Governor declares fiscal emergency, spells out cuts to schools, Medi-Cal
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/10/BAALUD1CC.DTL&tsp=1
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The governor had warned in his State of the State speech Tuesday that he would not consider raising taxes as a means of closing the budget gap. Outside of a few, small proposals to increase fees, including one on homeowner insurance to help pay for rural firefighting, the governor’s budget does not include new taxes.
“I have made it very clear we cannot tax our way out of this problem,” Schwarzenegger said. “There’s no reason to tax anyone because our system doesn’t work.”
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To cut as much money as the governor is proposing, lawmakers would have to suspend Prop. 98 - an action that has only happened once, during the 2003-2004 fiscal crisis.
It is a move that is likely to face stiff opposition from the state’s powerful education lobby.
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Just do it.
Schwarzenegger unveils proposed budget cuts - Healthcare and state parks would take strong hits in governor’s plan. He says reductions must be made to close a $14.5-billion deficit.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-budget11jan11,0,458683.story?coll=la-home-center
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Only a few areas would avoid cuts under his plan: spending on health benefits for retired public employees, payments to some long-term care facilities and state hospitals, juvenile justice programs and healthcare programs for inmates. Lawmakers are legally prohibited from making cuts to many of those programs, and the governor said others were “impractical to implement.”
Despite the state’s substantial existing debt, Schwarzenegger proposed asking voters for permission to borrow $38.3 billion more this year. He wants $11.9 billion to expand and improve the state’s water supply, $11.6 billion to pay for public school construction projects, $12.3 billion for community college and university building projects, and $2 billion to improve the state’s court facilities.
The governor’s borrowing plan also includes a $10-billion proposal for a high-speed rail project that is already on the November ballot.