<html><head></head><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:garamond, new york, times, serif;font-size:16px"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164319" dir="ltr"><a href="http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/2018/10/not-another-water-bond/" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164482" class="">http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/2018/10/not-another-water-bond/</a><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164508"><br></div><h1 style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; padding-bottom: 5px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.4px; line-height: 1.4em; position: relative; clear: both; font-size: 24px; color: rgb(34, 34, 34);" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164388"><a href="http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/2018/10/not-another-water-bond/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link: Not Another Water Bond?" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); text-decoration: none; border: none;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164389" title-off="">Not Another Water Bond? </a></h1><div style="float: left; margin: 0px 6px 0px 0px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164390"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164391"><img alt="Joel Fox" src="http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/admin_avatar_1_2_3_4_5_6_7_8_9_10_11_12_13_14_15_16_17_18_19.jpg" height="58" width="58" style="border-top-left-radius: 3px; border-top-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-left-radius: 3px; padding: 1px; border: 1px solid rgb(225, 225, 225); visibility: visible; opacity: 1; display: block;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164392" data-id="ceac6c56-358b-4de7-aea3-6e05049bd0d4"></div></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164393"><span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164394">By <a href="http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/author/joelfox/" title="Posts by Joel Fox" rel="author" style="color: rgb(243, 33, 53);" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164395" title-off="">Joel Fox</a></span></div><div style="font-size: 11px; line-height: normal; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; margin: 6px 0px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164396">Editor and Co-Publisher of Fox and Hounds Daily </div><div style="font-size: 10px; line-height: normal; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164397">Friday, October 19th, 2018</div><div><br id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164398"></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164399"><div style="color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding-left: 10px; padding-bottom: 10px; width: 160px; min-height: 600px; float: right; margin: 0px auto;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164400"><a href="http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/advertise/" style="color: rgb(243, 33, 53);" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164401"></a></div><div style="padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.5em; color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164403">It feels every election Californians are voting on another water bond—and passing them. This November Proposition 3 is on the ballot, placed there through the initiative process. The state has plenty of unspent water related bonds. Shouldn’t we use the billions authorized for past water bonds yet expended before adding more billions to the state debt?</div><div style="padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.5em; color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164404">This bond would generate $8.89 billion for a number of water related projects including water quality, watershed and fisheries improvements, surface water storage and more at a total cost to taxpayers of $17.3 billion once the bonds are paid off with interest 40 years later. It’s hard to complain about the initiative’s goals but the costs should be put into context.<span id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164405"></span></div><div style="padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.5em; color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164406">Since 2000 California voters have approved $31 billion in water and environmental projects using general obligation bonds. That’s money that comes out of the general fund used for all other services the state provides and GO bonds have first call on general fund revenues. About $10 billion of the $31 billion has not been allocated. That includes $4 billion that voters okayed as recently as the June primary election. In 2014, voters passed a ballot measure to reallocate unsold water-related bonds and authorized $7 billion for water purposes. Few have been sold by the state.</div><div style="padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.5em; color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164407">Citing a 2017 state treasurer’s report, the <a href="http://caltax.org/action/Elections/Prop3.pdf" style="color: rgb(243, 33, 53);" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164408">California Taxpayers Association notes</a> that California has $83.24 billion in outstanding general obligation bond debt, with another $38.61 billion in authorized but unissued debt. If all bonds are sold, <em id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164409">California would have $121.85 billion in general obligation bond debt, equivalent to nearly as much as the 2017-18 general fund budget. </em>(Emphasis added.)</div><div style="padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.5em; color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164410">When do we say stop and use the resources at hand?</div><div style="padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.5em; color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164411">Of course, water is important to California’s quality of life. Water has been an important and contentious issue since the state was born and still is today. Just consider the fight that is brewing over Jerry Brown’s proposed tunnel project. But, by continually passing water bonds, especially those placed on the ballot through the initiative process, there is no overall management plan to deal with water issues.</div><div style="padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.5em; color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164412">Do voters consider the size of the state’s bond debt when voting on measures such as Prop 3? Hardly. If the proposal sounds good they support the idea and vote yes.</div><div style="padding-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0.5em; color: rgb(37, 37, 37); font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164413">Californians should be concerned with water issues. But let’s spend money already authorized and let’s have better planning before jacking up the state’s general obligation debt.</div><div style="padding: 20px; border: 0px; background-image: none; font-family: 'Indie Flower'; font-size: 20px; color: rgb(37, 37, 37);" dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164414"></div></div><div class="signature" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164327"><div id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1539355719156_1164330"><br></div></div></div></body></html>