> They passed a tax added to your property taxes that is a function of any surface area on your property that does not allow rain to come into contact with dirt
So they charge you for the externalities incurred by impervious surface cover? How is that anything but rational? Seriously, why do you deserve to add to pollution and drought without incurring any penalty for the cost you inflict on others?
Impervious ground cover is also an issue in Texas, particularly in areas fed by limestone aquifers. In some municipalities you’re simply not allowed to add more impervious ground cover without some sort of exception. The rest of your examples may indeed be ludicrous, but I stopped reading when you opened with something so plainly rational and sensical.
What about the tax on owning business items in LA? Does that sound fair?
Also, don’t you think it is insane that at a time when we are in need of jobs for an increasing population, job creation is stopped due to bureaucracy?
I love California, I am staying to create businesses too. However, there is way too much complacency among residents regarding the situation at which we have arrived due to our policies.
These policies perhaps impact business creators first, but also have massive repercussions on the quality of life of other residents.
> What about the tax on owning business items in LA? Does that sound fair?
From other comments, it sounds like this only applies to items exceeding some large dollar value. I'm all for increasing the tax base, especially with Prop 13 strangling our budget for things like education.
> Also, don’t you think it is insane that at a time when we are in need of jobs for an increasing population, job creation is stopped due to bureaucracy?
This certainly sucks, especially with how often regulation is abused purely to create barriers to entry and solidify the positions of entrenched players. This is a problem pretty much everywhere but Somalia though, so I'm not hugely moved by one particular instance of it in one county. We certainly have lessons to learn in this regard in California though.