districts for reapportionment. This is a great idea. Our politicians should not be in the business of choosing their voters. A YES vote on Prop 20.

Prop 21. This one is so simple. If you think your taxes are too low in CA, vote yes on this one. If you think that the bureaucracy should make due with the current revenues that come in, then you should vote NO on Prop 21. This proposition will levy a new surcharge of $18 every time you send in your vehicle registration and then supposedly earmarks those dollars for our state parks. The whole reason we have a state budget is to fund things like the state parks with money that already comes in. The beast needs to be starved of money, not be given anymore. Vote NO on Prop 21.

Prop 22. This one is probably the hardest proposition to understand from a voters point of view. It sounds good that the proponents say this will stop the state raiding local jurisdictions of their tax revenue. What they don't tell you is that this proposition is a bonanza for redevelopment agencies that routinely take private property through dubious eminent domain power. Vote NO on Prop 22.

Prop 23. This one is a no brainer...unless you're Meg Whitman and the only advice you take is from your billionaire leftist Silicon Valley environmental extremists. Vote YES on Prop 23. It suspends the recently passed AB 32 unless and until the unemployment rate drops back to around 5.5%. The state is at around 15% to 20% right now depending on which stats you look at. You can see why the global warming alarmists are concerned. CA desperately needs to be more business friendly. AB 32 is a job killer and must be suspended. Vote YES on Prop 23.

Prop 24. Not gonna go into a long dissertation here. This prop would repeal a lot of recent tax breaks some CA businesses have received. Liberals love to say they are "closing tax loopholes", but all they are doing is making our state less competitive when it comes to retaining and growing business. Vote NO on Prop 24.

Prop 25. Ah the liberal Sacramento stealth prop to try and lower the burden to increase taxes. They never stop coming at us. This prop would change the threshold of passing a state budget to a majority vote instead of a 2/3 vote like it right now. Just vote NO on Prop 25.

Prop 26. This proposition will stop politicians from enacting hidden taxes. Liberals and a lot of local RINO GOP councilmen like to get around 2/3 voting requirements to raise taxes by calling their schemes "fees". This proposition will end hidden fees being raised. Vote YES on Prop 26.

Prop 27. This initiative would repeal the recently passed Prop that takes away the power of the CA state legislature to redraw Assembly and State Senate districts for reapportionment. I'll say it again. Politicians should not be able to choose their voters. Vote NO on Prop 27.