San Francisco Taxpayers Forced To Fund Free Alcohol For Homeless; California Tax Rates Increase Further, Prompting More Exodus
California already held the distinction of having the highest state income tax in the country, with its top income tax rate at 13.3% for a decade. It was raised even higher to start 2024, with the top rate now reaching an astronomical 14.4%.
High earners contributing to California's economy might be disappointed to hear of a new taxpayer funded program in San Francisco that's sparked outrage among some locals.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the city spends $5 million a year on the "Managed Alcohol Program," a program providing free alcohol to the city's homeless alcoholics.
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City public health officials argue the program's benefits, citing emergency room declines, savings from reduced hospital visits, and relief for the city's already strained emergency services.
However, residents such as Adam Nathan, a small-business owner and chair of the Salvation Army San Francisco Metro Advisory Board, question the city's approach.
Mr. Nathan, who raised attention to the controversial program, explained it as "set up so people in the program just walk in and grab a beer, and then another one," and that "inside the lobby, they had a kegs set up to taps where they were basically giving out free beer to the homeless who've been identified with [alcohol use disorder]."
While questioning the program itself, Mr. Nathan continued to voice outrage at the use of taxpayer dollars for the relatively unknown program, saying "I am a taxpayer. When did this Managed Alcohol Program get approved? Where were the public hearings? Why is it hidden away in an old hotel?"
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While California's homeless population continues to climb, even amounting to 28% of the nation's homeless, its overall population statistics show a decline. 2023 marked the third straight year of population decline.
LA Times economic reporter, Don Lee, noticed a troubling trend in those now leaving, saying "in years past, the tendency has been that California would lose more relatively lower-income people, people with less education than those coming into the state. That, in recent years, has reversed. We've had tens of thousands more that are better educated and have higher incomes leaving than those that have come in."
As more taxpayers leave the state, those who remain are forced to foot the bill to support the state's high spending, including, controversial programs such as giving out free alcohol to the homeless struggling with alcoholism.
Given the high levels of frustration some residents had in providing tiny houses to the city's homeless, it's easy to see how free alcohol rubbed many the wrong way.
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