Raising taxes is making news at the state Capitol.
Democrats are proposing two tax hikes - one would raise taxes on the wealthiest Californians at a time with the state has a $45 billion surplus, and the other would gut the Republican proposal to suspend the gas tax, replacing it with a new tax on oil companies. Republican Assemblyman Kevin Kiley was silenced when he argued against the Democrats efforts to replace his gas tax holiday bill with a new bill to tax oil companies.
"This bill presents a very simple solution," Kiley said. "It is a lever that we can pull immediately. It has an urgency clause. It will take effect immediately to provide folks with some measure of relief."
The new Democrat version of the bill would penalize oil companies who make profits, and the newly amended version passed out of committee on a vote of eight to four. Kiley is still listed as the author of AB 1638, even though it is now a completely different bill that he does not support.