Middle class families in California pay LESS in taxes than in states like Texas.
California has seen population increases and decreases over the past 25 years.
Life expectancy, infant mortality, deaths of despair, wages and uninsured rates are all worse off in other states.
California is the fourth largest economy in the WORLD. California contributes $83 billion to the federal government while Texas takes $71 billion.
California is #1 in manufacturing, #1 in farming, #1 in new business starts, #1 in tech and VC investments, #1 in Fortune 500 companies, and the #1 public higher education system in the country.
California has more scientists, engineers, and Nobel laureates than any other state in this country.
I have a California question. Because of taxes and an unwillingness to use its oil reserves, California has the highest gasoline prices in the country (including Alaska and Hawaii). That sort of makes sense to encourage EV adoption. At the same time, consumer electricity prices are among the highest in the nation. That seems counter productive. Any thoughts on why?
Perplexity.ai gave me a long answer, summarized at the bottom here:
Net effect: California’s residential rates are now close to twice the U.S. average, largely because wildfire‑related costs, climate and rooftop‑solar policies, and capital‑heavy grid upgrades are being recovered through volumetric rates rather than broader funding mechanisms.