Brown tax initiative is leading but could be vulnerable

New poll finds that 55 percent of Californians support Proposition 30, which would temporarily raise taxes in order to avoid further spending cuts in education and safety, while 36 percent oppose the measure. That would seem to be a comfortable margin, but the PACE/USC Rossier School of Education Poll found support to be shaky. Nearly half of those surveyed agreed with the statement that politicians should focus on wasteful spending before raising taxes, compared to 35 percent who agreed that voters should "take a stand against further cuts to schools and public safety, make the wealthy pay their fair share, and help balance the budget." The proposition would raise the state sales tax by a quarter-cent and taxes on incomes of more than $250,000. From press release:

"Californians are willing to spend money in order to protect their schools from spending cuts. But they also believe that state government is spending too much money on things that aren't necessary and want to see that spending reined in before supporting the governor's initiative," said poll director Dan Schnur, who also serves as the director of USC's Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics. "Jerry Brown can still pass Proposition 30, but first he has to convince voters that state government can be trusted with their tax dollars."