Calif. Single-Payer Healthcare Could Be Bonanza — For Movers

U-Haul Executive Vice President Stuart Shoen recently told Fox Business that last year's "mass outflow" of people from California led to the most significant "inability for us to meet our customer demand."

Our advice to Mr. Shoen is to buckle up, because if California’s proposed single-payer healthcare system passes, U-Haul locations in The Golden State are going to look like the Kabul airport — as desperate Californians try to escape the new regime.

Here’s the Fox Business synopsis: "California lawmakers unveiled [Assembly Bill 1400] at the beginning of the year that would establish a single-payer healthcare system — an ambitious plan that would be funded by nearly doubling the state's already-high taxes. In all, the tax increases are designed to raise an additional $163 billion per year, which is more than California raised in total tax revenue any year before the pandemic."

Just to show you how lunatic this bill is, Vermont — the state who gave us Sen. Bernie Sanders — looked at doing the same thing a few years ago, then abruptly stopped for the same reason: the bill would have doubled income taxes in the Green Mountain state.

California looked at the legislative record and said, "Hold my beer!"

This bill has three different approaches to getting its pound of flesh.

"According to Jared Walczak, a fellow at the Tax Foundation: Higher income taxes on wealthy Americans, a payroll tax on certain employees' wages for large companies, and a new gross receipts tax."

"Higher income taxes on wealthy Americans" almost prompts us to ask if Mr. Walczak has a medical marijuana scrip. Judging by the included rate scale people who make no money will be taxed 2.25%.

Those plutocrats rolling in $34,891 per year will be taxed at 7.25%, which is higher than the median top marginal rate in the rest of the nation. The rates go up from there and peak at 18.05%.

No word from bill sponsors how the new rates would affect looters, although any cuts received from smashing display cases would certainly be covered by the new health insurance.

"California would also expand the payroll tax paid by employees who earn more than $49,990 in annual income if they work for a company that has more than 50 workers."

Walczak explains the plan is a barrier to job creation because it creates a "tax cliff."

"For instance, if a company that had 49 workers earning $80,000 each hired one additional employee, they would suddenly create a tax bill of more than $90,000."

Of course, if all the employees approached U-Haul together, their concentrated buying power might get them a break on trailer rates.

The last prong on the tax pitchfork is a 2.3% gross receipts tax on "qualified businesses." A rate that is more than three times the rate “of the country’s current highest [gross receipts tax]."

Providing healthcare for everyone in Latin America, and elsewhere, who can afford to come to California isn’t going to be cheap, that’s for certain. Master of understatement Walczak predicts, "Practically doubling state taxes — even if the burden is partially offset through state-provided health coverage — could send taxpayers racing for the exits."

That’s because going to the hospital is not an annual event, whereas paying taxes is.

We wish Mr. Shoen, and individual U-Haul location managers, all the luck in the coming year. Demand for escape trailers is going to test and push their customer service skills beyond supreme limits.

That’s assuming there are any truck rental employees left in the state after the bill passes.

Michael Reagan, the eldest son of President Reagan, is a Newsmax TV analyst. A syndicated columnist and author, he chairs The Reagan Legacy Foundation. Michael is an in-demand speaker with Premiere speaker's bureau. Read Michael Reagan's Reports — More Here.