Our State...Our Principles...Our Future

I am extremely honored and humbled to gain the endorsement of the Independence Caucus. This is an organization that aligns perfectly with our campaign's message and principles. Below is the official Press Release information.

Independence Caucus Official Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact: Stephanie Jahn

Telephone: 619-846-8858

E-mail: stephj@icaucus.org

Independence Caucus Endorses P. J. Mellana, California 50th Assembly District

California, (December 4, 2009) – The Independence Caucus is proud to announce their support for California’s Assembly District 50 candidate, P. J. Mellana.

The Independence Caucus carefully chooses candidates based on an extensive vetting process, and after running the gambit, P. J. Mellana, can now count himself as one of Independence Caucus’ family.

Mr. Mellana has signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge which is a project of the Americans for Tax Reform (ATR), as well as, his Stated Core Principles, (Protecting our State and Communities, Individual Liberty, Valuing Youth, Valuing Dissent, Personal Responsibility, Entrepreneurial Spirit, Limited Government, Values, The Rule of Law, and Conserving Our Resources) these and his other stated principled positions align P.J. Mellana with the foundation principles of the Independence Caucus; however his platform extends well beyond these two elements and embraces a true understanding of what is needed in his District and the State of California to return us to the once Golden State of opportunity.

“We here at the Independence Caucus have high hopes for P. J. Mellana. He is a wonderful candidate and in this era of greed, corruption and closed doors in Sacramento, P. J. Mellana stands to bring a welcome change in representing California Assembly district 50” noted Stephanie Jahn, Independence Caucus Region 1 Representative.

To find out more about P. J. Mellana’s campaign and platform, visit his website at http://www.voteforpj.com/.

To find out more information about how to get on board with the Independence Caucus, visit www.icaucus.org.

About Independence Caucus

The Independence Caucus was started by volunteers who came together while working to elect Jason Chaffetz to Congress in 2008., Fed up with unsustainable spending in Washington, and total disregard for Constitutional limits on government authority, Independence Caucus founders realized that incumbents from both parties have been compromised by the “Big Money” special interest groups who fund their perpetual re-election campaigns, and have embarked on a mission to sniff out and expose the incumbents political money trails, and train others across the country exactly how to boot compromised politicians out of office and replace them with ones who will actually represent and listen to their constituents.

The organization has hundreds of researchers and volunteers across the country working to put America back on track.

For more information and to watch a series of videos explaining exactly how the money flows from big money special interests, to the lobbyists, to the politicians, visit www.icaucus.org.

A few weeks ago I had the distinct pleasure of signing the Taxpayer Protection Pledge which is a project of the Americans for Tax Reform (ATR). ATR works with taxpayer groups and activists around the country to ask all candidates and elected officials to make this important commitment to taxpayers.

This type of pledge is a "no brainer" for me, since my principles and views on politics revolve around limited government and limited taxes and how those things secure our freedom, create opportunity, and create prosperity. But it means even more to me now here in California because the political elite in Sacramento raised taxes recently and all that it did was push our state deeper into this bad economy. I challenge any and all of my opponents on the other side to at least make this pledge for the term they are running for, even though I know there is little chance of them doing that.

Below are some pictures of me signing the pledge, and here is the specific language from the pledge:

"I, P.J. MELLANA, PLEDGE TO THE TAXPAYERS OF THE 50TH DISTRICT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA AND ALL THE PEOPLE OF THIS STATE THAT I WILL OPPOSE AND VOTE AGAINST ANY AND ALL EFFORTS TO INCREASE TAXES."

 

Now, some of my detractors may say I’m not qualified to run for California's State Assembly. Here’s some of my qualifications: I’m a concerned citizen that understands that this state belongs to the people. I understand that when the people of this state say no more taxes they mean it. I understand that the true engine to our economy is businesses creating jobs not “big government”. I understand and think it’s kind of important to have a balanced budget. I am a lover of freedom. I have a little bit of common sense. And finally, I’m sure I can figure out where that “no” button is when I have to vote against nonsense being proposed. So what do you think, compared to the majority of our lawmakers in Sacramento, do I have the right qualifications?

Did you know that the state of California is still slated to bring in approximately $84 billion in the current fiscal year? And did you know, that this is more revenue than any other state? Yet we still hear from many in Sacramento that we have a revenue problem. This is exactly where our revenues were a few short years ago, so I think the problem is a spending problem, not other claims they are making.

These are things we never hear about and should, the taxpayers deserve this information and deserve to be more informed prior to voting. Yes there is responsibility on voters to seek this information. But the government needs to stop avoiding these topics and hiding the realities of their ever growing appetite for spending money. All they do right now is propose alternatives that scare us, instead of getting to the root of the problem.

