Voters did not do him any favors with their verdict on the six propositions with potential fiscal impact. Sure, they lowered the threshold for passage of a budget (Prop. 25) from two-thirds to a simple majority. But they took away two of Sacramento's favorite budget-balancing gimmicks: borrowing from local governments and redevelopment funds (outlawed by Prop. 22, which passed) and imposing or elevating fees to raise revenue (which will now require a supermajority under Prop. 26). They also denied modest budget relief for the state by rejecting a scheme to use an $18-per-vehicle fee to fund state parks (Prop. 21) or legalizing, and potentially taxing, recreational marijuana (Prop. 19).
Brown showed Wednesday that time has not wiped away all the unpredictability and quirkiness that made him a subject of great fascination during his first two terms. He promptly broke his campaign promise to move to Sacramento, saying he would keep his house in the Oakland hills until it recovered its original value. "And that may take a lot of work on my part," he said. Until then, he said he would just have to find a place to "lay my head" after long workdays in Sacramento.
Many of those nights may prove sleepless for a governor who will find the job is nothing like it was in the days when tough decisions involved the question of what to do with the surplus creating by rising home values.
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This article appeared on page A - 21 of the San Francisco Chronicle
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