Yes on Proposition 87: Alternative energy won’t come at a price

Proposition 87 is a good idea. Taxing the oil companies to take
$4 billion and use it to fund research into alternative energy
sources is an amazing plan ““ and it’s not surprising
oil companies such as Chevron are pumping millions of dollars into
ad campaigns to convince California otherwise.

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Opponents of the proposition cite economists predicting
increases in gas prices and higher dependence on foreign oil.

If those economists were to actually read the text of the
proposition, it says the cost of the new tax cannot be passed onto
the consumers. In other words, gas prices will not increase as a
result of this tax.

That means the oil companies will be funding research that will
decrease our dependence on foreign oil, not increase it.

Opponents of the proposition also say it is a bad idea because
there will be no accountability for the research, both in results
and in the way the money is distributed.

Mandating results on experimental research is silly. There is no
reasonable expectation for there to be any kind of qualitative or
quantitative expectation for the research, because the basic
premise behind the research is to discover new alternatives to
oil.

Opponents also argue that this proposition will create a bulky
new government bureaucracy.

There should be oversight on the distribution of the funds, and
that is what the new government bureaucracy is for.

Both the new government agency and the billions of dollars
pumped into research will also help the California economy by
adding jobs and creating research opportunities at California
universities such as UCLA.

Increasing funding to alternative energy sources will have
long-lasting positive effects on both the California economy and in
the air we all breath on a daily basis.

We can simultaneously help clean up the environment and fund
research to lower our dependence on foreign oil.

No harm can come of more reliable and efficient energy sources,
and the best part of this is that it will not increase taxes on
individuals in California.