Jefferson Past
The fifty, nifty United States make for a great flag pattern and school song, but did you know there have only been fifty states since August 1, 1959? World geography is constantly changing, and even within our own great nation, there is no guarantee that there will be fifty states forever! Enter the proposed State of Jefferson!
The concept of a State of Jefferson was introduced to the California State Legislature in 1852 but never brought to vote. Fast forward to 1941, and the Siskiyou County Chamber of Commerce revitalized the notion, declaring a new State of Jefferson, whose name was picked in a contest. Activists in Yreka stopped cars and handed out flyers and stickers, declaring that passers-by were stopping in Jefferson, which claimed to be free of sales, property, and especially income taxes!
 Georgetown, El Dorado County April 2015 |
 El Dorado, El Dorado County April 2015 |
Jefferson Present
The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 brought a halt to the push for a state of Jefferson, when the union banded together against a common enemy. It resurfaced sporadically until 2013 when Siskiyou County once more proposed a split from California over three issues:
- Since representation in the state legislature is based on population, these sparsely populated counties are overshadowed by Los Angeles and San Francisco!
- Being mostly rural, agricultural counties, they have a harder time keeping up with the state’s high taxes and deficit!
- These counties also tend to lean much further to the political right than the more densely populated counties of California!
But can these folks actually split into their own state? Technically, yes! Article IV, Section 3 in the U.S. Constitution says that new states can be admitted to the union but only with the consent of both the State Legislature(s) and Congress. As of now, eight California counties have officially declared intent to separate, and 17 more (plus six in Oregon) are set to vote on the matter this year!
This isn’t the only statehood question arising in America today! There’s also the question of what will happen to U.S. incorporated territories like Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and American Samoa, all of which host U.S. national parks but none of which have voting representation in Congress! Even the city of Washington, D.C. has reasons to become its own state, because right now, no one who lives there has a representative in Congress either. As you might recall, “No taxation without representation!” was one of the rallying cries of the American Revolution!
Jefferson Future
The proposed State of Jefferson still has a long way to go, in terms of funding and vote gathering, but they do have their own flag with two black X’s, a double-cross to show their disdain for Sacramento! As for a capital, state bird, or state motto, all would be decided after the separation is made official, but should it separate?
The State of Jefferson is banking on the idea that creating a reduced-tax or tax-free state will draw businesses and investors by the bucketful! While this certainly could happen, the northern region will need to overhaul its infrastructure to make it more readily accessible. California might not lose a lot from the split economically, but it very well could lose claim to Lassen Volcanic National Park, Lava Beds National Monument, and Redwood National Park!
Should Jefferson win the right to split and the state number be made uneven, the door would be thrown wide open for new territories to cast their ballots for incorporation, even if just to make it an even sixty states. I wonder how that would change the song; what rhymes with sixty?