Part 1 of 2
Some of the current laws on our books, although counterintuitive and grossly unfair, are nevertheless unaddressed year after year. Imagine what simple and easy adjustments to our laws we could make to benefit our society and the environment.
True recycling: While glass bottles and aluminum products might meet a very marginal 50% recycling target, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that only about 5-6% of domestically consumed plastic products are recycled. Some of this “recycling” includes burning plastics to generate electricity — not exactly an environmentally friendly practice.
Our recycling policies are not as effective as manufacturers often portray them to be.
The deceptions include mislabeling. For example, despite being marked with the recycle symbol, most plastic items we put in our recycling bins are not converted for reuse.
Legislatures should compel manufacturers to produce plastics that are easily recyclable and meet the standards stated by recycling labels. We should exceed a goal of 80% recycling for all plastics, glass, metals and paper products.
Tenant evictions: Right now, California promotes vagrants, transients and trespassers to establish “residency” even without ever having a lease or paying any rent. By setting up a utility account or by receiving mail, even if a letter was sent by illegal occupants themselves, those with “residency” can squat rent-free for as long as six months.
The courts imply that breaching the terms of a home or apartment lease matters not. Landlords shell out many thousands in legal fees and wait months for a lawful eviction to be processed.
We need to redefine “residency” and restore landlord’s right. I advocate that an automatic 15-day eviction for breach should be the new standard.
Minimum corporate federal tax:Large corporations and many of the wealthiest pay little or no federal income tax. According to the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, “Tesla’s annual financial report … shows the company enjoyed $2.3 billion of U.S. income in 2024 on which it reports precisely zero current federal income tax.”
There are two glaring tax loopholes designed for the rich only that are perpetuated by Congress.
One is “accelerated depreciation,” where a newly converted asset can be depreciated, reducing otherwise taxable profits, over as little as five years. Then, in the fifth year, an asset can be transferred, and a new five-year window for avoiding taxes is created.
The other scam Congress created is that the very rich can “borrow” their own money from their trust accounts without paying tax on that income because it is “borrowed” and not “paid.”
The Biden Administration Department of the Treasury recommended proposed rules for corporate alternative minimum tax. If this ruling had been enacted, corporations earning a $1 billion or more would be required to pay a minimum 15% tax.
The Department of the Treasury estimated this “minimum tax is estimated to generate more than $250 billion from the most profitable companies over the next 10 years and $20 billion in 2025.” Otherwise, 60% of corporations that would pay this minimum instead would have an effective federal tax rate of 1% or less.
Of course, the Trump Administration shut down this minimum tax.
The “$1 billion threshold” is still too high. It would be appropriate that any organization earning a net or any person “borrowing” from their trust account of $1 million or more should pay that 15% minimum. It’s time the wealthiest should pay their fair share.
We should see the term “homelessness” cease as a status.
Rather than moving drug addicts and the mentally ill from one encampment to another, and rather than offering that taxpayer money be spent by vagrants for illegal drugs, we have the power “to cure” this pressing issue.
Our current policies enable thousands to live in squalor, buy illegal drugs, and commit crimes despite the billions spent on window dressing.
Every unhoused person should be evaluated to determine if he or she is capable of living in a sanitary, financially self-sufficient, drug-free condition. If these individuals are unable to do so, they should be made a “ward of the state” and involuntarily moved into medical facilities for treatment and care.
Many drug addicts will recover through medical programs and return to a productive and socially conforming life. But yes, some mentally ill will likely be housed for life rather than living in human sewage, starting fires, stabbing the innocent, and leaving used syringes in the street and in parks.
Look for Part II in an upcoming opinion segment. Leave a comment for me if you wish to suggest ideas.
And happy New Year.
Jonathan Kraut directs a private investigations agency, is the CEO of a private security firm, is the CFO of an accredited acting conservatory, is a former college professor and dean, is a published author, and is a Democratic Party activist. His column reflects his own views and not necessarily those of The Signal or of other organizations.
