We did it to ourselves. We had a chance to Recall Newsom, but didn’t. In 2020 we had a chance of electing a legislature that would look out for the people, not Al Gore and a high school dropout or AOC. Yet our elected officials are responsible for our gas prices—so we have a chance in November to elect folks that represent our families and businesses, not the United Nations or folks that want to kill our economy.
In Assembly District 22 we have a qualified, thoughtful candidate that wants to represent the people in his community, not the special interests of Sacramento—JOEL CAMPOS. This is his web site: https://campos4assembly.com/
Thanks to Newsom killing the oil and agriculture industries and Biden being Biden, we have a chance to win seats we normally could not win. Campos is a great and energetic candidate—for those in his district and nearby, I hope you will help him.
By Joel Campos, Exclusive to the California Political News and Views, 3/29/22
Warmer weather is now upon us, and kids will soon be out of school for Spring Break. That’s when many Central Valley families plan a visit to the coast or to a theme park. Unfortunately, this year, that trip will be considerably more expensive with gas prices now skyrocketing. In fact, when you add high inflation, almost everything is more expensive lately.
Some in Washington say these problems are beyond our control, but I’ve decided to run for State Assembly because I believe common sense conservative policies can help get us back on track.
Working Central Valley families can’t help but notice that gas is now over $5 a gallon, and since commutes are longer for people who live in rural communities, the pain at the pump hits us harder than it does people who live in LA or the Bay Area. California’s high gas prices are caused in part by our state’s high gas taxes, which are the highest in the nation by far.
With gas prices soaring so high, we must immediately suspend the gas tax. So far, Democrats in Sacramento have refused to entertain this possibility, but the time is now for action and not partisan politics. When Republicans led by Assemblyman Kevin Kiley brought forward a plan to suspend the gas tax recently, no Democrats voted in support of gas tax relief. This is such a shame because so many Californians really just need some relief as they struggle every day to make ends meet.
In the longer term, we need to prioritize reducing our reliance on imported fuel. When we produce oil and gas here in the Valley, we support good local jobs and make sure people can still have fuel, even in the case of instability or supply chain disruptions elsewhere in the world.
From gas taxes to income taxes to corporate taxes, California is a high tax state. However, one area where Californians are taxed more reasonably is property taxes, and that’s thanks to Proposition 13, an important taxpayer protection passed in 1978 and still in place today. I’m a strong supporter of Proposition 13.
Thanks to Proposition 13, millions of homeowners don’t get hit with tax increases they can’t afford just because the value of their home increased on paper. Lately, many of us have seen our homes appreciate in value – that might make us feel good when we look up our address on Zillow, but unless we sell our house, we aren’t any richer, so why should our taxes go up? They shouldn’t, and I will help to ensure that they don’t because there are many homeowners who live on fixed or limited incomes such as seniors. Many would not be able to stay in their homes or would have to sacrifice in other areas such as food or medication in order to stay in their homes if it wasn’t for Prop 13.
Unfortunately, the California tax and spend establishment still constantly tries to eliminate Proposition 13 despite it being overwhelmingly popular with Californians. Most recently, in 2020, tax raisers tried to eliminate Proposition 13 protections for commercial properties. This plan, Proposition 15, would have dramatically increased the number of jobs and businesses leaving the state. Fortunately, California voters rejected this misguided scheme, but that did not discourage tax proponents who immediately vowed to continue their fight after the results were final. So, for the sake of our elderly and our businesses and jobs, Proposition 13 needs to stay!
Ultimately, the problem with the tax and spend establishment is that they always claim they need more taxpayer dollars to provide the services people care about, and they refuse to exercise their responsibility to manage our money in a way that is transparent and accountable. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association publishes an annual list of government waste, fraud, and abuse, and some of the examples are instances with price tags in the billions or hundreds of millions. Last year’s report cited billions wasted, with $30 billion paid to unemployment scammers. How is it possible for there to be a new list of such enormous examples of waste every year? It is clear Sacramento is not doing its job when it comes to oversight of our tax dollars.
I’m proud to be endorsed by the Central Valley Taxpayers Association, and when I’m elected to the Assembly, I look forward to making sure our seniors can stay in their homes and to fighting for some relief for Central Valley families by demanding accountability for our tax dollars. Just like Valley families need to stick to a budget, so too should Sacramento.
