This week on State of Affairs:
- Harassment claims in Congress are usually handled in secret, but California Congresswoman Jackie Speier is trying to change that. She's introduced a bill this week aimed at bringing greater transparency to claims reported in the House.
- The GOP's tax plan passed the House without the help of three California Republicans. Why they voted "no" when their 11 other colleagues voted "yes."
- California voters aren't big fans of Jerry Brown's gas tax. An L.A. Times/USC poll recently revealed that the tax, put in place to help pay for infrastructure fixes, is only favored by 46 percent of voters.
Highlight
John Myers, Sacramento bureau chief for the L.A. Times says, though support for the gas tax appears low, the chances of getting it repealed are slim:
Before people think that it's going to help those ballot measures to repeal the gas tax, they should remember that, historically, any ballot measure effort that starts under about 60 percent has a hard time of winning come election day.
The campaign engages, people hear things, there's going to be a massive effort — if these things get on the ballot — to save these taxes: the Governor, transportation groups, business groups that all supported this that said 'we need to fix the roads.'
Guests:
- Marisa Lagos, political reporter for KQED
- John Myers, Sacramento bureau chief for the LA Times