::: Advertisement :::
Posted on 01/10/2003 1:22:35 PM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
SACRAMENTO -- Advocates and interest groups better come to the table ready to sacrifice, or they risk getting left out of this year's bloodletting budget process entirely, says one of Gov. Gray Davis' advisers.
Pat Johnston, a former state senator who served as an unpaid adviser to Davis and his top financial aides, said the budget problem is too big -- a $35 billion deficit -- to rationally argue that a particular program can be spared entirely.
The budget process, of course, is about politics -- not always a rational pursuit.
Still, Johnston says, interest groups -- from state employees to education advocates and those dependent on Medi-Cal -- may fare better by offering to take a specific hit than by refusing to deal.
"The only responsible position, it seems to me, is to offer to accept a proportionate share of the problem," Johnston said. "To say, for example, there shouldn't be cuts to education is an assertion that doesn't contribute to a solution."
Worse, he said, those who cling to the "don't touch" argument may quickly exhaust the patience of lawmakers who have to find a workable compromise in the wake of the proposal Davis will offer today.
"If the advocate keeps reinforcing 'I can't take any cuts,' the legislators are going to say, 'OK, thanks for coming.' "
The reward for stepping up, on the other hand -- "taking your medicine early" as Johnston puts it -- is having some control over the specifics of the cuts.
|
::: Advertisement :::
|
|
"The education community ought to say how they'll be administered," he said. "They should be able to say, 'Here's the way to make them the least painful.'
"The quicker they take their share, the quicker they'll have a say in how the budget is crafted. The clock is ticking."
Richie Ross, a political consultant and lobbyist who wields considerable influence in Sacramento, said Johnston "makes absolute sense."
"You should get in front of it," Ross said. "It's all about who defines the outcome. The reality is, you're going to lose the money. If you're smart, you get to define it and design an outcome."
But Ross predicted most advocates will reject that advice.
"There's not a lot of smart people in the world," he laughed, "which is good for the rest of us."
Veteran lobbyist Anthony Gonsalvez, a widely respected advocate, says Johnston's advice is good for some but not so good for others -- including many of his clients, most of which are individual cities.
"I guess that they're going to tell us that we're going to have to contribute," Gonsalvez said. "We're going to have to try to figure out a way to do that. But for us to give them suggestions to cut what they're giving us, that's going to be tough to do."
Lobbyist Willie Pelote, who represents about 102,000 government employees, says it's flat out of the question until and unless legislators make sure they're collecting as much tax revenue as they can.
Pelote, who lobbies for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, has already told budget committee members to look at corporate-tax dodgers who do business in California but don't pay taxes here.
"With all due respect to my friend Sen. Johnston, we don't know how we can come to the table and say, 'You can cut us here or there,' " Pelote said.
"When the money was raining, we didn't benefit from all this extra money. They didn't cut our taxes. So don't come now and want to balance the budget on the backs of the public-sector work force as the first option."
Pelote said he'll come to the table and talk about reductions only after lawmakers have closed tax loopholes and enacted tax increases.
"Then, if we still have a budget deficit, we will sit down and see how you can reduce services," he said. "Once you get to that point, I think everybody will be ready to make those hard choices. But we can't start off with cuts."
* To reach Capitol Bureau Chief Will Shuck, phone (916) 441-4078 or
e-mail sacto@recordnet.com
 calgov2002: for old calgov2002 articles. calgov2002: for new calgov2002 articles. Other Bump Lists at: Free Republic Bump List Register |
--Ayn Rand
Davis and crew are certainly Looters!
Someone should ask that idiot Pelote how many of his members got their damn jobs on the backs of the taxpaying public whilst Davis was spending cash like a drunken sailor in the middle of an ether binge who’d just won the lottery.
<rant>
Better bury your savings in the back yard 'cause they've got it in their sights.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.