A California State Legislature committee has approved a reparations bill that could cost $800 billion.
The state’s Reparations Task Force has three goals: “(1) to study and develop reparation proposals for African Americans; (2) to recommend appropriate ways to educate the California public of the task force’s findings; and (3) to recommend appropriate remedies in consideration of the Task Force’s findings.”
Assemblywoman Kate Sanchez raised concerns about the bill.
“Economists, consultants from the task force reported the total amount could be as much as 800 billion,” she said. “That’s two and a half times the size of our entire state budget. To pay for that, you’d need a major tax hike unlike anything this state has ever seen before.”
Sanchez explained that half of California’s population is Latino and Asian, many of whom are “first, second, or third generation immigrants who had nothing to do with slavery, discrimination, Jim Crow laws, nothing.”
“It is fundamentally unfair to force these people to pay for this, and because of that, I will be opposing today,” she asserted.
California previously approved legislation that creates an agency to pass out reparations payments.
“The agency shall implement the recommendations of the task force, as approved by the Legislature and the Governor,” the bill’s text reads. “As part of its duties, the agency shall determine how an individual’s status as a descendant shall be confirmed. Proof of an individual’s descendent status shall be a qualifying criteria for benefits authorized by the state for descendants.”
Two offices will be created under the agency, the “Genealogy Office” and an “Office of General Counsel.”
