FRESNO, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) Voters looking for relief from California’s high cost of living heard a common refrain Wednesday at Fresno State, where a bipartisan forum for governor candidates focused on one central question: If elected governor, how will the candidates make California more affordable?
Six candidates received invitations to the forum.
Several of them said they would support some level of deregulation as a way to lower costs.
Conservative candidates Chad Bianco and Steve Hilton were largely in favor of rolling back regulations to make the cost of living more affordable.
Bipartisan California governor forum at Fresno State focuses on affordability, deregulation (KBAK/KBFX)
“Cost of living is predominantly because of regulations and taxes. End of story. So how do you fix it? You remove the regulations, and you reduce or eliminate the taxes,” Bianco said.
Hilton also pointed to what he called the impact of state rules on everyday expenses.
“We will act on the regulatory burden that every single one of you faces. We can cut that so that we can cut costs so that we don’t have what we have now, the most expensive grocery bills in the country,” Hilton said.
Antonio Villaraigosa also emphasized deregulation, specifically referencing state oversight of refineries.
“We’ve got too many regulations. CARB, California Air and Resources Board, has made it impossible for them to exist. We should clean up these refineries. But we in Sacramento have not allowed them to be clean,” Villaraigosa said.
Bipartisan California governor forum at Fresno State focuses on affordability, deregulation (KBAK/KBFX){ }
Xavier Becerra mentioned that he would be in favor of declaring a state of emergency in California to bypass the legislature and move quickly to make changes.
Matt Mahan, mayor of San Jose, said, “Most of our policies are not working in practice. We’ve made it too difficult to expand infrastructure and water supply. We’ve made it too hard to build housing.”
Some local residents also weighed in on deregulation.
“I think deregulation helps us all to have you know more control of what we’re doing, what we’re spending,” said Joel Deniz.
A Shafter local described frustration, she said she heard from a local water agency official.
Bipartisan California governor forum at Fresno State focuses on affordability, deregulation (KBAK/KBFX){ }
“My husband was just at the Shafter Wasco Irrigation District office this morning, and the manager there is very frustrated because his hands are tied with what the state is mandating,” she said.