California's Proposition 25

Comrades, this has got to be my favourite of all the propositions on the ballot this November.

Proposition 25 states that all pay and benefits to politicians will be stopped if they fail to bring in a balanced budget ON TIME!

California's annual budget is always late. It's now expected by the people. The biggest problem with this are the state employees. I'm not talking about the big fat-cat political appointees. I'm talking about the workers like in the road department, the clerks at the Motor Vehicle Department and courthouses. Corrections Officers, State Troopers, and all the little people who work for the state. When the budget is late, by law, these workers cannot be paid. They are issued vouchers instead. Sure, they'll get their money after the budget is completed. But what do they do in the meantime?

Under California law, state employees cannot be evicted from their apartments or rental houses by paying their rent with vouchers. Banks cannot foreclose on home owners for paying with vouchers. Utilities must accept the vouchers. But what about the rest? Credit card payments. Car payments. Groceries, gasoline, car repairs, clothing, children's expenses. All of these things are not covered by law. How do state employees pay for these things? With their savings? Many people have little or no savings. What are they supposed to do? Since many a year the budget is several weeks late, they're just plain screwed.

Proposition 25 holds lawmakers accountable for their actions or inactions regarding the budget. No budget, no pay or benefits. And they don't get back pay later when they complete the budget. They lose all compensation while the budget is late permanently.

Now I realise most politicians are wealthy, and it wouldn't harm them financially to lose a few weeks pay. However, it will annoy them to have to work for free. Most of us won't work for free, but they'll have no choice until they do their jobs properly. Besides, not all of them are wealthy. There are some who depend on their pay for self-support. These few will be more willing to work with members of the opposing party than they normally would be. This means more lawmakers who would be willing to compromise than there used to be. With these people pressuring the wealthy to compromise ("Hey, I'm not rich like you, I need my paycheck. Let's get this damn thing done!"), perhaps they'll get off their asses, put their party's agenda aside, and actually start to work for the people.
It won't fix everything - not even the majority of things straight away, but it's a start.