AM Alert: No time to waste

SacBee: Capitol Alert ^ | 6/6/11 | Amy Chance

[SmithL]

Twenty of the bills the Assembly sent to the Senate on Friday were empty vessels.

All of them are budget trailer measures that leaders in both houses hope quickly fill up with nuanced details, preventing Controller John Chiang from clamping down on their paychecks. Lawmakers have 10 days until the constitutional deadline arrives to deliver a budget to the governor's desk for him to sign.

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg said Friday he is still committed to a floor vote this week to "make sure that we have as much time as possible to debate these issues before the 15th."

"The 8th would be preferable, but if the discussion and negotiations are close, we'll assess where we are on the 8th itself," he said. "We are going to call the question. Hopefully we call the question after there's been a handshake agreement, but either way we're going."

[SmithL]

Waste?

Yeah, that pretty much describes the California Legislature.

[CIB-173RDABN]

Each time the Democrats hit a speed bump intended to slow down their out of control spending they find a way around it.

California is going to go over the cliff, all the democrats are doing is making the fall further down then it already is.

California financial problem is not unsolvable. It is only unsolvable while we have legislators in office more interest in themselves (or their party) then to the public.

It is not rocket surgery, I (and most here) can list a dozen things to help bring the budget back to earth.

But as long as we are a one party state, with the media on the side of that party, the train will continue down the track until it goes over the cliff. When that happens recover is going to be a lot more difficult then it had to be.

[keat]

Got an email from the BOE (tax board) this morning indicating state sales tax would roll back 1% on July 1st. Wonder what the chances are of that happening.