FORE Magazine

Top Menu

  • About Me
  • Contact Us
  • Home

Main Menu

  • Current Issue
  • Profiles
  • Sustainability
  • Travel
  • 19th Hole
  • Classic Course
  • FORE Her
  • More
    • Know the Rules
    • Handicap Hints
    • SCGA Junior
    • Where Are They Now?
    • News
    • Public Affairs
  • scga.org
Sign in / Join

Login

Welcome! Login in to your account
Lost your password?

Lost Password

Back to login

logo

FORE Magazine

  • Current Issue
  • Profiles
  • Sustainability
  • Travel
  • 19th Hole
  • Classic Course
  • FORE Her
  • More
    • Know the Rules
    • Handicap Hints
    • SCGA Junior
    • Where Are They Now?
    • News
    • Public Affairs
  • scga.org
Public Affairs
Home›Public Affairs›Election 18- The Numbers Behind California’s Numbers

Election 18- The Numbers Behind California’s Numbers

By Craig Kessler
November 20, 2018
3135
0
Share:

When all is said and done, and with recounts and slow counts all is not yet said and done, it looks like the Democrats will have flipped 37-40 House Districts from Republican to Democrat, and the Republicans will have retained control of the Senate by anywhere from the current 51-49 margin to as high as a 53-47 margin should the Republicans win a runoff in Mississippi and survive a recount in Florida.

As for California, the Democrats have captured the 2/3 control of the legislature necessary to pass tax legislation with nary a Republican vote and have captured all statewide offices, albeit Independent Steve Poizner did come within a whisker of defeating his Democratic opponent Ricardo Lara.

So much for the raw numbers.   The more interesting discussion is whether there is anything behind the numbers that you should take note of – anything with direct or even indirect impact upon the California golf industry.  There were five – two involving the voters’ verdict on statewide initiatives, one involving the verdict of the voters of the state’s most populous county, one involving the verdict of one of the state’s urban bastions regarding wage issues, and one involving comments issued by Governor Elect Newsom.  Four of them tell us something about where the state may be headed with respect to taxes and one tells us where even a conservative city is headed with respect to minimum wages.

It’s hard to interpret the electorate’s overwhelming rejection of Propositions 5 and 6 as anything other than a statement from the state’s voters that they are willing to tax themselves to accomplish collective needs.  Given an opportunity to save 12 cents for each gallon of gasoline purchased, the voters rejected that “opportunity” in favor of fixing the roads.  Given an opportunity to vote themselves a significant property tax benefit post age 55, the voters chose to keep those dollars in the hands of local government at expense to themselves.

It’s hard to interpret Los Angeles County’s 67.48% approval of Measure “W” as anything other than a reflection of the same propensity.  Measure “W” taxes that portion of a residential or commercial property that is impermeable surface to create an infrastructure capable of capturing and treating storm water for discharge and replenishment.  More than 25% of the state’s population lives in Los Angeles County, a sizable sample for surveying attitudes toward self-assessment to accomplish public ends.  A sizable sample indicative as well of the high priority ordinary Californians now place on the need to create alternative water supplies, a propensity to which the golf industry should pay great heed.

ADVERTISEMENT

It’s hard to interpret the Anaheim electorate’s decision to slap a $15 “living” wage on the city’s entertainment sector as anything other than a powerful indicator of the support minimum wage increases have even in the state’s more conservative enclaves.  Expecting lesser support in most of the state’s larger cities is expecting something that just isn’t in the cards.

Since his election to the state’s highest office Gavin Newsom has made repeated reference to the need to address the volatility built into the state’s tax structure by over-reliance upon the capital gains of a shockingly small number of California residents, many of whom labor in a tech sector that common wisdom assumes is about to enter a cooling off period.  He has hardly disguised the fact that he sees a systemic reform that would take pressure off high marginal income tax rates and overly high and regressive sales tax rates as the answer.  And all roads of that discussion lead to the creation of a service tax.  “Discussion” won’t lead to action until the next recession makes clear just how fast the state will plow through the $10 billion rainy day fund that Jerry Brown created.  We are now in the longest recovery in American history; how far off can that next recession be?

