Silicon Valley Taxpayers Association

Homeless housing breakthrough in SF? — OPPORTUNITY NOW SF startup behind $700 'sleeping pods' buys a new downtown building; looks to add 400 beds to operation. Pods can be used in vacant office buildings. KGO reports.

Failing public schools ruin children’s lives. Why won’t California expand school choice? — OPPORTUNITY NOW A bad school district is like a jail sentence, sometimes literally, as many students either drop out or get caught up in the juvenile justice system. So says Superintendent of Public Instruction candidate Gus Mattammal , who argues school choice is the way out, and in California that

Mercury News also recommends voting No on Measure D.

https://medium.com//defund-the-san-jose-department-of-politics-ef5ae56bda0a

☆ Is San Jose using service cuts to pressure voters into the hotel tax? — OPPORTUNITY NOW Reading the Merc and the Spotlight , one might think a “No” vote on Measure A is downright irresponsible. But government finance expert Mark Moses questions why the city is targeting Sunday library hours and downtown police patrols. Why not instead address the real cost drivers? An Oppor

California's “Billionaire Tax” Isn't What You Think "If this gets on the ballot, it is an existential event for California". In the second installment of our Wipeout series, we peel back the layers of the prop...

Anti-sprawl extremism makes CA even less affordable — OPPORTUNITY NOW CA AB30's Vehicle Travel Traveleted (VMT) fee will make housing  in CA more expensive and hit low income residents the hardest. Reihan Salam reviews Jennifer Hernandez' City Journal article on the perverse effects of pro-infill strategies. 

☆ The Santa Clara County mass transit grift — OPPORTUNITY NOW As another hopeless regional transit tax rumbles towards Bay Area residents this fall (SB63, advanced by Mayor Mahan and the San Jose City Council) the inestimable Randal O'Toole explains why throwing good money after bad mass transit ideas is always a mistake, and VTA is Exhibit A, in this Opp Now