Within one year after President Obama signed the Recovery Act, almost a billion dollars has been invested in the San Diego region. A large chunk of the money has gone to the Camp Pendleton, Coronado and UCSD. However, even if you are not on base or campus, it is highly likely that you have been touched by the Recovery Act. Major public works construction projects have benefited from this spending, including the four-lane expansion of SR-76, construction of I-905, and the HOV lanes on I-805. Future funding has already been allocated to the construction of Otay Mesa crossing, the Oceanside transit station, and the high-speed rail to Los Angeles/Sacramento. And the Recovery Act funding is going to flow into our homes, in the form of solar panels and weatherization.
Tag: Economy
California in Crisis
With Peter Dreier
California is broken — and broke. Its K-12 public schools, roads, levies, aqueducts, parks, and bridges; its health-care system; home health care for the elderly and disabled; and even its once-envied public universities are all crumbling from long-term neglect and underfunding. State employees have been forced to take three unpaid furlough days per month — equal to a 14 percent pay cut.
Unemployment fluctuates with old and new seekers
According to the California Employment Development Department, the San Diego region reached a historic double-digit inflation rate in June. Although civilian employment, which reflects the jobs in the economy, hardly changed between May and June, the number of unemployed increased 5.1 percent to 158,000.
What falling sales tax revenue means
The current recession is deeper and broader than most of us have seen in our generation. Consumer confidence was at a 40-year low. Employment in retail sales plummeted, fewer tourists visited, and auto sales reached record lows, earlier this year. All of which means that San Diegans had $17 million less to spend this year on our general fund services such as police, fire, parks and libraries, than last year.
Every cent spent in this economy counts. A cent on every dollar of taxable goods purchased in the city goes to the General Fund. This is the fund that pays for services that the general public receives. The $210 million in sales tax expected to be generated this fiscal year is one of the most significant sources (18.3%) of the general fund. It is also a source that is tapped by the state to support general operations, with 11 states (including California) in the nation raising their sales tax this year in order to avoid drastic cuts that would worsen the recession.
First 100, next 1,360
It’s the next big mega-moment for the American news media: Obama’s 100-days report card.
So, this is my take. But first, let’s start with two steps.
First step: As you read this, think about the challenges you’ve faced in the last 100 days to reflect on what you’ve been able to accomplish. Doesn’t seem like a lot of time, does it?
Second step: While my Republican friends say that we shouldn’t spend time bemoaning the past, a respect for history’s role in understanding the present and plotting the future requires that we at least recognize the position the Bush administration got us into.
$8 a week in taxes isn’t bad
The $800 billion stimulus package Congress passed in February contained tax cuts for millions of Americans and major investment in infrastructure and public programs. The debate and negotiations that led up to the bill’s passage echoed a 60-year-old debate between Keynesian, demand-side economics and conservative, supply-side dogma.
Obama and Democrats argue that tax cuts for workers stimulate growth by putting spending money in the pockets of American families. More cash for workers means more spending, leading to more hiring and ultimately more spending. The Republicans, on the other hand, believe you give tax cuts to the wealthy so they invest, innovate and create jobs.
Stimulus Jobs Should Be Good Jobs
With their eyes on economic recovery, public officials in San Diego and across the state are scrambling to receive and spend federal stimulus dollars. But the spending will not translate into a long-term recovery unless it is invested in rebuilding the foundation of the middle class.
This means good jobs that provide career ladders and health insurance.
Don’t Listen to Wall Street, They Are the Ones That Got Us in This Mess
Ben Bernanke speaks to Congress on Monday and declares his opposition to nationalization of banks and the stock market surges 200+ points. The next day, President Obama speaks to the nation and declares that the banks and the wealthy won’t be able to prosper without the rest of us and the stock market drops.
Why do cable TV, blogs and proliferating new media still care about how Wall Street evaluates public policy? Why would we listen to them?
