SACRAMENTO – George Runner issued the following statement today in response to sweeping budget legislation that would strip the Board of Equalization of nearly all its current functions:

“Taxpayers must be warned: the so-called ‘Transparency and Fairness’ legislation announced today by the very politicians who just voted to raise your gas tax, is neither transparent nor fair.

“This last-minute budget power grab would strip California taxpayers of their right to bring their tax appeals before their elected peers. In its place, the bill would establish yet another unelected and costly tax bureaucracy.

“It’s a sad but true reality: The only real alternative to an elected official is an unelected state worker.

“The proposed changes go far beyond issues identified in recent audits, nearly all of which have been addressed and corrected by the Board.

“Changes of this magnitude should not be rushed through the budget process, bypassing the deliberative process. Instead they should go through the normal policymaking process to allow public input.”

George Runner represents more than nine million Californians as an elected member of the State Board of Equalization. For more information, visit www.boe.ca.gov/Runner.