Why Hello Socialism, Fancy Seeing You Here.

Source: Sacramento Bee

Oh, baby: $500 to all newborns?
State bill is designed to encourage habit of lifelong saving.

Happy birthday, baby, here’s $500 — courtesy of California taxpayers.

Legislation announced Wed- nesday would provide a tax-free, long-term investment account to every baby born in California, regardless of the parents’ financial or immigration status.

Senate Bill 752 is meant to persuade more families to invest for the future. “If we ask people to invest in California, California must invest in its people,” said Sen. Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, who is co-authoring the bill with Republican Sen. Bob Dutton of Rancho Cucamonga.

“Every child ought to grow up knowing that they are worth investing in, from birth on,” Steinberg said.

The proposed account, called Kids Investment and Development Savings, or KIDS, is meant to grow until the child turns 18 and could withdraw the money for a house, education, vocational training or to roll over into a retirement account.

But critics say the state has more critical needs than padding accounts for children too young to say thanks. Sen. George Runner, R-Lancaster, said it’s hard to support giving $500 to every newborn when the state says it doesn’t have enough money to build prisons.

“It’s certainly an interesting idea, and a worthy goal,” Runner said. “The problem is, it’s the wrong time.”

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has taken no position on SB 752, which needs support from two-thirds of each house — meaning Democrats and Republicans — to pass. The bill is sponsored by New America Foundation, a nonprofit and nonpartisan group.

The savings program would cost taxpayers more than $283 million per year. California has roughly 566,000 births annually, a figure expected to climb to nearly 612,000 by 2015.

Treasurer Bill Lockyer, whose office would administer the program, has taken no position the bill but supports the notion of helping families invest in their future. Tom Dresslar, Lockyer’s spokesman, said administrative costs have not been projected.

Steinberg said the $500-per-baby seed money would promote lifelong savings and financial literacy. Parents, relatives, friends and others would be encouraged, but not required, to make regular contributions to the accounts……

How nice, perhaps in the next bill we could just skip the middle man and start shipping these checks to Mexico directly? Seems the only logical next step as we Hispander our way into the nut house.

H/T immigration watchdog

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