Earlier this month, Democrats met to envision the future of California, discussing a possible moratorium on hydraulic fracturing for oil and changes to the widely controversial Proposition 13 that could greatly benefit the state’s funding for public schools.

Hydraulic fracturing has been a widely debated topic but this moratorium could help California environmentally.

The process itself has been shoddily regulated since its inception, which is further exacerbated by companies that don’t have to disclose the chemicals they use to drill for shale gas.

Furthermore, the pollution it tends to cause to vital water tables and the millions of gallons of water needed to drill only make hydraulic fracturing an even bigger mess in the long run.

It is fundamentally important to find clean sources of renewable energy in California and to take a step forward instead of devolving from oil.

In addition to emphasizing environmental sustainability, California Democrats adopted a resolution that modifies Proposition 13 — once considered the third rail of California politics.

Prop 13 was first enacted into the California Constitution in 1978, preventing both local and state governments from raising property taxes without a two-thirds majority vote.

The law limits property taxes based on the value of a property to the rate in place at the time of purchase.

Under the current law, an assessment to the property tax is triggered only if a single entity owns more than 50 percent of the property.

Not surprisingly, many corporations continue to take full advantage of this massive loophole and in turn rob the state of billions of dollars in tax revenue.

“Proposition 13 has forced the state to rely more on volatile revenue sources than the property tax, like income taxes and sales taxes paid by working families, causing deficits and requiring cuts to vital services,” the Democrats’ resolution stated.

So while big companies have been busing exploiting property tax loopholes, the burden has been placed on the working class, resulting in higher taxes and thereby worsening economic downturns, particularly during the Great Recession.

This change in the law is projected to generate $6 billion in revenue for California, according to the state Board of Equalization — something that is gravely needed in the midst of massive budget cuts to higher education and social welfare programs.

Prior to Prop 13, California’s public schools were being funded through local revenues that accounted for almost 50 percent.

Since its enactment, the use of the loophole has started to grow among businesses and public schools have been forced to rely more and more on Sacramento for funding.

This is not a sustainable solution for our schools and the consequences are coming to bear as Governor Jerry Brown had proposed a unit cap that would quadruple the price of college for students with over 90 units.

Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposal was recently rejected by the California Legislature, but we may not have the fortune of never seeing it again if policymakers do not address the structural revenue problems caused by Prop 13.