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Another reason why I support Republicans and not Democrats. From Assemblyman Mark Wyland - Republican
SCORE THIS ONE: UNIONS 1, EVERYBODY ELSE 0
A funny thing happened in the Labor & Employment Committee on April 20, 2005. I presented a bill to the committee which says simply that every regulation and posting required to be posted in the workplace or at the jobsite pursuant to state law shall be written in plain language so that the content is easily understandable by both the employer and every employee. You’d think that a labor union would want their workers to understand their rights, but when a compromise was proposed in committee by the labor-friendly chairman, the idea got vetoed. No, the common sense reform was not vetoed by the Governor, but by a representative of a public employee union who stood up in the back of the committee room--off camera--and made gestures to liberal committee members to ensure that all discussion of compromise was quashed. Everybody in the room saw what she did. And the majority quickly killed discussion and the bill died 2-5 on a strict party-line vote.
This is what I mean by Special Interests controlling your government in Sacramento.
AND THIS ONE: LAWYERS 246 BILLION, TAXPAYER 0
According to a recent study, the U.S. tort system cost taxpayers $246 billion in 2003, which translates to an $845 per person tax, plus billions more in indirect costs. The sum is based on benefits paid or expected to be paid to third parties, defense costs, and administrative expenses and is passed on to consumers through increased costs for good and services. U.S. consumers pay directly for the high cost of going to court in higher liability insurance premiums because liability insurance rates reflect what insurance companies pay out for their policyholders’ legal defense and any judgments against them. And they pay indirectly in higher prices for goods and services since businesses pass on to consumers the expenses they incur in protecting themselves against lawsuits, including the cost of commercial liability insurance. I think the following facts speak for themselves:
California’s legal system was ranked the 5th worst in the country in a recent survey by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform. [Source: Harris Interactive Inc. 2004 State Liability Rankings Study, March, 2004]
At current levels, U.S. tort costs are equivalent to a 5% tax on wages. [Source: Tillinghast-Towers Perrin U.S. Tort Costs: 2003 Update. Trends and Findings on the U.S. Tort System, December, 2003]
1.5 million lawsuits were filed in California in 2002. [Source: 2003 Court Statistics Report by the Judicial Council of California]
California school districts spend $80 million annually to defend, inure, and pay for tort and other liability claims. [Source: Cal-Tax Digest, "Local Government Liability: A Major Cost and Exposure," February 1999]
California has dropped from 39th to 44th on the list of small-business friendly states due in part to its litigation environment according to a study compiled by the Small Business Survival Committee [Source: Orange County Register, August 13, 2001]
If the earnings of trial lawyers were combined, they would amass 50% more than Microsoft or Intel and twice that of Coca-Cola [Source: Trial Lawyers, Inc., A Report on the Lawsuit Industry in America, 2003]
*source: Insurance Information Institute; Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse
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