Did you notice the wait for
Tax Freedom Day?

Published: May 8, 2006

By Craig A. Huey

April 30 was California's Tax Freedom Day. It's the day the average Californian stops handing over his earnings to the federal, state and local governments and starts collecting his hard-earned wages for himself.

Unfortunately, Tax Freedom Day took four days longer to reach than it did last year. That adds up to 120 days of tax enslavement.

This year California ranked the ninth highest-taxed state in the nation. It's no wonder entrepreneurs, businesses and over-taxed Californians are simply fed up and fleeing to nearby tax-friendly states like Arizona and Nevada.

Just two years ago, Tax Freedom Day came to Californians 11 days earlier on April 19.

Nearly a third of your salary will go to government spending instead of your own pocket. In fact, you'll spend more of your yearly income on government than on food, clothing, housing and medical care combined.

The problem is with the federal, state and local governments.

Federal government

Thanks to President Bush's 2003 tax cuts, the economy is booming. Great news, right? Think again.

Families with rising incomes have been pushed into higher tax brackets of 25 percent, 28 percent and up to 33 percent. Yes, there's more income -- more income for the federal government to take.

The story gets worse. This year the Alternative Minimum Tax, or AMT, will be adding 16.7 million new taxpayers to its ranks. This includes couples with two or more children with a minimum combined income of $67,890. Anyone above this income level will see a dramatic rise in taxes this year.

State government

Overspending is so out of control that California will probably have another huge deficit again this year -- an estimated $7 billion.

It would be easy to say this is the fault of those free-spending liberal politicians. But the voters have also joined politicians in chasing entrepreneurs out of the state.

Recent initiatives to tax the rich are continuing to drive businesses way. The newest effort is Proposition 82. This is a whopping $2.4 billion government program titled "Preschool for All." This tax will drive out jobs, and that hurts all Californians, including the preschoolers it was designed to help.

Here's another boondoggle, Proposition 81. It's a bond measure. "Bond" is another word for tax. The voter's guide says it's a $600 million bond measure. But with bonds, costs are always double. That's because tax money also goes to interest, lawyer fees and bankers.

So Proposition 81 isn't really a $600 million measure. It's a $1.2 billion burden for taxpayers over the next 30 years.

Local government

In Hermosa Beach, the city's school board asked voters to pass a $13.6 million bond measure last year. However, due to higher costs, the district is unable to complete the projects. So the school district is asking voters to pass Proposition 1A, a $13.1 million bond project.

Do the math. This $13.1 million in construction money is really costing taxpayers $26.2 million.

In Torrance, voters are looking at ballot Measure T, a $281 million bond. (That means approximately $562 million in tax burdens.)

You also find local taxes hidden in odd places. At the gas station pump, you pay 60 cents a gallon to the government, mostly local. (It's 26 cents in Alabama.)

Of course, let's not forget the hidden taxes you may not even know you are paying, like the utility users tax, cell phone tax, license tax, Social Security, Medicare tax, Federal Communications Commission tax, trash tax, sewer tax, cable tax, electricity tax, gas tax, car tax and trash tax. The list goes on.

Failing grades

Just ask the National Taxpayers Union and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association. They have identified South Bay politicians as among the biggest spenders in the state.

With a ranking of "100" representing a taxpayer's friend and "0" being a taxpayer's mortal enemy, here is how our representatives ranked on 53 bills statewide. Our representatives either received a grade of "D" or even an "F":

• Assemblyman Jerome Horton, D-Inglewood -- 13.50, Grade D

• Assemblywoman Betty Karnette, D-Long Beach -- 7.3, Grade F

• Assemblyman Jenny Oropeza, D-Carson -- 10.90, Grade D

• State Sen. Debra Bowen, D-Redondo Beach -- 20.8, Grade D

• State Sen. Alan Lowenthal D-Long Beach -- 5.3, Grade F

• State Sen. Edward Vincent, D-Inglewood -- 11.8, Grade D

Our federal officials aren't much better:

• Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) -- 14, Grade F

• Sen. Barbara Boxer (D) --18, Grade F

• Rep. Jane Harman, D-El Segundo --16, Grade F

• Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald, D-Carson -- 8, Grade F

• Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Huntington Beach -- 80, Grade A

Course of action

Taxes will be higher next year unless two things happen:

• Vote "No" on bonds and fees. Let the money come out of current revenues by cutting unnecessary waste and less desirable programs. And let the private sector raise funds voluntarily for worthy projects.

• Vote against any elected politician who is not a taxpayer's friend. If the spend-happy politicians continue to be re-elected, you can expect to work an extra few days next year to pay the growing tax burden.

Voters in June have a chance to demand the cutting of unnecessary and wasteful spending. They have a chance for pro-growth economic policies. They can help to lower taxes so you'll be able to spend your hard-earned money the way you want to. And isn't that better than working another day for the government?