Gaines to run for Senate

Written by Chris Daley, Mountain Democrat
Thursday, 12 August 2010

Assemblyman Ted Gaines has a unique opportunity to be elected to two state positions come November, and in fact, he is on the ballot as the incumbent in the 4th Assembly District and as the prospective state senator for the First Senate District.

Gaines shared his plans and vision at the Mountain Democrat offices Wednesday afternoon with Publisher Richard Esposito and Editor Mike Raffety. Because of the recent death of Sen. David Cox, the District 1 seat is currently vacant, and that is why and how Gaines is able to consider the position.

“Normally, I would have termed out in 2012, but I'm excited about this opportunity,” he said, adding that the situation is somewhat awkward and may be confusing to the voters. “I wish they had been separate ballots.”

On Nov. 2, district voters will have the choice between reelecting Assemblyman Gaines, R-Roseville, or not. Likewise, they will have the opportunity to select him as the Republican candidate for a January special election to fill the nearly two-year state Senate term left open by Cox's death. If he is successful, Gaines said he is anxious to take up the conservative mantle Cox wore, particularly with respect to taxes and regulatory reform.

“We live in a really critical period in time, and we have to hold the line on taxes, something on which Dave Cox was steadfast,” he said. “We've got to reform and downsize government by taking a look at what you can and can't do legally... State employee retirement benefits need to be looked at. I'm not in opposition to state employees, but I applaud the unions that have stepped forward to work with the governor to address the deficit.”

Gaines acknowledged that moving toward a balanced budget and reining in government in general will require some tough and thoughtful decisions.

“We can't be all things to all people... and a recent poll showed a majority of people would be willing to take a reduction in services in return for a reduction in taxes,” he said and described California as a “magnet” for people who move to the state in order to get higher welfare benefits.

On the other side of the coin, he said the state has lost 800,000 manufacturing jobs due to the tax burden, overregulation and the general cost of living. He cited a Placer County business that was threatened with a lawsuit because of a deficiency in its compliance with Americans with Disability Act. A handrail was an inch too high or too low, he explained and added that the state's ADA requirements are even more restrictive than those imposed by the federal government. The regulatory climate has led to “extortion” of private business, he said.

The most business-unfriendly feature in the state currently is AB 32. Among other issues, AB 32 sets up requirements for high-density housing as one way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and some other complicated mandates regarding individual home energy efficiency. Suspending AB 32 by passing Proposition 23 would be Gaines's choice if he could get rid of one onerous bit of regulation, he said.

The idea of suspending AB 32 until the state's unemployment rate drops to 5 percent for a year is the aim of Proposition 23, and Gaines said he would support that condition as part of a larger “paradigm shift” that would attract jobs to the state.

A significant part of that “paradigm shift” would include a massive overhaul of the state's regulatory structure that he said is highly detrimental to California's business environment. He would like to see that structure reduced by at least one-third. Gaines said he is an advocate of the kind of “trickle-down theory” that Ronald Reagan championed. That is, if encouraged and allowed to develop relatively unfettered, entrepreneurs and those with money will produce, grow and create opportunity that ultimately will benefit the rest of the population. “It's good to have millionaires,” Gaines quipped.

Although Gaines really enjoys working in the state Assembly, he said he believes the Senate has a more collegial atmosphere that might be more conducive to “getting things done.” Some things he said he'd like to see done are part of his vision for California. They include a return to more “mainstream” philosophies on both sides of the political aisle and a refocus on the strengths of the state. California used to have the best education system and a business engine that competed successfully all over the world, he said.

“We've lost that luster, and we've seen an overall breakdown of society,” he said.

If successful in the senate race, Gaines will more than double the size of his constituency. Assembly District 4 currently has about 450,000 residents, while Senate District 1 is home to more than 1 million Californians. The district extends from the Oregon border south to the Mammoth Mountain area and includes all or parts of 13 counties.

Asked if he had any preferences as to who might replace him in the Assembly if his Senate bid is successful, Gaines tossed out six or seven names, the first two he suggested were Ray Nutting and Ron Briggs, El Dorado County supervisors. The others were Placer County, Roseville and Rancho Cordova officials.

In a phone interview yesterday, Ron Briggs said he would not “foreclose on that option.”

“I'm flattered that Ted has that respect for me. I have contemplated running for state office, and I've been taking the political pulse, seeing who's got money. It's an opportunity I'm considering,” Briggs said, noting that a campaign could cost up to a half-million dollars or more.

Briggs virtually grew up around the Capitol and around politics, because his father John was a long-term state legislator. And with a slight nod to nostalgia, he called the Sacramento political environment “kind of fun.”

The downside of that “fun place,” however could be frustration with the degree of partisanship and parochialism, Briggs noted and said dealing with 79 other personalities in the Assembly could be a challenge and serving a constituency of 450,000 could represent a much fuller plate than he has as a county supervisor.

“I have great admiration for those who can do it,” he concluded.

Supervisor Ray Nutting told the Mountain Democrat that he is “giving it some thought” to running for the Assembly, but, “Right now I'm focusing on the county budget.” Nutting added that he “definitely endorses Ted Gaines for Senate.”

Ted Gaines lives in Roseville where he has operated an insurance business for nearly 30 years. The logo on his press release reads, “Ted Gaines — Conservative” in red, white and blue.