The good people at the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association articulate this very well here:

http://www.hjta.org/california-commentary/california-budget-rejecting-false-choices

In case you missed it, unions, yes unions have been proposing new taxes to our lawmakers and some of them are actually being considered as is. These people we have in Sacramento can't even think for themselves because they are so beholden to these unions. The PEOPLE and their well-being take a back seat. It was made extremely clear on May 19th that taxing people and businesses is not the solution.

According to the Sacramento Bee, taxes, and big taxes that would further strangle businesses and individuals in this economy are still being proposed and being considered in Sacramento. But the oh so smart politicians are being very careful not to say "taxes", but are using different euphemisms such as

"revenue streams" to cover up their true desires. The unions are the big drivers behind some of the below tax increases and some of those in Sacramento are submitting them exactly as proposed by the unions.

Here are some things being proposed:

• Increasing the top personal income tax rate from 9.3 percent to 10 percent for incomes of more than $250,000 and 11 percent for incomes of more than $500,000.
• Restoring state fees on motor vehicle licenses to their 2003 levels (which are higher than today).
• Reassessing all commercial property, thus raising property taxes on nonresidential property.
• Increasing corporate income tax rates.
• Imposing an oil production tax.
• Raising tax rates on tobacco products and alcoholic beverages, and extending the state sales tax to some services and admissions to entertainment venues and sporting events.
• Repealing legislative actions last year that gave tax breaks to California corporations and small businesses.

Source: http://www.sacbee.com/politics/story/1930308.html?mi_rss=State%2520Politics

Hopefully this paints a more clear picture about what is at stake here in California. Please spread the word about our campaign and the need to send someone to Sacramento willing to say NO to the craziness! There are only a few up there now fighting tooth and nail for the people and not for the unions, they need help!

Help the cause today by making an online contribution quickly and securely, thank you so much for your consideration!  http://www.voteforpj.com/contribute.htm

Below is an excellent commentary by the great people at the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Associaton. It's a great demonstration of how little those in Sacramento really care about the budget crisis.

T A X P A Y E R U P D A T E

. . . from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association (www.HJTA.org)

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Dereliction of Duty

Legislature Moves on Ridiculous Bills as Rome Burns

Sacramento -- The Legislature is once again proving it did not hear

the message voters delivered on Election Day -- that Californians

expect their Legislature to solve the state budget crisis.

As the final week approaches before California runs out of cash, the

Legislature continues to vote on bills utterly unrelated to the

state budget, which remains on a collision course with insolvency.

"Rome is burning, yet many in the Legislature are acting as if it's

just another day at the park," said Jon Coupal, president of the

Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and chairman of No New Taxes,

the committee that defeated Proposition 1A, the $16 billion tax

increase. "Since the May 19th Special Election, the Legislature has

avoided doing the one thing the public needs them to do, which is to

solve the budget crisis. It is a complete dereliction of duty."

In just the last week, instead of working to solve the $24 billion

deficit, the Legislature has voted to:

- Create a "California Blueberry Commission" (AB 606);

- Extend the "Food Stamps for Felons" program, expanding food stamps

to convicted drug traffickers and dealers. Never mind that the

Governor's office has vetoed this bill twice already, or that the

State of California can barely afford to provide food stamps for

law-abiding families who truly may need the help in this economy

(AB 1198);

- Ensure more taxpayer dollars will go down the drain, thanks to

legislation which will require all houses to have water-efficient

plumbing fixtures including toilets, urinals, showerheads and

faucets (SB 407);

- Remove copper from automotive brakes, although there is only one

company in the state that even manufactures copper-free brakes (SB

346); and

- Attempt to eliminate public parking spaces, in a ruse to force

people to walk, ride their bikes, or take public transportation

everywhere (SB 518).

For more information about the Legislation, visit

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov.

Over the past few days I've been getting a bit irritated from the things I've been hearing from Sacramento. Is it just me, or does it seem that their budget proposals and the options being laid out seem to be "cherry picking" a bit?  We hear of 90% of state parks being closed, teacher layoffs, siphoning funds from the local governments that are providing the most essential services, releasing criminals out to roam our streets again... Why are these the only options we are hearing? Oh, and then I heard state employees will be propositioned to take a measly 5% salary reduction. That was nice of them to throw in there.

