Katelyn Roedner Sutter, Environmental Defense Fund's California director, speaks at a Sacramento rally in support of a climate bond. | Paschal Roth Public AffairsIt used to be taken for granted that if California voters had the chance to borrow money and spend it, they would do it nearly every time.to fund schools, housing and climate-related projects before voters in November.
In November, the situation will grow even more challenging for those campaigns asking voters to approve new borrowing for a long-range commitment to progressive priorities. Voters are likely to be simultaneously bombarded with messaging on behalf of a California Business Roundtable-backed constitutional amendment that would make it harder to pass taxes and fees, in which the proponents argue that government can’t be trusted to raise and spend money.
Bond-measure strategists worry that voter frustration with the sheer amount of money spent combating California’s biggest problems with seemingly little to show for it will only intensify. Aearlier this spring found it was not possible to evaluate the effectiveness of $24 billion in anti-homelessness programs.
The various bond packages already face tricky math: Newsom said in March that he estimates the state has the financial capacity to borrowin bond debt. Bond backers say they know they will ultimately have to shrink their specific plans to fit under the cap. Campaign strategists also worry about how penny-pinching voters will view the overall price tag — and that if it’s too large, it could help sink all the measures.