Voters May Change, but Prop 13 Remains the Same
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Proposition 13 cut property taxes 32 years ago, and most of today's voters don't remember the moment or know the details. Because it depends on increased housing prices, it's partly responsible for today's fiscal crisis, and it makes new home-buyers subsidize older ones. But Prop 13 is still called the "third rail" of California politics, and any official who proposes a change risks being thrown out of office. Why has it had so much influence for so long? Is there any prospect for change? Also, the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst says the Governor's budget is a "good starting point." On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, mentally ill people may threaten violence. Most never come through. But should laws protecting their privacy and their freedom be changed, just in case? Would that mean treating sick people like criminals before they've done anything wrong?
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Making News
Legislative Analyst Gives an Overview of Governor's Budget ()
The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst, Mack Taylor, says California needs bold ideas to resolve its $25 billion funding gap. While he says Governor Brown's proposals for $12 billion in cuts and $12 billion in extended tax increases is a "good starting point," he also says there are "significant risks." Jason Sisney is Director of State Finance in Taylor's office.
Guests:
- Jason Sisney: Director of State Finance, Legislative Analyst's Office
Main Topic
Voters May Change, but Prop 13 Remains the Same ()
Today's electorate is very different from the one that passed Proposition 13 in 1978. But even though the voters have changed, it's still called the "third rail" of state politics, the one that means political death to any politician foolish enough to touch it.
Guests:
- Mark DiCamillo: Director, Field Poll
- Dan Schnur: Chairman, California Fair Political Practices Commission, @danschnur
- Dowell Myers: Professor of Policy and Planning, USC
Links:
Main Topic
Mental Illness and the Threat of Violence in America ()
During five disruptions in classrooms and libraries, Jared Loughner frightened teachers and classmates at Pima College. Police were used to deliver a letter telling him he couldn't come back unless he got "mental health clearance" indicating he was not "a danger to himself or others." In the aftermath of Saturday's shooting, did the college drop the ball? Could intervention have prevented the tragedy that has gripped the nation?
Guests:
- David Leibow: Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Columbia University
- Brian Stettin: Policy Director, Treatment Advocacy Center
- David Shern: President and CEO, Mental Health America
- Amy Hellman: mother of two bi-polar children
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Underwriters
Which Way L.A.? is made possible in part by the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, the Nathan Cummings Foundation, and the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation, which supports study and research into policy issues of the Los Angeles region.
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