I have heard nothing substantial about finding the waste and cutting it or starting with a 10% reduction across the board on all salaries, services, and expenses. Imagine what that alone would do to start saving money. Imagine mandating EVERY state program and department cut 10% (not only a few). No layoffs (yet), but everyone does their part. It would be much easier than "cherry picking" certain groups to cut by 40 or 50% or be cut completely; especially if they are effective programs. It's back to the same old scare tactics, it's important for us to stay on top of these things.  The article below is from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayer Association and I received it this morning. It reinforced many of the thoughts that were going on in my head, and provides many supporting details. Stay informed, we can no longer afford not to!!!

C A L I F O R N I A  C O M M E N T A R Y

A weekly opinion column from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association

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Week of May 25, 2009

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The Reaction

By Jon Coupal

Last week, this column set forth the various messages that were sent

to our political leaders via the stunning defeat of the budget

"reform" package of Propositions 1A-1E. Despite stacking the deck

and outspending opponents by at least 10 to 1, nearly two-thirds of

voters rejected the proposals and the $16 billion in tax increases

they would bring.

Among the messages sent by the voters is that the status quo is

over. 'No' is going to be a new word in the lexicon of many of our

elected leaders. They are going to have to shut off the spigot of

taxpayer revenue for their powerful political constituencies that

have controlled Sacramento for so long.

Also, voters were crystal clear in statement about their tax burden.

Voters are not happy about carrying the highest tax burden in the

nation so our public employees can continue to be the highest paid

in all 50 states and so that special interest contributors get tax

breaks. The post hoc rationalizations by various left of center

pundits about how this was not a vote about taxes range from weak to

silly.

Another message -- one that has been sent by voters before -- is

that deception in politics can be fatal, as well as immoral. The

worst thing our elected officials can do is try to fool the voters.

Here, the notion that Prop 1A had nothing to do with tax increases

(the Governor's early position) didn't even pass the laugh test. The

effort by the legislature to present a deceptive ballot title,

ballot label, ballot summary -- as well as cherry-picking the

arguments "against" -- was despicable. And it backfired.

Knowing that the voters sent these messages with a high degree of

clarity, the next question is to discern whether they were received

by their intended audience -- California's existing political

leadership and, if so, what will be the response? Some of the

Governor's early reactions were quite positive. Indeed, at least for

now, he is sounding like the man we elected to replace Gray Davis

and who triumphantly rode into Sacramento to blow up the boxes.

After Tuesday's rejection, he has stated in fairly clear terms that

further tax increases are off the table.

Even the Democrat leadership is being very reticent about saying the

"T" word too loud. Seems as though that last Tuesday was an

epiphany.

But then the next question -- and one that responsible taxpayers

have been asking for years -- is whether in their drive to cut

government spending, will our elected leaders exact revenge on

voters by cutting programs most working and productive citizens want

and need, or will they reduce spending by targeting our most

wasteful and corrupt programs first?

Will the Integrated Waste Management Board be eliminated before the

California Department of Forestry eliminates positions? Will the

legislature hold hearings on the labor abuses rampant throughout

California government at all levels? (For example, LAUSD pays 160

teachers not to teach -- they just show up to work and do nothing

except collect their paychecks). Or will California's best and

brightest teachers be fired before the lazy and incompetent ones are

laid off?

Will our elected leaders dust off the California Performance Review

and begin to implement its recommendations for streamlining

government enthusiastically, or will they just go through the

motions, implement a few minor provisions and claim that there is no

more fat in state government? Will our legislative leaders breath

new life into JLAC (Joint Legislative Audit Committee) and

aggressively review long existing state programs to see, first, if

the program is still as high a priority as it was when the

authorizing legislation was enacted and, second, assuming that the

answer to the first question is yes, is the program being

administered in a cost effective manner?

Will dangerous inmates be released early, or will the Department of

Corrections reduce the costs of incarcerating prisoners? California

is perhaps the least efficient in corrections costs, nearly double

the per-inmate costs of the national average. Taxpayers would be

well-served if political leaders ignored the political influence of

the prison guards and seriously considered contracting out prison

services.

These are legitimate questions and voters will be watching to see if

the reductions in state spending are imposed in a rational manner

preserving our most needed programs -- especially public safety --

or whether our political leadership will exact some sort of revenge

against voters for turning down the proposals on May 19th.

Regrettably, we have already heard some legislators adopt a "we'll

show them" mentality as they review spending priorities.

But that would be a mistake. Our elected leaders have already made

one huge political miscalculation this year. Cutting needed programs

and services while leaving vast amounts of waste, fraud and abuse

will not be tolerated by the voters. If that occurs and Californians

perceive that our elected leaders are reacting to the May 19th

election like a petulant child, the stern message of the May 19th

vote will pale in comparison to the reaction of voters during the

next election cycle when most of these leaders have to face

reelection.

