California Faces 10% VAT

This man wants to double Californians' sales taxes. (Image by Paulsanjose, via Wikimedia, license.)

The pandering news media are too busy yelling "free money" for you to tell by the headlines, and you may still be dazed by that state assembly's many other horrible ideas, anyway.

But...

The part of Assembly Member Evan Low's "Universal Basic Income" measure (AB 2712) that will wreak havoc for those for whom it is still legal to work for a living is as follows:

The bill would authorize the department to adopt regulations to implement the program, and would state the intent of the Legislature to fund the CalUBI Program with a value-added tax of 10% on goods and services, as specified. [link added]

There would be irrelevant exceptions regarding who would receive this "universal" handout of stolen money, as well as when everyone's pockets would be picked. (If I recall correctly, food and medicine would not be subjected to this complicated new tax.) But, for customers buying from any business subjected to this tax, they will ultimately pay the tax and foot the bill for whatever compliance costs it will entail -- on top of their already high income taxes and the old-fashioned sales tax they already pay.

Coming from a state where it is legal to shoplift -- but not to make plastic straws freely available -- this seems about right.

I believe the Texas governor recently welcomed that state's refugees with a polite request to reconsider their voting habits. I second the latter, but would add that if enough Californians would do that now, they could perhaps turn their state around in plenty of time not to have to move at all.

-- CAV