Patterico's Pontifications

9/25/2012

Public Resources Illegally Used to Advocate for Tax Increase in Schools

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 7:32 am



The Orange County Register has an editorial this morning noting the illegal use of state public resources to advocate for Proposition 30, which would increase taxes in the State of California:

[I]t is illegal for public universities to use school resources “for the purposes of urging the support or defeat of any ballot measure.” (Education Code 7054(c)). The California Supreme Court upheld that ban three years ago. In our view, there’s an inherent conflict of interest when professors tell students how to vote.

But that ban on electioneering isn’t being universally observed when it comes to Proposition 30, Gov. Jerry Brown’s Nov. 6 ballot measure to raise sales and income taxes. California State University officials sent professors “talking points,” “sample letters to the editor,” and “PowerPoints” to push its passage as part of its “tool kit” to highlight how Prop. 30 will “impact” California higher education.

In addition, the CSU Board of Trustees has voted for a 5 percent tuition increase only if the proposition fails to pass — and the CSU administration sent hundreds of thousands of parents letters saying, essentially, that if the proposition doesn’t pass, little Billy or Susie may not have a spot in the CSU system.

Meanwhile, the editorial states, “[t]uition is at its highest levels in decades, and college administrator benefits have never been more generous.”

Since the activity is illegal, I am sure Kamala Harris will be all over it. If my eyes were rolling any more I’d be looking at the back of my skull.

18 Responses to “Public Resources Illegally Used to Advocate for Tax Increase in Schools”

  1. Liberal government employees flout the law because to them “the ends justify the means”? SHOCKA!!!

    Icy (145c49)

  2. So, the proposition will raise both income AND sales taxes?
    That’s good of Gov. Moonbeam to include the poor; they need to pay their fair share, too.

    Icy (145c49)

  3. When I went to graduation ceremonies at Humboldt State in May, president Rollin Richmond told students and parents to get out their smartphones and surf to a HSU web page to send a form letter to their state representative begging for more money. He said we all needed to vote for Prop. 30 or face terrible cutbacks in funding. The form letter link appears to be gone, but here’s the Parent Advocacy Network web address that their main website still links to:

    http://capwiz.com/humboldt/home/

    Paul Zieke (58d429)

  4. ___________________________________________

    which would increase taxes in the State of California

    I wonder how dumb most Californians are, or will be, when it comes to such things? I’m cynical enough about such people to assume that a majority of them will approve the ballot initiative in November.

    As Greece (or Spain, or Argentina, etc) goes, so goes California…

    manhattan-institute.org via drudgereport.com: For decades after World War II, California was a destination for Americans in search of a better life… However, this golden age of migration into the state is over. For the past two decades, California has been sending more people to other American states than it receives from them. Since 1990, the state has lost nearly 3.4 million residents through this migration.

    What has caused California’s transformation from a “pull in” to a “push out” state? The data have revealed several crucial drivers. One is chronic economic adversity (in most years, California unemployment is above the national average)… A third factor is state and local governments’ constant fiscal instability, which sends at least two discouraging messages to businesses and individuals. One is that they cannot count on state and local governments to provide essential services—much less, tax breaks or other incentives. Second, chronically out-of-balance budgets can be seen as tax hikes waiting to happen.

    I didn’t realize that the “Golden State” has been a laggard in employment rates going back several decades, even when it was a bit less devoutly liberal. However, it has generally been a blue state way before “blue” referred to liberalism gone berserk. A history not quite as bad as that of a France — mainly because of things like Californians’ ability to vote on ballot propositions — but not necessarily all that different too.

    Mark (dcc949)

  5. Well, Pat, to be fair to Ms. Harris, she’s got her hands full with all those super-serial investigations from those hot tips Neal provides her with.

    radar (257ad5)

  6. Kamala Harris is to election law as Lavrentiy Beria is to civil liberties.

    Kevin M (bf8ad7)

  7. Seems like there’s a whole raft of “this is what a handful of votes can do” articles based on the differences between Cooley and Harris. Assuming you get a straight count of the votes in this state.

    Kevin M (bf8ad7)

  8. This goes on in the school districts over every election issue, and the responsible parties are rarely, IF EVER, required to ante-up for their law-breaking, for that is what it is.
    Spineless prosecutors, and judges not worth their appointments allow this to go on cycle after cycle after cycle.
    Is it any wonder that the job-creators, and tax-payers (in contrast to the tax-users), bail from CA for better climes?

    AD-Restore the Republic/Obama Sucks! (b8ab92)

  9. Much of what is wrong with America’s institutions of Higher Education could be, if not solved, at least changed by chasing all college administrators so far back into the hills that they have to ship in daylight.

    And it’s worth doing for its own sake, besides.

    C. S. P. Schofield (4feea2)

  10. Kamala Harris is to election law as Lavrentiy Beria is to civil liberties pedophilia.

    FIFY

    Space Cockroach (8096f2)

  11. Same thing was going on with prop 13. Teachers unions sending political literature home with our children, while our elected leaders made threats. We beat the bastards then and just might do so again.

    BarSinister (664312)

  12. Course credit for volunteer work on political campaigns was a commonplace at the University of California as far back as the early 70s. I’ve got the transcript to prove it.

    ropelight (e497ef)

  13. Kamala Harris is to election law as Lavrentiy Beria is to civil liberties pedophilia.

    I think you missed my point. Beria was not destructive of pedophilia.

    Kevin M (bf8ad7)

  14. Proggs and their flamin’ “consciences” are quite, quite beyond bourgeois constructs such as the rule of law, you know….

    The Sanity Inspector (0472b5)

  15. The fiscal cliff impends, small children beware:

    http://money.cnn.com/2012/09/14/news/economy/white-house-spending-cuts/index.html

    $100 Billion per year, not even 10% of the Deficit. Screw this up, Congress, and you’ll be paying a lot more than $100 Billion to the vigilantes.

    gary gulrud (dd7d4e)

  16. Comment by ropelight — 9/25/2012 @ 12:26 pm

    In many, if not all, PE systems in CA, Public Service work is a requirement for graduation.
    It’s like it has replaced the Term Paper.

    AD-Restore the Republic/Obama Sucks! (b8ab92)

  17. IIRC when I went to Fresno State, we had a professor who ‘urged’ us to get into politics just to see what it was like. He made a term project out of working for Gov. Dukmejian (imagine that, a Republican). It was optional and you had to do a term paper if you didn’t want to. I didn’t want to, I thought it was wrong, and was very liberal then. I know, I know, I’m an old fart.

    Andy (b63f79)

  18. I think you missed my point. Beria was not destructive of pedophilia.

    No, just children.

    mojo (4a9666)


Powered by WordPress.

Page loaded in: 0.0856 secs.