Jon Coupal is President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association

-- California's largest taxpayer organization -- which is dedicated

to the protection of Proposition 13 and promoting taxpayers' rights.

This column is online at:

http://hjta.org/california-commentary/reaction

Ultimately, I believe in what Thomas Jefferson described as the “sum of good government”, that being “a wise and frugal Government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned.”

This is what I will always believe our government should embody, I will never compromise this belief.

T A X P A Y E R U P D A T E

. . . from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association (www.HJTA.org

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Governor Continues Budget Threats

In Hopes of Passing His Pet Projects

Pass my propositions --- or else!

SACRAMENTO -- Exactly one week before next Tuesday's Special

Election, the Governor continued his statewide tour of gloom and

doom. Yesterday the Governor threatened local governments by

suggesting that if Proposition 1A doesn't pass, their local revenues

will be embezzled by the State.

"The Governor has taken a page from one of his Hollywood scripts in

an attempt to inject fear and drama into the Special Election," said

Jon Coupal, President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and

Chairman of No New Taxes, the Committee formed to defeat Proposition

1A. "First, it was the threat of cutting fire services in the midst

of a wildfire. Then, it was the threat of teacher layoffs. Now, he's

threatening local governments that the funds they have responsibly

reserved will be stolen by the State if his Propositions don't pass.

I've got news for our Hollywood Governor, the only happy ending on

Election Day should be for the Taxpayers."

A new SurveyUSA poll was also released yesterday, showing that

Proposition 1A continues to trail. However, SurveyUSA states that

turnout for Special Elections is difficult to predict. The poll was

conducted for media outlets KABC-TV Los Angeles, KPIX-TV San

Francisco, KGTV San Diego and KFSN-TV Fresno.

Opponents of Proposition 1A also released the following spoof of

Arnold's "Top 10 Threats" if his pet ballot measures are rejected by

voters:

ARNOLD'S TOP 10 LIST OF THREATS

10. I will focus all my attention on spaying and neutering all

Mollusks.

9. I will appoint "OctoMom" Nadia Suleman as the State Director of

Children's Services.

8. I will release violent felons from prison and give them a map to

your house.

7. I will raise state revenue by billions of dollars by imposing a

tax on the most dangerous pollutant --- the simple carbon

dioxide that you exhale.

6. I will continue to support contracts with public employee unions

that require them to be paid more than the total of the other 49

states combined.

5. I will require that all public schools close for the entire

Summer. Wait ... isn't that already called "summer vacation?"

4. I will order talk radio hosts John and Ken's heads be placed on

sticks.

3. I will make marriage mandatory for everyone.

2. I will appoint Gloria Allred to the California Supreme Court.

And the number one threat from the governor if his pet initiatives

do not pass ...

1. I will return to acting.

This list, along with the Governor's other featured "stunts of the

day" can be found online at www.NoProposition1A.com.

Proposition 1A is opposed by No New Taxes Committee, a Project of

Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, FPPC No. 922117. For more

information on Proposition 1A, go to www.NoProposition1A.com.

It's time to start getting specific, in this first of what will become a regular post I want to explain my overarching theme for my campaign. This is what has now been added to our "On The Issues" section of our website. Hopefully each week, I'll be able to present different thoughts and ideas I have for legislation that will fit within in this theme. So here goes:

I am seeking this position because I share the same concerns as many Californians with regard to the poor leadership and lack of fiscal restraint demonstrated by our career politicians in Sacramento. I have the principles, energy, and drive to fight for a leaner, more effective and accountable government that is responsive and accessible to the people it represents. I am committed to being a voice for the people I wish to serve.

Californians need representation that believes in them . I firmly believe that the people of California will benefit most when the government?s spending, size, and regulations in their lives decrease; allowing them to pursue happiness as they choose. Doing this will unleash the brilliance and power of the California people?s innovation, entrepreneurial spirit, and self-reliance, enabling our state to continue and build upon it?s greatness through it?s greatest asset, the people.

My priorities for when elected are as follow:

1. Let Californians stimulate the economy by returning more of their hard earned money through lower taxes for individuals and businesses. This will create a more powerful consumer and will allow our valued business people to create necessary jobs.
2. Propose legislation that ensures mandatory spending controls without raising taxes. Spending and growth of the government has doubled over the past decade, yet the politicians continue ask the taxpayers for more money to pay for their lack of fiscal restraint.
3. Return government back to the people. I will fight for legislation to reform government, making it more accessible and accountable to the people it represents; and mandating more disclosure of how things get done in Sacramento. No more back room deals!

That's it! In my humble opinion I think it is simple, yet relevant for our problems today.