THE CALIFORNIA ROLLER COASTER LIFE

Good morning!

What a week it has been! If you’re like me, the media has been bombarding you with stories about the impending impeachment of President Trump or the fourth Democratic presidential debate. But, while it is important to keep up with national politics, nothing affects you more than state and local politics. 

You may recall that California Policy Center partnered with the Nevada Policy Research Institute to create TransparentCalifornia.com – California’s first (and still the best!) online database of all public employees by name, title, pay and benefits. (Fun fact: Transparent California reveals that the highest-earning California public employee remains ex-UCLA football coach Jim Mora whose pay package was $3,744,016 in 2017, the most recent year for which data are available.) NPRI recently asked the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) to hand over information about whether a retired government worker is receiving a pension as the result of a disability claim. Disabilities, are, of course, a key driver in the stratospheric costs of public employee pensions. Last Friday, the Orange County Register reports, a California court supported CalPERS’ effort to hide the info. NPRI will appeal – and we thank them for their service.

At this point you might be asking yourself: why does NPRI need disability data from CalPERS? What’s the big deal? “Disclosure of such information would assist in detecting disability fraud, which has cost taxpayers untold millions, while also better informing the public of how the system actually works,” writes Robert Fellner in today’s San Diego Union-Tribune. He further notes that “there are around 600 CalPERS members currently collecting disability benefits while continuing to work, and that just reflects those working for governments enrolled with the state retirement system.” The only way an abuse can be stopped is by exposing it.

Last month I wrote about how mad Gov. Newsom was about General Motors, Toyota, and Fiat Chrysler throwing their support behind President Trump’s effort to strip California of its unique authority to regulate tailpipe emissions. Well on Monday, Gov. Newsom declared war and laid out a vindictive plan to outright ban the state’s purchasing of GM, Toyota, and Fiat Chrysler vehicles. “Carmakers that have chosen to be on the wrong side of history will be on the losing end of California’s buying power,” Newsom said. The ban, which takes effect in January, will naturally exempt Ford, BMW, Honda, and Volkwagen – all of whom made deals with Newsom and his administration in July. However, the question that remains unsettled – does California have the authority to regulate interstate commerce? My answer is no.

Yesterday, the California Supreme Court struck down SB27, a bill signed into law by Gov. Newsom in July that would have forced President Trump to release his tax returns in order to appear on the March primary ballot. In their seemingly obvious-because-correct ruling, the California Supreme Court declared that the added requirement for tax returns “is in conflict with the (state) constitution’s specification of an inclusive open presidential primary ballot.” The ruling cannot be appealed. 

A new poll from the Los Angeles Times reveals a majority of L.A. County voters believe the flood of government spending on homelessness isn’t working. According to CPC fellow Edward Ring, one of the main reasons this issue won’t go away is because of what he calls “the homeless industrial complex.” That coalition of builders and activists pushes for more “affordable” housing that has the odd result of making things worse for everyone but themselves. 

Finally, teachers and taxpayers – and taxpayers who are teachers – often complain about the relentless push for more money for teachers. How is it that Californians spend so much on education while teacher salaries remain relatively stable? CPC’s Larry Sand has the answer: pension and healthcare costs are crowding out everything else – teacher pay, actual education, maintenance, construction – in school budgets. That’s the bad news. The worse news: the problem will get worse in the absence of meaningful reform. Click here to fret more. 

Upcoming Events:

Conversation and Book Event with Ambassador Nikki Haley
The Richard Nixon Presidential Library will host former United States Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Monday, December 9 for a discussion about her new book, With All Due Respect: Defending America with Grit and Grace. Tickets to this event are $89 per person and includes a copy of her book. To register for this exciting event, click here.

New Year’s Eve at the Reagan Library 
The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library is having a New Year’s Eve celebration to ring in 2020. Enjoy an elaborate night of celebration, extensive hors d’oeuvres, dinner stations, gourmet desserts, and a champagne toast at midnight with all of the party essentials-hats, horns, streamers, and more! General admission tickets are $155. To reserve your spot, click here.

The Role of Religion in Politics and the Role of Politics in Religion
The Pepperdine School of Public Policy will host Rabbi Stu Halpern on Thursday, February 6 to discuss his new book, Proclaim Liberty Throughout the Land: The Hebrew Bible in the United States. He will be joined by Pepperdine’s Wilfred McClay and Rabbi Meir Y. Soloveichik for a dynamic conversation on the role the Bible has, can and should play in the American public conversation. To register for this exciting event, click here.

Franklin and Washington: The Founding Partnership
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Edward Larson will speak at the Commonwealth Club on Monday, February 10 and discuss his joint biography of our two most influential Founding Fathers. Tickets are $20 for non-members and will include a book-signing as well. For more information, and to register, 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.