Brown Warns Lawmakers To Prepare For Vetoes
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) -- Gov. Jerry Brown warned California lawmakers Wednesday that they soon will be "playing the veto blues" as he considers some 600 bills passed by the Legislature before its session ended last week.
Brown said he is focused on common-sense laws that will not add to the state's budget problems.
"I'm going to veto a lot of bills over the next 30 days," Brown told reporters. "So I have to say to some, fasten your seat belts. This is going to be a rough ride ... They'll be playing the veto blues before we finish them up."
Lawmakers failed to send the governor his two major jobs proposals. One would have closed a tax loophole for multi-state corporations and used proceeds to provide tax breaks for California small businesses and manufacturers.
Another would have extended a statewide electricity surcharge to promote energy efficiency and the development of alternative energy sources. The surcharge has been in effect since 1997 and adds $1 to $2 to the average monthly household electric bill.
Among the bills passed by the Legislature is one that would ban minors from using tanning salons and another that would allow workers in child care centers to unionize.
Other bills Brown will consider would delay the state's effort to collect sales tax from Internet retailers such as Amazon.com; ban the sale and possession of shark fins used in soup; and speed up construction of a proposed NFL stadium in downtown Los Angeles.
Under an agreement reached in the final hours of the legislative session, the state would delay implementing a law forcing online retailers to collect sales tax until at least September 2012. That would give Internet and traditional retailers time to lobby Congress for a national standard for collecting the taxes.
The bill, known as AB155, would eliminate an estimated $200 million in tax revenue the state had been counting on this fiscal year.
"It's obviously a compromise," Brown said. "Amazon seems to have agreed to pay the taxes, and that's a good first step."
The governor has until Oct. 9 to act on the measures.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
