Posted on 05/11/2009 5:17:29 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
On the eve of a series of referendums proposed to increase taxes on Californians, the Golden State’s legislative budget analyst warns that both the legislature and the governor have seriously underestimated the budget shortfall. The state has a $23 billion gap even after the legislative compromise earlier this year supposedly eliminated the red ink and could default by July:
California could run out of money as soon as July, the Legislature’s chief budget analyst warned Thursday, as a new poll showed voters poised to reject five budget-related measures on the May 19 ballot.
If the propositions do not pass, the state could find itself as much as $23 billion short of the money it needs to pay its bills over the next year, according to a new forecast by Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor. The poll, from the Public Policy Institute of California, found that even as voter interest in the ballot measures rises, all are trailing except the sixth one — Proposition 1F, which would bar pay hikes for lawmakers in deficit years. …
Adding to the fiscal woes, the Obama administration is threatening to pull $6.8 billion in stimulus funds from California in a dispute over an earlier state budget cut.
“The Legislature is going to need to act promptly,” said state Department of Finance spokesman H.D. Palmer. “We have a fairly short window to get a lot done.”
Predictably, the political class has exploited this by warning of criminals running free in the street:
On Thursday, the administration advised law enforcement officials that it was preparing plans to commute the sentences of 38,000 state prison inmates, including all illegal immigrants. It also is considering closing some prisons and sending inmates to county jails, according to a copy of the proposal obtained by The Times.
Under the plan, 19,000 illegal immigrants — 11% of state prisoners — would be turned over to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency after having their sentences commuted. An additional 19,000 “relatively low-risk offenders” would have their sentences commuted as well.
Earlier in the week, the administration warned local officials that it may raid their budgets for $2 billion and close firehouses.
Ah, yes, because California doesn’t spend money on anything but police and fire departments. The Governator didn’t pledge six billion dollars for stem-cell research, for instance, or other non-essential nonsense. This is a typical, extortive, dog-in-the-manger ploy by Schwarzenegger and the Sacramento elite. Either give us your money, they warn, or we’ll sic the criminals on you.
Instead, California should concentrate on ridding themselves of the excess spending and regulation that the state has built over the last several decades, and concentrate on sustaining growth. The state could rake in billions in leases and taxes and create tens of thousands of jobs by allowing oil exploration and production off its coast, for instance. Arnold could lead a charge to lower business taxes in order to encourage investment, including the sky-high sales taxes that depress consumption. Most importantly, they could start getting serious about trimming non-essential spending from the state budget and start shedding bureaucrats instead of driving business out of state.
Instead, the state prefers to set criminals free to punish its citizens for telling Sacramento that they spend too much money. Maybe Escape from LA wasn’t so far-fetched after all.
Thanks a lot you do know that Jim lives here and a lot of fine decent conservative people
That completes the La Raza tradition.
I don’t care much about those that were legal. It’s the others I want out.
California is a failed State.
A preview of Grandiose plans and Spending out of control such that Taxes could NOT be raised fast enough. Send the “Cash” economy Illegals back home....they are not paying taxes they are just freeloading.
California is a preview of the Feds as Obama plans are a mirrow image of California....Spend, Tax, Borrow, Spend some more.
This latest “save the minnow” Kill the farmers is just Green Insanity.
Did you miss this part of the post?
“Overall, illegal immigrants’ children account for one of every 15 students in kindergarten through 12th grade. In 2008, California had the most illegal immigrants at 2.7 million, double its 1990 number, followed by Texas, Florida, New York and New Jersey.”
BTW...the ‘legal’ ones are the ones electing the idiots we have in office.
What about the criminals, pardon me, voters who put them there? This is still America, and people get the government they want. The voters of California seem to like corruption, perversion, and incompetence. Why not? That's how they themselves are.
Why should it be repealed?
Why shouldn’t the legislature have to CUT from the budget they have?
Gotta love them illegals. Leeches in our country.
California...tumbles into the sea.
What happens to CALPERS and California Muni Bonds.
Well they say California blazes the trail that the rest of the country follows.
So I think this whole governmental collapse thing just might catch on!
It won’t fall into the sea. LA may relocate to just south of SF at point due to the big one, but it won’t fall into the sea.
And some of us, love living here and wouldn’t move unless Texas actually did secede from the Union.
Socialism FAILS every time and every place its tried, for the same reason. You run out of other people’s money!
Did you miss the other part? Stop preaching to me. I’m on your side.
This is what should have been done. But it should have been done as soon as Arnold got into office, when the voters were fed up with Gray Davis and his budget busting.
It's too damned late now. Businesses have already been driven out of the state. Taxpayers have been driven out of the state. Illegal aliens have taken over in many places. Power is more and more expensive.
Oil exploration takes years before you get a return. And the crisis is NOW. In fact, it was probably too late last fall, while they were all screwing around and going on vacation instead of voting on a budget.
checks awarded by seniority. Rertired since 1998.
Uh - NO! We pealed it once fair and square and we are not going to re peal it.
Publish the photos, names and addresses of all the bureaucrats and retired state employees earning more than $200,000 so the criminals know where to go for free handouts.
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