Because it is so hard for homeowners and utilities to clear brush away from homes and powerlines due to environmental regulations, California frequently had destructive wild fires. Well, California and federal wildlife officials may have saved a few mice, but it is finally causing State Farm, California's largest home insurer, to leave the California market. Just months after the company announced it was not going to be accepting new applications for homeowner's insurance, State Farm has announced that it will stop issuing insurance to 72,000 homes and apartments. The reasons it has given is "soaring costs, the increasing risk of catastrophes like wildfires and outdated regulations". The article explains that "[t]he move comes as California's elected insurance commissioner undertakes a yearlong overhaul of home insurance regulations aimed at calming the state's imploding market." The state's Department of Insurance has also promised to investigate State Farm's decision.
For more about the collapse of California, check out this article: "California Is Charging Residents Who Want to Leave the State With New Exit Tax." "The exit tax mechanism is designed to allow taxation for several years after a taxpayer leaves California, classifying them as a 'Wealth Tax Resident.'" As it is currently proposed, it will only apply to people with $50 million or more in assets. But the federal income tax was originally sold as only applying to very wealthy as well and now look at where we are.
The same thing happened, and is happening, in Florida, but it's hurricanes doing the work rather than government policies.
ReplyDeleteAs for the "California exit tax" I foresee, if it has not already begun, a burgeoning cottage industry forming around "loophole management" to eliminate, or at least minimize, the burden to escape California. The $50+ million crowd has ample recourse through clever lawyers and accountants, but the $75-500K bunch will, I suspect, need some assistance navigating exit strategies, especially as California's greed drives the penalty structure down the income and asset ranks. When the Commies smell the possibility of a large chunk of your $1.5M house - that you bought 35 years ago for $130K and raised your children in - it will require a JD and a BS in Accounting as bulwark against government-enforced poverty.
Exit tax: how is that different than being a tax slave?
ReplyDeleteRE: 'tax slavery" - a random thought....Article IV, Section 2 of the Constitution states "The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States."
ReplyDeleteHow does that affect the ability of one state to tax residents (aka "citizens") of another state? If State A can legimately tax the residents of State B, could not California be sued and its residents taxed for acts performed in California that impose a burden on residents of the other 49? If a citizen no longer maintains legal residence in State A what is the justification for taxing - or enforcing any other act of that state legislature - across state lines? If California can tax across state lines, theoretically they could prohibit things such as concealed carry of firearms in other states as well.
If State A requires a 'bounty" to depart State A, is that not affected by the Privileges and Immunities clause? How would that "departure bounty" be different from money to purchase a slave's freedom? If California can - legally - enact a "departure bounty" could other states do the same or enact an "arrival bounty"?