Cal just past their budget. So, how do the Californians feel about it?
California Passes State Budget
The package included a combination of spending cuts, tax increases and borrowing, intended to close a projected multibillion dollar deficit and avert fiscal disaster for the state. Senate leaders secured the final vote needed from moderate Republican Abel Maldonado in late-night negotiations by agreeing to his demands for election changes, government reform, budget cuts and removal of a gas tax increase, giving them the two-thirds vote needed to pass the package.
Election changes:
To win Maldonado's support, legislators also agreed to ask voters to revise the state's constitution to allow open primaries for legislative, congressional and gubernatorial elections.The people of the state voted three separate times over the years to have open Primary elections for Federal elections and all three times it was overturned in the courts saying the parties could have whatever rules they wanted about that, so even if voters approve it (again) I don't see why the same wouldn't apply to the state elections.
Government reform:
Leaders also met Maldonado's demands to freeze legislators' salaries in deficit budget years and to eliminate new office furniture budgeted for the state controller.That sounds reasonable.
Budget cuts:
Something I posted elsewhere today:
Cuts hurt
My friends boyfriend works for the State of California in a program that takes children out of abusive homes, homes where the parents are drug addicted and such, and works with them, hopefully toward a better life. He got word yesterday the whole program is being shut down due to the budget problems. What happens to those kids? Well, they either get absorbed into another program which isn't the same kind of one they were getting help in, or they get sent back to the families from which they came. Not only is he losing his job, they have to go tell all these kids about this, kids they've come to know and care for. And try to make them understand it is not because they aren't valued. OMG, just hearing about this breaks my heart, but to have to go through it, well, this guy was more upset about the children and what they'll go through now than losing his job. Completely in tears because he knows what will happen now. Ugh.
Removal of a gas tax increase:
The budget originally included a proposal to raise the price of gas in California by 14 cents a gallon.As painful as that might be, the gas is nearly $1 lower than it was at the height of the increases last year here in California. This tax might've been the one to get Californians to think about how much they spend on gas again. Now that the price has come down the consumption level is off the charts again. I didn't necessarily think this particular increase was the worst idea.
When Schwarzenegger came to office during the height of a budget surplus (Really? When was that?), like all good Republicans he wanted to return the surplus to "the people" as it's their money, and eliminate the $32 a year car registration increase that consumers had been paying for years. I thought that was a bad idea because people were "used" to paying it and once you take it away... Now, when consumers are afraid of any extra spending is when that tax would be most helpful, but try re-instating it now. I bet Arnold would love to take that back now.
The 1 cent increase in the sales tax bugs me more than the 14 cent increase in gas. In L.A. County our sales tax will be just shy of 10%! It's like tithing to the government. I wish they'd do it like they do in England. The price you see on something is the price you pay, and it includes the tax in it. If something is $27.59 that's what you pay. Here you have to get out your calculators and add on, add on, add on... It's just a frame of mind, but...
(And in L.A. that would be $30.28)
To get State Senator Ashburn's vote lawmakers also agreed to help the horse racing industry in his district _ and throughout the state _ by using $32 million in state funding each year to offset maintenance fees at fairgrounds.Horse racing is gambling. Great! We are subsidizing gambling.
"Thanks, Assburn, I knew I could count on you."In 1998 when the people of California voted to allow Indian Gaming all over the state, without ANY provisions that the state require tax revenue out of them, I thought people were absolutely nuts. They bought into the argument that "the Indians have been mistreated
forever so I couldn't care less or it doesn't bother me at all that they pay no taxes on all that gambling money." They tried to change that a bit a few years ago with a wimpy bill to get some revenue--decided on by the tribes themselves (!) -- another instance of people not thinking about the long term implications.
And that's what this Californian initially thinks of it before knowing much else about what's in it.