Schools

Placement of Tax Initiatives on Ballot Questioned

Two initiatives would raise funds for California public schools. Judge rules in dispute over where they will appear on the ballot.

Two competing tax initiatives that would raise funds for public schools will appear on California ballots in November—one proposed by Gov. Jerry Brown, the other by civil rights attorney Molly Munger.

Munger’s attorneys challenged the verification process, saying Brown’s initiative “leapfrogged” over Munger’s, allowing it to appear at the top of the ballot. A Munger spokesman said the top placement gave Brown’s initiative an “unfair advantage.”

A Sacramento judge ruled in Brown’s favor on Monday, deciding that verification process was appropriate, paving the way for his initiative to appear above Munger’s on the ballot.

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Brown’s tax initiative would impose a quarter-cent sales tax increase for four years as well as an increase of up to 3 percent in the personal income tax rate for people that earn $250,000 and more. The income tax increase would last for seven years.

Munger’s would increase the personal income tax for all but low-income workers, ranging from .4 percent to 2.2 percent for those making more than $2.5 million. The income tax increase would last for 12 years.

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