Arnold, Day #2

Was yesterday, inauguration day, day #1? Or is today day #1? Oh well, who knows. Nevertheless, Governor Arnold (note: I'm probably never going to attempt to spell his last name, because I'm lazy) kept one of his largest campaign promises and rescinded the VLF increase immediately (and retroactively). Rough & Tumble has a great quote:

The $4-billion tax cut ordered by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday brought relief to California car owners, but left open how state lawmakers might now help local agencies pay for police, fire and other services. Asked where the Legislature would find money to reimburse cities and counties as Schwarzenegger has promised, Senate President Pro Tem John L. Burton (D-San Francisco) said, "He ain't getting it from me."

A Democrat on record against tax increases? What's the world coming to?

Meanwhile, back in reality, the Contra Costa times reports some interesting happenings I haven't read elsewhere:

He ordered three special legislative sessions, beginning today, to address the state's fiscal crisis, workers' compensation reform and repeal of SB60, the driver's license bill for illegal immigrants that Gov. Gray Davis signed while fighting to save his job.

And, in a surprise move, he issued an executive order suspending all proposed state regulations for 180 days. In addition, the new governor called for a review of all regulations adopted, amended or repealed in the last five years.

Great moves, and something I hadn't expected. I'm really glad to hear that Arnold is making wide-ranging reviews of everything that's happened recently. I hope he'll have the guts and power to actually do something about any absurdities or deficiencies he finds.

As I pointed out yesterday, some people are quick to drag out the Washington Monument Syndrome. No surprise that Bob Mulholland is first to the mic.

Democratic Party strategist Bob Mulholland dismissed Schwarzenegger's appeal for bipartisan cooperation, suggesting it was disingenuous.

"If you read history, even dictators start their term out that way," said Mulholland, adding that the special budget session and the new governor's January budget will paint a clearer picture.

"If that turns out where he's got the kids and the elderly and immigrants on the chopping block, then we'll see the real Schwarzenegger."

I wondered what all those scaffolds were for! I just hope Arnold doesn't have to raise my taxes to dispose of the bodies.

The Sacramento Bee has more, with the excellent headline "Day One: Tax rollback promise kept" (maybe they didn't hear about the scaffolds!) and some detailed information on the technicalities of the VLF roll-back.

The vehicle license fee, long a fixture in California, became a hot issue in the recall campaign. Created in 1935, it had been set at 2 percent of the vehicle's value for five decades when the Legislature, flush with tax windfalls, reduced the amount that vehicle owners paid.

Although the rate technically remained at 2 percent, the amount owners paid was slashed by more than two-thirds. The state made payments to local governments of more than $4 billion each year to compensate them for the lost revenue.

The law contained a provision that said the payments to local government would be curtailed if the state had "insufficient moneys."

That "trigger" became the focus of rancorous debate as Davis and the Legislature tried to close a $38 billion budget gap last summer. Davis' Department of Finance on June 20 said that the conditions had been met, and that the vehicle license fee would go back up to its former level on Oct. 1.

The administration's action fueled the recall and was generally credited with helping Schwarzenegger get elected.

The executive order called for the June 20 letter tripling the fee to be rescinded. The new administration argues that Davis made a mistake by treating the local government payments as the treasury's lowest priority, to be made only if there was enough money for everything else.

In fact, Schwarzenegger is arguing, the local government payments should have a higher priority. That has the practical effect of keeping the car tax at the lower level unless the state completely runs out of cash.

Got it?

It's a bright new day in California -- for now -- and everyone is waiting in eager expectation to see how Arnold ensures that the state can ride the national wave of economic recovery. As for myself, I hope it doesn't require the execution of too many children, senior citizens, or immigrants, but I'm trying to keep an open mind.