Court Issues OSC in Line-Item Veto Case

The Court of Appeal in San Francisco has issued an order to show cause in the line item veto case, setting a briefing schedule and stating that the case will be set for oral argument. Here is a link to the docket, which contains the text of the order. Here is a link to the AG's opposition to the petition and here is a link to the supporting request for judicial notice.

Tax Like Libertarians, Spend Like Socialists

That's the message of this article from the Sacramento Bee describing the effects of ballot box budgeting. Nothing new, but a useful summary. Meanwhile this article from the Bee catalogs various proposed solutions to California's recurrent fiscal woes, and this article, also from the Bee, focuses on the two-thirds requirement to adopt a budget.

No Procedural Due Process For Disappointed Landowner

In Las Lomas Land Company v. City of Los Angeles (here), a city decided not to proceed with a project before completing environmental review. The developer sued, contending (among other things) that the city had violated its right to procedural due process under the California Constitution. The court rejected the claim. To state a claim for a procedural due process violation under the California Constitution, the plaintiff must allege the deprivation of a property interest or benefit that is conferred by statute. (in this the state clause is broader than the federal clause, which is limited to liberty and property interests.) There was no such statutory benefit in this case because the landowner had no statutory right to have the city continue to conduct environmental review of a project that it no longer wanted to complete.

Opposition to Part-Time Legislature Initiative

The same populist backlash that brought us term limits now want to give California a part-time Legislature. But an opposition group is forming, says the Sacramento Bee (here). To improve the measure's chances, the initiative now includes an always-popular legislative pay cut. It probably passes the single-subject rule, but just makes a bad idea worse.

Sweeping Tax Changes?

The Sacramento Bee reports here on the "Commission on the 21st Century Economy," another attempt to escape the messiness and difficulty of political change. The majority seems willing to sacrifice tax progressivity in exchange for decreasing volatility. No mention in the article of a "split roll" that would eliminate Prop. 13's benefits for commercial property. Here is the corresponding report from the Los Angeles Times.

Little Support For "Major" Constitutional Changes

That's what the PPIC reports, according to this story from the Los Angeles Times. There's more support for lowering the number of legislative votes necessary to pass a budget and for the creation of a property tax "split roll." Here is a link to the PPIC report itself.

HJTA Seeks To Change Assessment Ballot Procedures

Here is a link to an article by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association on SB 321, a bill it has sponsored to "increase transparency" in assessment elections. It has been approved by the Legislature. Here is a link to the bill.