anyone here from CA [prop 87]

From [offtopicforgiveme]
Re: anyone here from CA

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Carolyn wrote:
What's prop 87? environment stuff?

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my reply:
from: http://voterguide.ss.ca.gov/props/prop87/prop87.html

OFFICIAL TITLE AND SUMMARY Prepared by the Attorney General

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ALTERNATIVE ENERGY. RESEARCH, PRODUCTION, INCENTIVES. TAX ON CALIFORNIA OIL PRODUCERS. INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT AND STATUTE.

• Establishes $4 billion program with goal to reduce petroleum consumption by 25%, with research and production incentives for alternative energy, alternative energy vehicles, energy efficient technologies, and for education and training.
• Funded by tax of 1.5% to 6% (depending on oil price per barrel) on producers of oil extracted in California. Prohibits producers from passing tax to consumers.
• Program administered by new California Energy Alternatives Program Authority.
• Prohibits changing tax while indebtedness remains.
• Revenue excluded from appropriation limits and minimum education funding (Proposition 98) calculations.

Summary of Legislative Analyst’s Estimate of Net State and Local Government Fiscal Impact:

• New state revenues—depending on the interpretation of the measure—from about $225 million to $485 million annually from the imposition of a severance tax on oil production, to be used to fund $4 billion in new alternative energy programs over time.
• Potential reductions of state revenues from oil production on state lands of up to $15 million annually; reductions of state corporate taxes paid by oil producers of up to $10 million annually; local property tax reductions of a few million dollars annually; and potential reductions in fuel-related excise and sales taxes.

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Prohibits producers from passing tax to consumers. - Yeah, right. How you going to stop them.
Program administered by new California Energy Alternatives Program Authority. - Do we really need another "new" program authority?
"They" say it WILL increase alternative energy, for sure I see 4 billion dollars being spent and we probably won't even get the toilet seats!
I don't much care for an initiative for making new laws, I really dislike the idea of using it to cerate a CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT.

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Cindy wrote:
You're kidding, right? Who wouldn't vote to save the planet? It's
probably going to burn up anyway, but I can't think why anyone wouldn't
vote to save it unless they hate all of mankind, including their own
families.


Cindy

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my reply:
You're kidding, right?

A vote to save the planet? Why not start with something that WILL work?

1. Do you live within walking or bicycling distance of your school, work, church, shopping, etc, etc, etc?
2. The BIG question: If the answer to question 1 was yes, have you actually walked or bicycled on a regular basis? (good for the planet, good for your health)
3. If you own a car, does it get better than 40 mpg?
4. If you own an RV, does it get better than 35 mpg?
5. Do you regularly use public transportation when you are not walking or bicycling?
   
6. For your home :
1. Is it larger than 300 square feet per person?
2. Is the thermostat set to 62 or less when you are heating?
   
3. Is it air conditioned? Is the thermostat set to 75 or higher when you are cooling?
4. Is it equipped with a fireplace?
   
1. Do you use it? Don't.
   
2. Is it sealed so heat/cool doesn't escape?
   
5. Is the home super insulated?
6. Is it equipped with efficient lighting?
7. Do you turn off the TV, PC, lights, etc. when you leave the room for more than 3 minutes?
   
8. Is the landscaping xeriscaped?
9. Do you use a gasoline powered mower or other yard tools? Testing found that operating a typical gasoline mower with a four-cycle engine produced as much PAH as driving a modern car about 150 km or about 95 miles. (Note 1). This means that unless you drive more than 95 mph, your mower actually produces more pollution per hour than your car! [http://greengrasscutters.com.hosting.domaindirect.com/id7.html]
10. Do you use your clothes dryer on sunny days?
11. Do you leave the water (hot or cold) running while you wash your dishes, brush your teeth, wash your hands, etc, etc?
    
7. Does your family recycle everything you can (even those nasty plastic grocery bags)?
8. Do you buy locally produced produce and products to reduce transportation pollution?

I could go on and on, I usually do. I'll cut you some slack this time.

Your vote costs next to nothing, and on measures like this, that is about all they produce. If you are really ready to save the planet get off of your bottoms and walk or bicycle. Join c a m p a i g n e a r t h ! [http://www.campaignearth.org/TheChallenge_Detail.asp?caller=C1009] and other ACTION based programs, there is a ton of them out there.

But, please, please don't delude yourselves that a vote, without your self discipline and your action to conserve, will produce much of anything other than higher costs.

Come on get out there and start with you and your family. Think globally, act locally, very locally -YOU! (Me too.)