A STATE OF SHENANIGANS

Good morning!

It’s Friday and you know what that means – time for your favorite newsletter of the week, from California Policy Center!

You might recall earlier this month that Gavin Newsom called for a state takeover of Pacific Gas & Electric Co. after decrying their corporate greed. However, as CPC president Will Swaim points out in the OC Register, state officials already have a big hand in regulating California’s utility companies, and a complete state takeover would be a disaster. I would be remiss not to mention that the Washington Post pointed out on Tuesday that Gov. Newsom and his wife accepted more than $700,000 over two decades from PG&E to fund their political careers.

The city that Rice A Roni made famous has a new DA in town, and life is about to get weirder. According to the Wall Street Journal, Chesa Boudin, a self-described progressive prosecutor, plans to ignore quality-of-life offenses in San Francisco. In an ACLU candidate questionnaire, he stated, “Crimes such as public camping, offering or soliciting sex, public urination, blocking a sidewalk, etc, should not and will not be prosecuted” once he is elected to office. Like his parents before him, who were members of the Weather Underground, Boudin continues to denounce both property owners and the police.

Meanwhile, in Orange County, federal officials operating in the Cleveland National Forest directed members of the Holy Jim Volunteer Fire Department to cease operations until they become certified by the state and local agency. The department, operating since 1961 in the remote canyons, noted that they had an agreement with the Orange County Fire Authority and Orange County Sheriff’s Department dating back to 2007. Mike Milligan, chief of the Holy Jim volunteers, noted the irony of shutting down a volunteer institution at a moment when fire safety requires all hands. We would note that this is just one more example of government rolling over the contributions of non-government actors. Government, we’d say, doesn’t like the competition.

City and county governments have seen their unfunded retirement liabilities skyrocket since the early 2000s. One of the biggest reasons for this was the pension benefit enhancements that took place in places like Sonoma County. This week, CPC fellow Edward Ring examines the pension situation in Sonoma County. Crunching the numbers, he demonstrates how such benefit enhancements cost local taxpayers more than $300 million over the last two decades. Click here to read the full article. 
 

Upcoming Events:

Labor and Capital Market Policy: From Ideas to Actions over One Hundred Years
The Hoover Institution will host its final A Century of Ideas for a Free Society lecture on Tuesday, November 19 at 4:30 pm. Caroline Hoxby, John Cochrane, and George P. Shultz will discuss how ideas about the roles of government and private enterprise have changed, how good ideas stressing economic freedom can be advanced into action, and the influence of globalization on the ability of governments to apply good ideas to capital flows and immigration. For more information, and to register, click here. 

Conversation and Book Event with Ambassador Nikki Haley
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library will host former United States Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Tuesday, December 10 for a discussion about her new book, With All Due Respect: Defending America with Grit and Grace. Tickets to this event are $85 per person and includes a dinner in the Air Force One Pavilion following the program. To reserve your stop for this exciting event, click here.

If you have items for events anywhere in the state, please send them to me!


As always, if you’d like to join our movement to save California, we invite you to support us. Click here to donate to CPC.