Stewart

Sacramento, CA -- The California Manufacturers & Technology Association (CMTA) announced it's positions on eight initiatives scheduled for the 2010 elections in June and November.  Four are set for the June Primary election and four, still in the signature gathering process, are targeted for the November General election.

Here are CMTA's positions, as well as an explanation for the Association's support of the California Jobs Initiative (AB 32 suspension).

June, 2010 Ballot Initiatives

» Proposition 13 -- Seismic Retrofit -- Support
Property Tax: New Construction Inclusion: Seismic Retrofitting

» Proposition 14 -- Open Primaries -- Support
Elections: Open Primaries

» Proposition 15 -- Public Funding for Elections -- Oppose
Political Reform Act of 1974: California Fair Elections Act of 2008

» Proposition 16 -- 2/3 Requirement for Local Electricity Providers -- Oppose
New Two-Thirds Requirement for Local Public Electricity Providers

November, 2010 Ballot Initiatives

» Repeal of Business Tax Incentives -- Initiative 0058 -- Oppose
Repeals Recent Legislation That Would Allow Businesses to Carry Back Losses, Share Tax Credits, and Use a Sales-Based Income Calculation to Lower Taxable Income

» Sinclair Fix (defines tax/fee vote requirements) -- Initiative 0093 -- Support
Increases Legislative Vote Requirement to Two Thirds for State Levies and Charges. Imposes Additional Requirement for Voters to Approve Local Levies and Charges with Limited Exceptions. Initiative Constitutional Amendment

» Voters First Congressional Redistricting -- Initiative 0027 -- Support
Redistricting of Congressional Districts. Initiative Constitutional Amendment

» California Jobs Initiative (AB32 Suspension) -- Initiative 0104 -- Support (Reasons below)
Suspends Air Pollution Control Laws Requiring Major Polluters to Report and Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions That Cause Global Warming Until Unemployment Drops Below Specified Level for Full Year

Adjusting the schedule of regulations under the state’s greenhouse gas reduction law until the California economy recovers is necessary because:

AB 32 will cost California even more manufacturing jobs.Restoring jobs and supporting a healthy California economy should be our state’s first priority. We’ve already lost over 630,000 high wage manufacturing jobs since 2001 and AB 32’s costly regulations will put even more jobs at risk – jobs we simply can’t afford to lose. Temporarily suspending AB 32 will help keep manufacturing in California.

AB 32 implementation will increase costs for manufacturers, employers and consumers.

Sharp increases in energy and other costs for manufacturers under AB 32 will translate not only to lost jobs but to higher costs for employers and consumers at a time they can least afford it. This will worsen the current recession and delay the economic recovery California so desperately needs.

Temporarily suspending AB 32 will help keep California manufacturing competitive.

Because manufacturers in other states and countries are not subject to AB 32 costs, implementation at this time will create an unlevel competitive playing field for California manufacturers. The temporary suspension of AB 32 will give California manufacturers an incentive to remain in the state rather than move jobs and tax revenues to states where their operating costs would be more affordable.

California will still have the strictest environmental laws in the country even if AB 32 regulations are postponed until the economy recovers. AB 32 applies only to greenhouse gas emissions, which do not have local impacts. Suspending AB 32 will not weaken or repeal other existing laws that protect our air and water quality, which have made California manufacturing facilities cleaner-operating than most in other states.

"Manufacturing jobs are important to California’s economic recovery. Temporarily suspending AB 32 will help preserve those jobs and could make it easier to create new manufacturing jobs. The California Jobs Initiative will help put Californians back to work and its economy back on track," said CMTA President, Jack Stewart.