Turning Over the Cushions Part II
I know it was out of the box but I still think worth a look
I know the last post was a bit “out of the box” in terms of the thinking. Finding money which “might” be there, thinking the government may not have found it yet, could be a little fantastic.
Well, here is the thing. I think these ballot measure funds are complicated money to get at. I think the money is “allocated” to a specific purpose constitutionally and cannot be redirected easily. I think the dollars involved do not “move the needle” in terms of solving a $12 billion hole but are still significant when coupled together. Remember, nobody would think Private Foundations paying 1.39% of their returns means something, but taken together, Los Angeles is letting $50 million get paid to the government every year without trying to find a way to redirect those funds through tax policy. Individually, no. Together, $50 million is a lot, and that figure is not the entire universe, figure is only the 10 largest foundations. The idea of having to go through a ballot measure to get the money would be a limiter to trying to find how much exists. It is opaque so it is not obvious. There are interests involved as well. Interests will fight to keep their money and ballot initiative going even if they are dead. The money, if it is there, is a ghost ship.
The obvious question was asked- if it was there, why has no one done it yet? For the reasons above.
What was the purpose of the Substack? The purpose was to get ideas circulating. It was proposed for a reason. There is something there, at least worth investigating. Maybe an enterprising journalist can find the answer. Maybe someone with connections to the State Budget black hole. It is not a “unicorn-” a fantasy. It is worth seeing whether there is money for a rebuild. What if the number is $500 million? That figure is not a lot for the budget hole, but it is a lot to seed Low to Moderate Income Housing. $500 million builds more than 500 homes outright. It seeds 1,000 homes with a $500,000 bridge loan. It is real money. What if it is more? Individually, yes, there is probably $5 million here, $10 million there, but combined, what is that number?
Nobody save for some budget gnomes in Sacramento know what the figure is/could be. We are looking at where money can come from. We are being told to go to the ends before asking for money from the federals. People are waiting, people are desperate, people need solutions. Sure the money will take 12 months to identify, and likely require a ballot measure for the 2026 election, more than 18 months after the events. But, if there is money, it is real, and worth the effort. If it is found later and not spent, what does that mean?
When you meet with electeds, you have to go all the way. When you ask for $40 billion, you better have done everything possible to get things sorted before asking. Look at what Trump did with Netanyahu. He made sure Israel would attack Iran before lending his support. California needs to truly do everything in its power, look in every corner, do whatever it takes, to find out if there are funds we can be using to help rebuild.
No elected, whether Trump or ones here, take seriously ideas not invested in. Did Callifornia do its work to get the money or just expect “easy?”
Remember, California said there is no other way to finance the rebuild than CDBG-DR. Well, that statement was not true. There are 120 Substacks here to demonstrate that fact. Is it incumbent on the citizens to find the money that could be there or is it for our electeds to look for every crumb before making the ask? Do the homework folks. Do the hard work. Did you go all in California?
DC reads this Substack. They saw the fire litigation complications. They saw CRA was available. They see there might even be more available. Want that CDBG-DR money? Show there is nothing here. The suggestion came from DC-adjacent. Maybe they know something we don’t. At the very least we can say, we looked, and nothing to see there.