Mediaboss Marketing

SANTA CRUZ - Local union and education leaders are putting their weight behind the so-called millionaires tax, a proposed ballot initiative that would restore funding for education and essential services. The initiative, which supporters say is the only progressive tax proposal, would ask Californians who earn in excess of $1 million per year to pay 3 percent more in annual taxes.

The millionaires tax was widely discussed Tuesday evening at a forum held by the Women's International League of Peace and Freedom. Local economic, union and education leaders talked about how initiatives proposed to fix that state's budget will affect Santa Cruz.

Nora Hochman, a union leader for administrative workers at UC Santa Cruz, spoke adamantly about the need for the tax.

"Whether it's short-term rescue or long-term restructuring, something needs to be done," Hochman said. "We have a slim window of opportunity."

Hochman distributed a number of fact sheets on the proposal, which supporters estimate won't cost the average or typical taxpayer any extra money each year, unlike some of the other proposals on the table.

Gov. Jerry Brown's own proposed budget initiative, for instance, which would benefit education, public safety, social services and corrections, would temporarily increase sales tax by half a cent and increase tax rates on those with an annual income of more than $250,000.

In some years, voters have had the opportunity to vote on state ballot initiatives in June as well as in November, last year the state's Legislature moved all June ballot measures to the November ballot, according to Fred Keeley, the county's treasurer.

While Keeley was nuanced in his analysis of the various initiatives, cautioning that fixing the budget crisis on state and local levels is also a matter of finding the right mix of taxes. He said that if he could only pick one of the proposals, he'd go for the millionaires tax.

Francisco Rodriguez, a vice president with the local chapter of the California Federation of Teachers, a leading supporter of the proposal, also spoke in support.

"Our initiative is the only progressive initiative that taxes only those who can truly afford it," he said.

Rodriguez said that California Federation of Teachers began polling its members about the budget proposals in 2009 and then expanded to all voters.

"We've found that across the board, voters support education," he said.

One concern when it comes to ballot initiatives, particularly when there are several in an election year, is that you run the risk of voter fatigue, leaders cautioned. When faced with too many initiatives, voters may get fed up and vote for all, or none. That's one of the reasons Gov. Brown has pushed to shoot down measures that compete with his own $7 billion tax proposal.

Keeley is among the leadership of California Forward, a group that has successfully pushed prior initiatives and is pursuing another that would change how California handles its budget.

Follow Sentinel reporter Jessica M. Pasko on Twitter @jmpasko96

More:
Community leaders talk state budget proposals, including the teacher-backed millionaires tax