Article from Town Hall Leah Barkoukis.

Coming from the state that wanted to tax conversations, it shouldn’t be surprising that another preposterous idea has made its way into the 2019-2020 budget: taxing drinking water.

The state’s new governor, Gavin Newsom, has proposed a statewide water tax that would create a “safe and affordable drinking water fund [that would] enable the State Water Resources Control Board to assist communities, particularly disadvantaged communities, in paying for the short-term and long-term costs of obtaining access to safe and affordable drinking water.”

This isn’t the first time a tax on water has been proposed—a similar measure, which would have imposed an $11.40 per year tax on California residents, was sought by former Gov. Jerry Brown last year but was unable to get enough support in the legislature.

The Legislature scrapped the idea after protests from some segments of the agricultural community and the Association of California Water Agencies, which represents more than 400 water districts. It became clear that the proposal would have trouble it was proving increasingly difficult to secure the two-thirds super-majority needed to impose a new tax. Former Gov. Jerry Brown tried to resurrect the program last fall as a voluntary tax, but that died in the Legislature as well. (The Sacramento Bee)

Read the entire article at Town Hall.