Welcome!
I'm Rob Maffit and I'm running for State Senate, District 10.
I'm not a professional politician - I've never run for any office before.
Here's what I care about, and why I'm running:
Jobs and the Economy
California is in serious, serious trouble right now. Unemployment is among the worst in the nation.
Businesses are leaving the state, and taking jobs with them.
There are reasons why California is in such trouble.
We tax our businesses more than almost all other states.
We regulate our businesses more harshly than most other states.
We have a labor environment that makes it difficult to compete with other states.
We have an environment where frivolous lawsuits are the norm, and ambulance-chasing
lawyers rake in money from struggling businesses.
Why would any business put up with this? We need to level the playing field and make
California competitive with other states.
Education
California spends
a lot of money on education. It's the largest single expenditure in the budget.
But we're not getting our money's worth - we rank near the bottom in terms of student performance.
Our dropout rate is among the highest. Teachers are burning out - the good ones often quit.
I believe we should spend at least 70 percent of the education budget in the classroom - instead of administration
and bureaucrats.
Here I'm willing to stick my neck out. I also believe in school choice. Parents should
be able to send their kids to different districts, schools, and types of school, including
private schools and home-schooling. The same stipend per student that is spent on
public schools today can be issued to whatever school the parent chooses. This forces
competition for precious school dollars, and the best performing schools will thrive.
Budget, Taxes, Spending, and Deficits
California faces yet another shortfall this year. Every year, the budget takes longer and
longer to get passed. The legislature fails to address the systemic, structural deficit
that is faced by the state, because it's easy to say yes to a constituency, and hard to say no.
We need to make the hard choices to cut programs, cut spending, and cut the bureaucracy
in the state. It's a small example, but recently the state spent $650,000 to rename
the Pasadena Freeway, and make new signs for it... in the middle of a terrible downturn, when
every penny is needed to close a deficit.
I pledge not to vote for increased taxes, fees, assessments, or any other way of
taking money from your pocket... other than through genuine economic growth.
Public Safety
Prisons are overcrowded and understaffed. Our budget is strained trying to pay
for our warehoused criminals. It is
WRONG to fix budget problems by endangering
the public, freeing hardened criminals. We must spend enough, but spend wisely, to
fix our prison system. We must recover from the Federal government the cost of providing
prison space for illegal aliens. We must not create luxury housing for inmates - the
minimum standards are sufficient. We can do better by keeping our youth out of jail in
the first place - with a better education, jobs, gang prevention, and early intervention.
We also need to fund our police and fire departments adequately, as a priority in the
budget. I'm tired of hearing the threat that if we don't raise taxes, there won't be enough
money for police and fire. Where is the money going? Look at how many state employees we have.
Look at their salaries - higher than in the private sector. Look at their fat benefits.
Look at their pensions. This is where your tax dollars are going, when they should be
going to police, fire, and other basic government services.
Transparency
I will put every vote, for a bill, for a procedural motion, for anything, on my web site, with my
reasons for my vote.
