Steve Hilton unveils bold economic plan to stop spread of socialism in California

Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton announced a sweeping new economic plan Monday that would controversially suspend some of California’s most stringent regulations for a decade to kickstart a building boom across the state.“For 10 years, California will have one overriding priority: build again,” Hilton said in a speech prepared for the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco.

“So in the light of recent election results in other Democrat-dominated states like Michigan and New York, we must stand firm against the further rise of socialism in California, and what that would mean for our economic future,” he added.Hilton argued that California workers face a greater threat from the state’s entrenched, left-leaning bureaucracy than from billionaires, blaming progressive policies for eroding job opportunities, incomes and quality of life.He pointed specifically to young Californians, noting the state has the second-highest youth unemployment rate in the nation despite embracing policies popular among young, college-educated voters elsewhere.Hilton’s proposal calls for a special legislative session during his first week as governor to seek a 10-year suspension of rules, regulations, government-imposed costs and bureaucratic processes that Hilton says are driving businesses and development out of California.

The ambitious plan would target CEQA, the state’s landmark environmental law, as well as PAGA lawsuits, Vehicle Miles Traveled rules and taxes on investment — along with regulations Hilton says add costs without a clear public benefit.Getting such sweeping changes through the Democratic-controlled Legislature could be a tall order, but Hilton suggested some of the changes could be enacted through executive powers.

“If they reject this offer, I am well prepared to use executive authority and the governor’s control of state agencies to achieve as much of it as possible incrementally,” Hilton said.“But that would obviously be slower, h...