Sound and Fury over Taxes

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challenger). What was really on his mind was Proposition 13. Said Brown: "We have our marching orders from the people. This is the strongest expression of the democratic process in a decade." He promised to implement 13 "in the most human, sensitive way I can"—and without raising state taxes to bail out the newly stricken local units of government. But, he admitted, "things will never be the same."

The Governor's turnabout amused his opponents, among them Attorney General Evelle Younger. He will take on Brown in November, having roundly defeated three other Republicans to win the G.O.P. nomination. Said Younger: "I swear he sounded just like Howard Jarvis."

Whether 13 will really hurt Brown remains in doubt. While the property-tax rebellion was largely led by advocates of keeping government as limited and as close to the people as possible, the impact of 13 may be precisely the opposite. It will give Brown and the legislature in Sacramento virtual life-or-death power over the state's 4,500 local special districts (including fire, hospital, mosquito control, irrigation), 1,120 school districts, 415 cities and 58 counties. Predicted University of California Professor David Shulman: "Local government will appear as the supplicant at the court of the Governor."

But Economist Otto Eckstein sees a different and more beneficial effect—"a rapid growth in the private sector and a decline in the public sector." He adds: "The results are good in terms of changing things around. The voters in California have slowed down the growth of government. This will force the public sector to become more efficient, which is hard for it to do."

In any case, local districts looked eagerly toward Sacramento as they awaited word on just how hard the tax revolt would hit them. As Brown moved to draft a master plan, some of his aides thought they saw in his eyes the same sort of glint that was there in the days when he beat Jimmy Carter in five straight 1976 primaries. Said one Brown aide: "I haven't seen the adrenaline flowing like this since the early days of his political career."

Brown's first move was to freeze hiring of new state employees (12,000 a year) except in emergencies. He said he would soon propose ways to save another $300 million. He suggested that any such saving be added to the surplus in state revenues, expected to amount to $5.3 billion by the end of the fiscal year, and applied to help fill the property-tax void. He proposed that $4 billion be promptly allocated to local districts and $1 billion be kept in a reserve loan fund for emergencies.

The state legislators seem likely to give Brown what he seeks—and let him take the heat. Still, there was some grumbling. One diner in the capitol cafeteria suggested that "we stuff Howard Jarvis and mount him on the capitol dome." Bitterly, Democratic State Senator Alfred Alquist proposed turning all the surplus state funds over to taxpayers in a one-shot cash rebate and giving nothing to local districts. Said he: "It will do a lot of harm, but if it's the will of the people, we should do it."

There is some evidence, however, that the impact of 13 may not be as dire as its critics had claimed. Because of various state and federal programs, many local governments in