We can also use local initiatives to reduce taxes

We had a make shit up ruling from the Cal Supreme court, and they create a problem.  
The court wants to invent law that allows the initiative process to pass a tax increase with a majority. Fine, a return to local democracy.
But these are make shit up judges and they have accidently made some shit up that allows us to use local initiative to reduce taxes.  You  have it both ways, though the ignorant judges of Cal are unaware of what they have done.

They have a second problem.  Now they they have granted some form of voting rights, they cannot come back and impose a union oversight rule on local initiatives.

The consensus had been that the two-thirds vote requirement of Propositions 218 and 13 applied to initiatives. Now the high court seems to say no. The justices ruled that voters who approved the two measures intended to restrict local government leaders’ ability to go to the ballot to raise taxes, but not to limit their own ability to pass tax increases through initiatives.The justice’s 5-2 decision on Aug. 28 captured the spirit and letter of Propositions 218 and 13. As they noted, under our state Constitution, the initiative process is revered and must be “jealously guard(ed)” by the courts.

Our legal system comes from the Franciscans who believed the world is made up of smart priests and ignorant little browns.