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Two Tax Measures Making Steady Progress Toward November Ballot

By Brian Frank
May 3, 2012
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Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown speaks to reporters about his proposed budget in January 2011. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Two tax initiatives aiming for the November ballot hit key milestones this week, and they're not exactly complementary.

A plan backed by Gov. Jerry Brown would raise income taxes for Californians who make more than $250,000 a year and also temporarily boost the sales tax. A top adviser to that campaign said they now have enough signatures to qualify, according to ABC News10.

Meanwhile, civil rights attorney Molly Munger has been pushing a plan that would hike the income tax on all but the poorest Californians. Munger argues her plan is better for education, setting aside an estimated $10 billion for schools and early childhood development programs. Her campaign announced Wednesday that it is submitting some 240,000 signatures to Los Angeles County elections officials, according to Capitol Alert. That's nearly half the required 504,000 that would qualify the measure for the November ballot.

These two measures would bring the likely total to eight ballot measures for the general election, News10 reported. However, only five have officially qualified as of this week, according to the California Secretary of State. They include:

  • changes to the law that would allow auto insurance companies to set prices based on a driver's history of insurance coverage
  • a repeal of the death penalty
  • changes prohibiting political contributions by paycheck deductions
  • a challenge to the newly drawn state Senate districts
  • the Safe, Clean, and Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act of 2012
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