Posted on 02/20/2009 2:30:26 PM PST by NormsRevenge
SACRAMENTO — After months of dire warnings and a week of round-the-clock arm-twisting, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger this afternoon signed a $41 billion budget package of steep tax increases and spending cuts. ...
There is something in the package sure to offend nearly everyone: fed-up voters, tax-averse conservatives, labor unions, environmentalists, educators and local officials worried about how to keep the fraying social safety net from snapping.
The deal also could end the political careers of the handful of Republican legislators who joined fractious Democrats to vote "aye" as the sun rose Thursday.
The governor did not make any comments as he formally signed the budget just before 1 pm today. But on Thursday, even as he thanked the Legislature for its "difficult but courageous" vote, he acknowledged that much remained to be done. "Our work is not over," he said, referring to a soon-to-be launched campaign to pass ballot measures that were tied to the budget vote.
...
The breakthrough, after more than five days of sometimes round-the-clock negotiations in the Legislature, came about 1 a.m. Thursday, when top Senate Democrats agreed to GOP Sen. Abel Maldonado's demands in exchange for his deciding vote. Among them: ballot measures that would do away with partisan primaries and block pay raises for lawmakers when the state is running a deficit.
Maldonado, a moderate Republican whose district includes parts of Silicon Valley, also forced through a last-minute agreement to trim the package's tax hikes to $12.8 billion by eliminating a 12-cents-a-gallon excise on gasoline; the difference will be made up with California's share of federal economic stimulus money and with expected line-item vetoes by Schwarzenegger.
One Assembly member called the deal "blackmail, extortion and skulduggery." Another labeled it "political ransom." ...
(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...
A little shared pain for everyone .. Well, for taxpayers anyway.
I bet aRnold never thought he’d get a shot at playing a ship Captain hitting an iceberg .. arrrrrr.. Fade to debt.
Can we return him to Austria?
.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger walks to and then speaks to reporters at a press conference on the state budget at the State Capitol in Sacramento, California February 19, 2009. California lawmakers approved on Thursday a state budget package to close a $42 billion deficit, ending a lengthy standoff with a slate of bills that aim to raise taxes, slash spending and increase borrowing. REUTERS/Max Whittaker (UNITED STATES)
That's Susan Kennedy at his side.
Does that mean I get my refund now?
Susan Kennedy, at his side.
.
Detail on budget and vetoes (PDF)
Thanks!
Do this all again in 6 months, shall we?
Raise taxes, that is. ;-)
He is such a vindictive petty man. He whacked Garamendi’s budget by 75% because Garamendi spoke out against the budget. Same with John Chiang. Apparently elected officials get their budget’s cut but Arnold still keeps an Army of staffers that dwarf the other organizations. How about we roll back that payhike where Arnie decided that folks should make over $350,000 a year! His actions were in the millions (when the total 2-yr budget approaches $300 BILLION)!
I love the last page. Since he didn’t get the fuel tax passed, he simply won’t contribute to the Transporation Debt-service Fund, established to ensure that we can pay off his mega-borrowing scheme.
What a putz. Terminator, indeed.
The budget crisis will be worse next year than this year. The State of California is really up against the wall now, with the worst credit rating in the nations. At least for this year, California can pretend to receive future increases in tax revenue. Guess what? That revenue will never come in. Raising marginal rates looks good on paper, but when it comes to collecting they will find that people are working less and shopping less and the expected revenue will not be generated.
So they think they have the numbers fixed, but next June they will see that the numbers are still completely out of whack. At some point, the liberal legislature will realize they have no point but to cut. Period. I have no clue if they will do that or just let the state go into bankruptcy, but next summer, it will become crystal clear that cutting state programs is mandatory.
Like calcowgirl says, the cuts should be targetted. I have no faith in the ability of the politicians to correctly target those needed cuts. IMO, they will take the easy way out and make 15% across the board cuts. I may be mistaken in that, but cut they will. Next summer we hit the brick wall head on. There will be no option but to cut spending. The game is up.
I don’t know, FINF.
The game was up in 2003 and they were backed into a corner. Then came Arnold and they borrowed $15 billion (and more thereafter), deferred expenses and have almost doubled the spending level.
The game was up this year and they just increased taxes and deferred more expenses.
I predict they will go through a massive sell-off of state assets next, in the form of public private partnerships (like they are doing this year with the Lottery). These deals usually provide huge upfront cash in exchange for decades of future revenue. The big money interests are salivating at the prospect of having control over prisons, schools, roads (soon to be tollroads) and the authority to tax ya to boot. Welcome to facism!
State government is like a bunch of crack addicts — all they think about is getting enough cash to pay for their next fix.
You make a lot of sense. I know they will cut only when forced to cut. I thought that would occur next year. You’ve reminded me they will pull out the stops to avoid cutting. Yep, you are right...
But the budget crisis will be worse next summer than this year. I just can’t see the tax increases bringing in the expected revenue and I expect revenue to continue to plunge during this recession. Buy you are right. They will find create ways to increase the budget yet again.
I am in total agreement with you there. In fact, it may even be this summer when their currently hatched plan implodes.
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