Kerby Anderson

Not so long ago, California was the golden state with a great future. Now, Thomas Del Beccaro says that the state government has made the state unsustainable. He is the author of the book, The Divided Era, and has served as the Chairman of the California Republican Party. Even if you don’t live in California, you can learn from some of the reasons he believes that state is at risk.

The first concern is California’s infrastructure deficit. The State Water Project was designed decades ago for a population not greater than 25 million. Today there are 40 million people within its borders. The roads in California are considered some of the poorest in the nation.

Government debt is a second concern. The published state and local government debt is $1.3 trillion. But many commentators believe that actual debt is closer to $2.3 trillion. Add to that an estimated $1 trillion more in pension liability, and you can see that the state of California has major debt liability problems.

A third issue is California’s taxes and regulations. It could easily be argued that the state is certainly the most regulated state in this country. It also has the highest income tax rates along with one of the highest sales tax rates.

This is one of the major reasons why so many people, as well as businesses, are leaving California. Residents fed up with high housing costs and taxes are fleeing the state. It has effectively hollowed out California’s middle class.

Finally, there is the issue of the California government itself. The state government spends more than $200 billion a year on budget and even more off budget in the form of programs paid for with bonds.

The long-term trend for California is higher income taxes, higher sales taxes, and more regulations. That’s why California looks unsustainable.