California, on the brink of bankruptcy, has amassed debt in excess of ,200 billion. No other state faces a problem of this magnitude.

California?s Legislature began racking up tens of billions of dollars in debt before the current national recession began, with the tacit support of voters who approved tens of billions in bond measures. Gray Davis was recalled, principally because of debt burden, but nothing was gained in the process.

The deficit has since soared.

Taxes in California seriously hinder our economy, but another reason the California economy continues to spiral out of control has to do with the regulatory climate in the state. The regulatory climate also serves to explain why California will be the last in the nation to recover, if we recover.

All sectors of our economy, including manufacturing, industry, energy, housing, transportation, farming, ranching, fishing, timber and mining, have been hemorrhaging jobs, as they have suffered the death of a thousand cuts due to regulations imposed upon us by our own government.

Less business activity, either due to taxes or regulations, means fewer jobs, and that means less revenues to the state.

A combination of state and federal rules has created a cumulative impact unique to our state. The combination of regulators and regulations including the California Air Resources Board, state Water Quality Control Board, Coastal Commission, Department of Fish and Game, California Environmental Quality Act, Global Warming Reduction Act (AB32), diesel engine rule, and the Endangered Species Act have served to relegate our economy, which was once one of the largest economies in the world, to Third World status. Our debt burden and the regulatory climate are preventing economic recovery.

Examples? With respect to land, Santa Barbara County has more species speciously listed as endangered than any other county in the continental United States. The resultant confiscation of thousands of acres for conservation purposes is obliterating property tax roll revenue.

Organizations have abused the law to set land aside from development of any kind, including farming, and our government has only acquiesced.

With respect to air, our air is so clean on the Central Coast that we only fall out of compliance with some of the strictest air quality regulations in the world but a few hours per an entire year. Yet local companies are forced to spend millions every year for permits and regulatory compliance that will not achieve any measurable improvements in our air quality.

AB32 and the diesel engine rule will only make matters worse, as it is slated to cost California businesses over ,186 billion.

With respect to water, there is very little water pollution in our region, and in fact, there is very little water to begin with. Our rivers, streams and creeks are typically dry throughout the year. And most of our farmers utilize drip irrigation to minimize water runoff from their fields.

Yet our farming economy is about to suffer from some of the most Draconian standards imaginable in the regulatory quest for even cleaner ditch water.

To learn more, contact me to RSVP for a dinner conference on Oct. 29 in Santa Maria. The title of the Conference is BCalifornia- State in Emergency: Taxes, Regulations and Junk Science.C

The presenters will be Steve Milloy of Junk Science.com, Jon Coupal of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and Damien Schiff of the Pacific Legal Foundation.

The cost to attend the dinner conference is ,35.

Andy Caldwell is executive director of COLAB and a 41-year resident of the Central Coast. You may contact him by phone at 929-3148, or by email at andy@colabsbc.org.

September 17, 2009