California State University trustees tentatively approved a plan to raise tuition 5 percent if voters reject the governor’s Proposition 30 tax increase.

This “thoughtless” plan further encourages our state to hold students and taxpayers hostage. Enough! Property taxes are allowed to increase from 1 to 2 percent per year. The trustees should place the poorly managed state on notice and send an invoice for any insufficient funding.

State politicians should support education by strategically cutting more than 500 duplicative/bureaucratic agencies and their bloated salaries, pensions and allowances. Overly generous trustees should contribute by stopping university chancellors and presidents from receiving exorbitant salaries, pensions and housing/car allowances.

Importantly, the nonproductive California Lottery, whose purpose is to aid education, needs improvement by politicians, who are held hostage for “status quo” by many unions and surrogates. Hostage tactics are: lobbying, demonstrations, media propaganda, infiltration, free gifts, campaign contributions and threats of litigation. Review the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association website critiques of Propositions 30 and 38. We hostage victims must send a “balance budget message” by voting no on any state tax increase and extra spending.