Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 09/02/2009 9:13:05 AM PDT by markomalley
Anticipating hundreds of millions of dollars a year in greenhouse gas fees collected from California businesses, the Legislature is planning to redistribute much of the bounty to the state's "most impacted and disadvantaged communities."
Perhaps a bill pending in the state Senate reveals the motive of feel-good legislative efforts to fight global warming: a massive redistribution of wealth.
Assembly Bill 1405 calls for 30 percent of new fees raised under global warming regulations yet to be drafted to go to a Community Benefits Fund to be used in specially selected communities, based on specific criteria also yet to be drafted.
A Senate analysis says anticipated new rules by the state Air Resources Board allow revenue from fees imposed on greenhouse gas emitters to pay for the board's administrative costs, but not for "climate-change-related mitigation activities."
AB 1405, authored by assembly members Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, and V. Manuel Perez, D-Indio, would amend the so-called Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 to require 30 percent of money raised by fees under consideration by the Air Resources Board to be "used solely in the most impacted and disadvantaged communities…" The 2006 law provides broadly that "revenues collected pursuant to this section, shall be deposited into the Air Pollution Control Fund and are available upon appropriation, by the Legislature, for purposes of carrying out this division."
As proposed, the money would provide "competitive grants" to reduce emissions and install equipment and "energy efficiency upgrades for schools, senior centers or low-income housing." Money collected from businesses statewide would be redistributed according to "socioeconomic indicators," including income and poverty levels, educational attainment and "linguistic isolation."
The air board is considering fees to raise about $54 million a year, restricted to paying its administrative costs. This bill begins the political divvying up of the anticipated pot of cash to be extracted from California businesses, ostensibly to curb global warming, a likely non-existent threat, which probably would be unaffected by the state's regulations even if it were a threat. Favored recipients would reap at least $18 million a year from proposed fees and as much as "hundreds of millions" if the air board imposes a cap-and-trade emission scheme.
Someone selected by politicians and bureaucrats stands to profit from millions extracted from private hands. But the economic damage far outweighs speculative benefits of curbing global temperatures, which haven't increased in a decade.
Just sickening.
Will I get free water wings?
Other states can prepare for the influx of California businesses.
The Legislature has probably structured all these handouts to be imbedded in a manner that can never change or get down-sized or have any sunset clause.
Therefore, as the base for the taxes disappears, the rate of tax will go up and up.
All the entitlements that California currently has and has refused to weaken or remove is a large part of why they are in the trouble they are right now.
Sacramento legislators are stupid beyond belief.
The AQMD (Air Quality Management Board-District-) is one of the most useless pieces of government ever devised.
It is like having a highly paid group of people go outside every day and determine whether or not it is rainy or hot.
They create the most convoluted rules you can imagine, and most businesses are out of compliance with one or another of their rules every moment of the day.
What California businesses?? Is there a U-Haul shortage?
Misprint. Should be Global Warming Warfare.
That’s what’s gonna happen in this country if the Obamaloons pull off cap and trade. We’re gonna rise up. Big time.
I look forward to our population saying, “What part of bite my butt do you not understand” to the Obamaloon and his cabinet of folks who’ve never had a real job.
Smart people would be saving some old cars up to last their driving years. Not just any older vehicle either. Ones that you can convert to burning your own home made fuels such as ethanol and bio diesel, or just buy a horse and sadle/buggy for local trips to the general store. (they'll try figure a way to tax horse farts too)
It will be people who live in rural areas that will really have to pay. Their aim is to save the planet by consolidating people into the cities by taxing the crap out of rural dwellers to force them back into the cities.
Wishful thinking. There just aren't may of us left that give a damn about anything but themselves, government hand outs, promises of more, and what's on TV, porn.
aren’t many
WHAT global warming?
It's all a farce. The last ten years have been below normal, cold years not seen since 1857
Plus the usual rake off for our worthless brother-in-law of course.
I don’t think the folks in Kalifornia should be counting their greenhouse gas fee “eggs” before they hatch.
“Money collected from businesses statewide would be redistributed according to “socioeconomic indicators,” including income and poverty levels, educational attainment and “linguistic isolation.””
In other words they will make it profitable to not work, drop out of school and not learn english.
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