Tighten up

The governor’s budget proposal is in, and most of us are being asked to share the pain and endure the cutbacks. The exception would be the wealthier among us, including our state legislators. While students at Butte College could see their tuition costs increase 44 percent, there is no talk of reining in the $200 million the state Legislature spends on job perks for itself each year. All members of the Assembly receive an annual salary of $99,000 and are also offered a $125 per-diem allowance for living expenses for each day the Assembly is in session. From Dec. 1, 2002, through Nov. 30, 2003, our Assembly members, Rick Keene, R-Chico, and Doug LaMalfa, R-Richvale, each received $28,279 in per-diem expenses. That’s more than the average income in Butte County ($20,279).

Driving to Sacto every day takes a lot of fuel and a toll on your vehicle. Not to worry: Our assemblymen get gas credit cards and vehicle maintenance paid for by the taxpayer. Last year LaMalfa, who according to his chief of staff David Reade drives a Mustang, rang up $3,548.14 in gasoline purchases, ranking him 11th out of 80 Assembly members. However, his vehicle maintenance costs were a paltry $153.54 (65th), meaning he either is not taking very good care of taxpayer property, or else he changes his own oil. (Reade confirmed the latter.) Keene, who drives a Yukon SUV, pumped $3,462.99 (14th place) worth of fuel into his vehicle but spent $665.93 on vehicle maintenance. Keene spent $3,850 of taxpayer money to lease his Yukon. To be fair, I should point out that Keene kicks in an extra $123.56 per month out of his own wallet to cover the $473.56 monthly lease on his car. LaMalfa’s Mustang cost the taxpayers a much thriftier $2,189.18 to lease for the past year.

I can’t blame anyone for taking advantage of the perks offered in a job, especially in these tough economic times in California. But symbolism—turning down the per diem, driving your own vehicle, changing your own oil—can buy a lot of voter goodwill when it comes to an emotional issue like budget cuts.

That was a gutsy editorial by Enterprise-Record last week, siding with Wal-Mart and chastising those mean union people who are trying to beat the big-box giant to a “pulp” and “bring it to its knees.” They ought to be ashamed of themselves. Also, the E-R—and probably newspapers across the country—carried the headline about Bush’s “bold plan” to go to Mars and back to the moon. Has there ever been a “timid plan” for manned space exploration? I don’t think so. I imagine the word is used because of the famous promise by the USS Enterprises’ Capt. James T. Kirk “to boldly go where no man has gone before.” Maybe Bush’s bold election-year proposals could be combined by sending undocumented workers to Mars to perform jobs that Americans don’t want to do. That would get the conservatives on board.

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