A year is an eternity in politics.  But smart money would be on bracing ourselves for an onslaught of more taxes, fees and wage increases in the short run and in the somewhat longer run perhaps a tax “reform” that adds California to the 23 states that tax golf.

A challenge, yes.  An insurmountable challenge, certainly not.

Previous Article

FULL HOUSE: First FORE Her Golf Outing

Next Article

Trying The Indi Wedge

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

Craig Kessler

Craig came to the SCGA via the merger with the Public Links Golf Association (PLGA), where he served as Executive Director for 11 years and pioneered the development of the nation’s most active and accomplished advocacy component. He has been tasked with doing the same for the SCGA as its first Director of Governmental Affairs, albeit on a much larger stage. In addition to his current and previous job responsibilities, Craig has served as a USGA Committeemen continuously for 15 years, Chair of the Los Angeles Golf Advisory Commission, Chair of the Los Angeles County Golf Advisory Committee, Member of the City of Los Angeles’ Griffith Park Master Plan Board, Member of the Ventura Golf Advisory Group, Member of the Los Angeles County Junior Golf Foundation Board of Directors and Chair of the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce First Tee of Los Angeles Advisory Committee. In 2008 Craig was inducted into the Long Beach Golf Hall of Fame.

Related articles More from author

  • Public AffairsSummer 2021

    Out of COVID’s Frying Pan And Into Drought’s Fire

    July 16, 2021
    By Craig Kessler
  • Public AffairsSummer 2020

    Governmental Affairs: The World Has Changed

    July 24, 2020
    By Craig Kessler
  • Public AffairsSpring 2020

    Governmental Affairs: Whither Municipal Golf

    April 23, 2020
    By Craig Kessler
  • crystal-ball
    Public AffairsWinter 2016

    The Crystal Ball on 2016: New Year, New Legislative Session

    January 1, 2016
    By Craig Kessler
  • Public AffairsSpring 2019

    A Class Unto Itself: California’s Coachella Valley

    April 26, 2019
    By Craig Kessler
  • Fall 2019Public Affairs

    Local Spotlight: El Cariso Golf Course

    October 17, 2019
    By Craig Kessler

Leave a reply Cancel reply

Recent Posts

  • FeaturedProfilesWinter 2023

    A Modern Throwback: Cole Young Calls his Own Shots

  • FeaturedHandicap HintsWinter 2023

    New Year’s Daze: Looking Forward and Looking Back at your Handicap

  • FeaturedProfilesWinter 2023

    Unbreakable Spirit: The Amazing Journey of Tracy Drake

  • FeaturedProfilesWinter 2023

    Don’t Bet Against Jesse: The Double-Amputee War Veteran has Overcome Injury and Addiction on his Way to a Winning Career in Golf

  • 19th HoleFeaturedWinter 2023

    Best Ball Bar & Grill: Woodley Lakes GC Gets a Big Culinary Upgrade

FeaturedThe PodiumWinter 2023

Changing of the Guard: New Galleri Classic Set to Debut in the Desert

In what can be viewed as an unprecedented, albeit unofficial baton pass, the Coachella Valley is trading one pro golf tour for another this spring. As many will recall, last ...
  • New Year’s Daze: Looking Forward and Looking Back at your Handicap

    By Kevin O'Connor
    February 7, 2023
  • Grass by Design: Pure Research Yields New Strains of Drought-Tolerant Grass

    By Craig Kessler
    February 7, 2023
  • Best Ball Bar & Grill: Woodley Lakes GC Gets a Big Culinary Upgrade

    By David Weiss
    February 7, 2023
  • Making a Future in Golf a Reality: Skylar Graham and the Pathways Internship

    By Ken Van Vechten
    February 7, 2023
© 2016 FORE Magazine About Us | Contact Us | Advertise