Decades later, California's 'Gann limit' back in spotlight
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — If California Gov. Gavin Newsom avoids getting recalled from office later this year, he could owe a debt of gratitude to a conservative Republican political activist from the 1970s and 1980s.
It was Paul Gann who led the 1979 campaign that convinced voters to put limits on government spending. When the limit is exceeded, money gets returned to taxpayers.
That threshold has been reached only once — in 1987, when $1.1 billion was returned. And now it’s happened again and the return is much larger.
On Monday, the Newsom administration announced California would soar past the limit by an astonishing $16 billion. The governor proposed what he called the largest state tax rebate in history, guaranteeing payments of up to $1,100 to people who earn up to $75,000 per year, or roughly two-thirds of the state’s adult population.
“I’m about to make an announcement no other governor in California history has ever made and I would argue no governor in American history is ever made: Today we’re announcing a $75.7 billion budget surplus,” Newsom said during a news conference in Oakland. “Because of this announcement, two-thirds of all Californians will benefit from this stimulus. That’s roughly $12 billion.”
The timing couldn’t be better for Newsom, who is facing a recall election later this year fueled by anger over his handling of the pandemic. But it was that same pandemic that has contributed to the state soaring past the limit, ensuring the government would have to eventually act.
It's likely Newsom would have proposed this spending even without the Gann limit, especially given the outsized impact of the pandemic on lower and middle income families. Newsom would not be required to act on the limit for another two years — which is how long it will take...