State of South California Secession

The State of South California is being proposed by Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Stone, with 13 counties seceding from California to form America's 52nd state.

The proposed 51st state, of course, being the already proposed State of Jefferson in Northern California.

According to Supervisor Stone and supporters, secession would allow officials in the new state to concentrate on securing borders, balancing budgets, improving schools and creating a robust economy.

"Our taxes are too high, our schools don't educate our children well enough, unions and other special interests have more clout in the Legislature than the general public.  It has to change," said Stone.

The State of South California would start at the Mexican border, continue up through the desert, over the Sierras and into the San Joaquin Valley.

Stone proposed that Riverside, Imperial, San Diego, Orange, San Bernardino, Kings, Kern, Fresno, Tulare, Inyo, Madera, Mariposa and Mono counties should immediately unite to form the new state.

Los Angeles County, Ventura County and Santa Barbara County, which are currently part of what is known as "Southern California", would NOT be included in the State of South California.

Apparently, the counties with the most fame, wealth, power, influence and Botox are not welcome in America's 52nd state.

Stone continued, "We have a state Legislature that has gone wild. They just don't care. Their goal was to get a balanced budget so they could continue to get a paycheck," Stone said by telephone late Thursday. "There is only one solution: A serious secession from the liberal arm of the state of California. I know the state of California can do better."

The potential new state would have a part-time South California State Legislature, with more power to local governments, and there would be no term limits.

A much lower sales tax and property tax policy would immediately be adopted in the new state.

The idea of splitting up California has been thrown around many times before.

In the history of California as a state, there have been nearly 30 proposals to split the state into two, three or four different states.

California became a U.S. state in 1850 but, during its first decade of statehood, many Southern Californians lobbied for a split from the northern part of the state and almost succeeded in seceding.

In 1859, California State Assemblyman Andrés Pico introduced a bill that would split California in two.  The northern part of the state would remain California, while the state's five southernmost counties would be the State of Colorado --- before the other Colorado was formed, of course.

In the 1990s, Former Northern California legislator Stan Statham pushed legislation to split California into two or three states.

Stone is proposing that county officials hold a public meeting this month at the Riverside Convention Center to hear feedback from officials and voters on the proposed State of South California.

"A secessionist movement? What is this, 1860?" exclaimed Brown spokesman Gil Duran.

"Are there challenges?  Absolutely. But the destruction of California has to stop and we don't know what we can accomplish unless we sit down and consider the possibilities," declared Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Stone.

The State of South California