>Nor is California like say Germany or France, where substantially lower GDP per capita (relative to the U.S.) is balanced by a robust safety net and ample publ

>Nor is California like say Germany or France, where substantially lower GDP per capita (relative to the U.S.) is balanced by a robust safety net and ample public services. California has among the worst public schools in the country: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/economy/2018/02/08/geog... https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/economy/2018/02/08/geog.... Its public universities are quite expensive. It doesn't have a leg up in healthcare like say Massachusetts. It's true the public schools are lackluster, but I'm not sure the same is true of public universities and healthcare. California universities have a great reputation and student debt is relatively low [0][1]. Uninsured rates aren't Massachusetts-low, but their health outcomes are comparable or better [2]. California has made headlines for being one of the few states to lower mortality. [3] [0]: https://ticas.org/posd/state-state-data-2015 https://ticas.org/posd/state-state-data-2015 [1]: https://edsource.org/2016/california-college-grads-incur-less-school-debt-than-national-average/570753 https://edsource.org/2016/california-college-grads-incur-les... [2]: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/stats_of_the_states.htm https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/stats_of_the_states.htm [3]: https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/6/29/15830970/women-health-care-maternal-mortality-rate https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/6/29/15830970/wo...