Senator George Runner
Serving the 17th District which incorporates portions of the Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura and Kern counties.

For all the talk about the budget deficit and comparing our economic woes with the Great Depression, the Legislature sure has a funny way of showing they understand the urgency of the challenges we face. Despite these pressing issues, Sacramento has chosen to intrude in the lives of millions of California pet-owners, demanding each and every dog and cat is neutered or spayed.

Senate Bill 250, by Central Valley Democrat Sen. Dean Florez, would require pet owners to spay or neuter their pets or face heavy fines - essentially an example of the state telling citizens what to do with their private property. Not only would this measure burden pet owners, who are forced to either pay for the procedure or the license to have an unaltered pet, but it also strains state coffers when local governments ask the state to cover the millions of dollars in costs.

After a failed first vote, Senator Florez’s subsequent arm-twisting managed to ram the bill out of the Senate by a bare minimum 21-16 largely party-line vote in spite of the widespread public outcry against this meddlesome policy.

But the real issue here is the government trying to control the lives of private citizens, even as its fiscal situation gets further out of control. As the state anticipates running out of cash to spend by July, leaders should be focused on fixing our budget and thinking about how to spur the economy. Instead they squabble over an ancillary issue that voters despise.

Of the thousands of emails, mail, and phone calls I receive from constituents, it is difficult to determine whether I receive more contacts dealing with the budget or pleading me to oppose SB 250. Emails supporting SB 250 are few and far between. Clearly Californians do not want government involved in the affairs of their pets, and after the special elections, they sent a message for the state government to get its fiscal affairs in order without going back to them for more tax dollars.

Being in the Legislature is a bit like stepping into “Bizarro World,” where leaders do the opposite of what the people desire. Californians want a responsive government that gives them the best value for their tax dollars, in the same way they expect the best value for their money at a restaurant.

Clearly spending is out of control. There are approximately 300 boards, commissions, and task forces within the executive branch that are ripe for trimming, consolidating, or altogether eliminating. We must stabilize our pension system, which has lost billions of dollars in value in recent years. State workers from all sectors of government need to give up some of the 14 paid holidays – on top of the vacation time they receive annually.

These are some ideas Republicans are looking at to combat waste and fraud. The more opportunities we find to eliminate fraud and waste, the less need there is to slash vital programs. These are the solutions we in the Legislature need to seek. Let’s focus on cuts to government waste, not on regulating the management of our pets.