Big Money Lies

Big money lies are the rule for this 2018 election round, as usual. Business is backing themselves, much to the detriment of democracy.

Tony Thurmond

Charter Schools companies and investors have funded anti-Thurmonds lies, claiming Tony Thurmond was sued by the ACLU (which the ACLU has shown is a lie and demanded retraction) and that he was sanctioned for school conditions in a grossly underfunded school district, while the truth is that the district was cited while he was one of the school board members (2010-2012).

Prop 8

Bankrolled by two of the nation’s largest dialysis companies, DaVita and Fresenius Medical Care, which have financed a vast majority (>90%) of the record-high $111.4 million raised to defeat the initiative, claim it will shut down clinics, while in truth it limits their profit to 15%, with allowable base expenses include all costs of operation, including depreciation, but not CEO pay. Supermarkets generally work with 5%-10% profit.

(1) “Direct patient care services costs” means those costs directly associated with operating a chronic dialysis clinic in California and providing care to patients in California. Direct patient care services costs shall include, regardless of the location where each patient undergoes dialysis, only (i) salaries, wages, and benefits of nonmanagerial chronic dialysis clinic staff, including all clinic personnel who furnish direct care to dialysis patients, regardless of whether the salaries, wages, or benefits are paid directly by the chronic dialysis clinic or indirectly through an arrangement with an affiliated or unaffiliated third party, including but not limited to a governing entity, an independent staffing agency, a physician group, or a joint venture between a chronic dialysis clinic and a physician group; (ii) staff training and development; (iii) pharmaceuticals and medical supplies; (iv) facility costs, including rent, maintenance, and utilities; (v) laboratory testing; and (vi) depreciation and amortization of buildings, leasehold improvements, patient supplies, equipment, and information systems. For purposes of this section, “nonmanagerial chronic dialysis clinic staff” includes all clinic personnel who furnish direct care to dialysis patients, including nurses, technicians and trainees, social workers, registered dietitians, and nonmanagerial administrative staff, but excludes managerial staff such as facility administrators. Categories of direct patient care services costs may be further prescribed by the department through regulation.

Prop 10

REiTs and landlords have funded attack ads with claims that it takes away home owner rights, creates unelected boards, raises taxes, and does not protect renters, veterans, and the homeless. The truth is that it says "(c) To repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act." That is all that it does, repeal the law passed to protect landlords from the prospect of rent control, prohibiting rent control for housing built after 1995. It would again ALLOW cities to consider a rent control tool, but creates nothing. Landlords are protected.

"1954.54. (a) A city, county, or city and county shall have the authority to adopt a local charter provision, ordinance, or regulation that governs a landlord’s right to establish and increase rental rates on a dwelling or housing unit. (b) In accordance with California law, a landlord’s right to a fair rate of return on a property shall not be abridged by a city, county, or city and county."

The prospect of possible rent control might just be enough to reduce the doubling and more of rents, but prop 10 does not creat any rent control; only local goverments can consider it.

Emergency medical technicians

American Medical Response, a Colorado-based ambulance company, bankrolled most of the $30 million campaign for the measure in an effort to dodge an expensive suit for not obeying the lunch break law.

As unpleasant as it may be to do, READ the actual text of all propositions because that is the only way to find out what it says. Other sources may show what the result may be, or lie about it. Often a proposition is the proposed by industry in an effort to make larger profits or dodge an expense. Prop 13 claimed to be to protect home owners, but landlords used it to shift the majority of property taxes from business to home owners and cut school funding. A measure considered by the legislature would have limited the tax relief to homeowners and would not have had the effects that the landlords wanted. Big money will lie to protect big money.