☆ SB 335 perspectives: Instead of raising taxes, why not streamline other activities?

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SJ's Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility and Silicon Valley Leadership Group chime in on Senator Cortese's controversial bill to jack up our sales tax from its existing cap of 2%. Rather than worsen residents' fiscal burden, they point out, shouldn't San Jose look into balancing its budget better and cutting the fluff? Or is that too radical a concept? An Opp Now exclusive.

Pat Waite, Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility president:

Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility opposes any County sales tax increase for General Fund purposes. On an inflation adjusted basis, the County General Fund budget of $4.6 billion has nearly doubled over the past decade. The county needs to take a very hard look at why this is before piling more tax obligations on its residents. We suspect there are myriad opportunities for reducing costs by streamlining activities.

Dan Kostenbauder, VP of Tax Policy at Silicon Valley Leadership Group:

SVLG is focused on working constructively with policymakers to improve business competitiveness for our region so that our leading employers and innovators can retain talent, attract investment, and create jobs. We joined with the statewide coalition of business associations earlier this year to convey our concerns about the measure, particularly given the continued macroeconomic volatility and cost pressures on businesses in Silicon Valley.

Related:

• Opinion: Cortese's SB 335 an absurdly unnecessary County tax hike

• On outmigration, living standards, and (yes) taxes: What's really at stake with ACA 1?

• Perspective: California “has a spending problem”—so expect frequent tax bumps if ACA 1 passes

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