Endorsement - Prop 43: No

Prop. 43 would make it harder for voters to approve local special taxes that they — not their local government officials — put on the ballot by raising the percentage of votes required for passage from 50 percent to two-thirds.

We will spare you the minutia of applicable state tax and election codes, but the point here is to make it harder for people to tax themselves for specific purposes.

Fighting over this one are the usual collection of taxpayer protection and the unions.

We are far from thrilled by the hint of higher taxes, but with the federal government now in full retreat from many of its traditional support roles, local governments will have increasingly rely upon their own local resources to weather the local disasters and health-care shortfalls.