California Prop 16: The Pacific Gas and Electric Company Protection Act.

[Ozymanithrax]

Well, what the call it is the Taxpayers Right to Vote Act. Is that a misleading statement?

Prop 16: The Taxpayers right to vote act...
What is Proposition 16, the Taxpayers Right to Vote Act?
The California Taxpayers' Association and California Chamber of Commerce say Proposition 16 does one simple thing:
Prop 16 requires two-thirds voter approval before local governments can spend or borrow public money to get into the electricity business.

Back in the late 80's and early 90's California, and just about every other state, went this this mania of deregulation. Until that time, a lot of the electrical grid and power plants were owned by cities and states. The theory was that they could run them cheaper and supplying cheap power was good for business and good for the people. Deregulation promised that the people would see an immediate savings if we just divested ourselves of all that electrical power generation and transmission equipment and let the business sector do it. Because we all know that Big Business always does things cheaper and more efficiently than government.

What really happened is that once the private sector took over, cost of electricity went up by 20% across the nation.

What this does is allow 33% +1 voter stop local governments from going back to making their own power cheaper and more efficiently than any business anywhere can do it. It is an act to protect big bussiness and power companies.

It is a monumentally bad idea.

This the the clincher:

Paid for by Yes on 16/Californians to Protect Our Right to Vote, major funding from Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a coalition of taxpayers, business and labor. FPPC ID: 1318623

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. Well there are two things about this

1.- That needs to lose, and bad.

2.- If they feel they even need to put this on the ballot, the zeitgest is changing. That only can be good.

Oh and just from watching the commercials, I went, oohhh ohhh

[Ozymanithrax]

2. I received a flyer in the mail...

It is paid for mostly by Pacific Gas and Electric. I am sure they don't have a ulterior motive for wanting to protect the voting rights of 33% +1 voter.
:sarcasm:

[xxqqqzme]

3. Nice title for the prop Jerry.

Certainly shows no bias.........much!

[Ozymanithrax]

4. Yes, they are pretty good at giving very bad props misleading names.

I am not sure who names these things. Jerry Brown may have had nothing to do with the name, like the names given to many of the bills that go through the U.S. Congress. No Child Left Behind. etc. etc.

[Caliman73]

11. The attorney general does not choose the name of initiatives

The initiatives come titled and the Attorney General merely reviews and signs off on whether the initiative follows the proper procedure to be included on the ballot. Pick another reason to attack Jerry Brown. There are plenty of opportunities, at least make a valid attempt.

[Hannah Bell]

5. protect voting rights????? wtf. what a piece of orwellian crap.

[demosincebirth]

6. PG&E is behind it. What does that tell you?

[cascadiance]

7. Don't they f'ing learn? Los Angeles AVOIDED energy crisis with PUBLICLY OWNED utilities!

... back at the turn of the century.

Are they trying to set up the west coast again for another Enron-style meltdown?

http://www.commondreams.org/views01/0429-06.htm

I'm glad I live in Portland now! Though California's screwups then also affected the whole west coast then too.

[Nikki Stone1]

8. THANK YOU FOR POSTING THIS

The commercials are relentless and unless you listen carefully, you can't tell who's backing it. PG & E are BASTARDS.

[bridgit]

9. pg&e sucks!

[soleiri]

10. I received a yes on 16 flyer today

I had to tell my son, who read the flyer, the only organization missing was the Howard Jarvis anti-tax association.
Usually, that's how I can tell that a proposition is crap.