No, you don’t know how these contracts work; and no, you clearly do not understand government finance and economics. These are NOT unrelated issues at all. I have been studying finance and economics for over two decades and have been following the pension issues since first stock market bubble in the late 1990s (long before it became the issue du jour), and continue to do so to this day. I have also worked for and with public employers. You?
Again, the municipalities get the bulk of their revenues from property taxes. (What is it about this that you continue to misunderstand?) If they are providing property tax subsidies to investors that they can no longer afford, then they need to stop giving them these subsidies. It’s insane to suggest that we can continue to give investors these subsidies when the state and municipal governments are having financial problems.
Yes, you are trying to claim that the financial problems of the state and municipalities are related to public sector workers. That is not the case. The reason for their problems has to do with the massive volatility in revenues and expenditures that result from the boom-bust nature of our speculative markets.
“Crying foul” about financial greed and parasites does not make me sound unhinged. I actually understand the causes of our problems (you clearly do not), and understand what the best solutions are that are legal, ethical, and that would cause the least amount of damage to the greatest number of people.
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And since you have such a difficult time understanding what a subsidy is:
tax subsidy
noun [C or U] TAX, GOVERNMENT, ECONOMICS
Definition
› a reduction in tax in order to reduce the cost of producing food, a product, etc. and to help to keep its price low:
According to one OECD definition, “A subsidy is a measure that keeps prices for consumers below market levels, or keeps prices for producers above market levels or that reduces costs for both producers and consumers by giving direct or indirect support.” [2] The most common definition of a subsidy refers to a payment made by the government to a producer.[3] Subsidies can be direct – cash grants, interest-free loans – or indirect – tax breaks, insurance, low-interest loans, depreciation write-offs, rent rebates.[4] This form of support can be legal, illegal, ethical or unethical. Subsidies are used for a variety of purposes, including employment, production and exports.
[Want more? I can do this all day long. Still going to claim that I lack financial knowledge?]
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Of course, Prop 13 proponents claimed the “savings” would be passed on to tenants. Only a fool would believe that. All of the money from those subsidies goes into the pockets of real estate investors. Yes, we (TAXPAYERS) are subsidizing their profits.
