XPost: talk.politics.guns, alt.politics.elections, sac.politics   
   XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh   
   From: newsom@sucks.cocks   
      
   SACRAMENTO, Calif. —   
   The California Supreme Court on Thursday took the rare step of removing a   
   measure from the November ballot that would have made it harder to raise   
   taxes, siding with Gov. Gavin Newsom by ruling the change would have upended   
   the way government works.   
      
   More than 1 million people signed a petition to put a measure on the ballot   
   this November that would have required voters to approve any tax increase   
   passed by the state Legislature. It also would have required all local tax   
   increases to be approved by two-thirds of voters instead of a simple   
   majority vote.   
      
   The biggest impact, however, would have been that the measure threatened to   
   retroactively reverse most tax increases approved since Jan. 1, 2022. Local   
   governments warned they would have lost billions of dollars in revenue that   
   had previously approved by voters. And it would have threatened recent   
   statewide tax increases, including one on guns and ammunition set to take   
   effect July 1.   
      
   That prospect alarmed Newsom and legislative leaders so much that they took   
   the unusual step of asking the state Supreme Court to remove the measure   
   from the ballot before voters had a chance to decide it.   
      
   California voters are allowed to bypass the governor and the state   
   Legislature to amend the state Constitution at the ballot box, something   
   they do frequently. Voters have amended the Constitution to protect abortion   
   rights, declare marriage is between a man and a woman and dock legislators'   
   pay if they fail to pass a budget on time.   
      
   But the court has recognized a distinction between amending the Constitution   
   — adding something new — and revising it by altering the way government   
   works. Voters can amend the constitution by a ballot measure, but they   
   cannot revise it.   
      
   In this case, the court ruled the ballot measure is a revision because it   
   would take away the Legislature's power to raise taxes — a shift the   
   justices said would “fundamentally rework the fiscal underpinnings of our   
   government at every level.” The only way to add these rules to the   
   Constitution, the court ruled, would be for the Legislature and voters to   
   approve a call for a new constitutional convention.   
      
   Matthew Hargrove, president and CEO of the California Business Properties   
   Association, called the ruling “a gut punch to direct democracy in   
   California.” Rob Lapsley, president of the California Business Roundtable,   
   accused the court signaled its willingness “to back the progressive agenda   
   at every turn moving forward.”   
      
   “There is no independent judiciary in California anymore,” Lapsley said.   
   “Be   
   scared. Because it’s only going to get worse.”   
      
   Newsom declined to speak to reporters after the ruling, but he issued a   
   written statement — attributed to an aide — that said he supports the   
   ballot   
   initiative process but noted it “does not allow for an illegal   
   constitutional revision.”   
      
   The issue is tricky for Newsom, a Democrat now in his second term who is a   
   potential candidate for president. Newsom has tried to counter California's   
   reputation for high taxes by publicly opposing many new tax proposals,   
   including campaigning publicly against a new tax on the rich.   
      
   But he has been willing to temporarily raise taxes on some businesses to   
   balance the budget, something he is proposing to do again this year. And he   
   signed a tax increase last year on guns and ammunition that is likely to be   
   challenged in court once it takes effect on July 1.   
      
   Republicans on Thursday were quick to portray Newsom as “greedy,” arguing   
   his successful attempt to block the measure will continue to make things   
   more expensive in California, whose taxes on incomes, sales and gasoline are   
   among the highest in the country.   
      
   “The California Democrat machine’s love affair with new taxes to pay for   
   their ludicrous policies keep costing Californians their hard-earned money,   
   and Newsom just made it that much easier to take even more,” said Jessica   
   Millan Patterson, chairwoman of the California Republican Party.   
      
   Removing a measure from the ballot before an election is rare, but not   
   unprecedented in California. In 1999, the court threw out one that would   
   have cut lawmakers’ salaries and removed their authority to set boundaries   
   for legislative districts. The court removed that measure from the ballot   
   because it included more than one subject.   
      
   https://www.kcra.com/article/california-court-removes-taxpayer-protection-   
   act-ballot/61192888   
      
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