California budget stalemate now longest ever

[alp227]

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

(09-17) 04:00 PDT Sacramento - --

The impasse over solving California's $19 billion budget deficit reached an inglorious milestone today when it officially became the longest stalemate over the state budget in history, though some lawmakers think it may end soon.

The previous, 78-day record for the Legislature passing a late budget was reached in 2008, and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the spending plan seven days later.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/09/17/MN411FF3P5.DTL

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This year, Proposition 25 seeks to make a simple majority vote enough to pass a budget or amend taxes and to revoke legislators' pay for every day a budget is late.

[slackmaster]

1. Idiots

Proposition 25 is a Trojan Horse. Allowing the budget to be passed on a simple majority is probably a good idea, but it will also allow the Legislature to vote in future budget obligations with a simple majority, without providing for funding them.

It also contains a poison pill that would allow taxes to be raised on a simple majority vote. That's based on a superior court judge's ruling, not just anti-25 propaganda.

[Xithras]

3. Prop 25 contains another very interesting ability that nobody has discussed.

(d) .... Appropriations from the General Fund of the State, except appropriations for the public schools, and appropriations in the budget bill and in other bills providing for appropriations related to the budget bill, are void unless passed in each house by rollcall vote entered in the journal, two-thirds of the membership concurring.

(e)(2) For purposes of this section, “other bills providing for appropriations related to the budget bill” shall consist only of bills identified as related to the budget in the budget bill passed by the Legislature.


Few people understand, and fewer people are talking about, what this ACTUALLY means.

In a nutshell: The legislature will have the right to ignore all minimum spending requirements, including those passed by the voters through the initiative process, unless the requirements have also passed the legislature by a 2/3rds vote. The ONLY exception to this are the Prop 98 minimum spending requirements for schools.

Your initial response might be "so what", but stop and think about that for a second. With the sole exception of self-funded bond projects, ANY proposition passed by the voters can now be ignored by the legislature if its implementation imposes a cost on the state. The legislature will not have the power to strike down initiatives, but they CAN simply refuse to fund them. Unless the measure, with its spending requirements, is passed by the Legislature, the Legislature is free to ignore it when drafting their budget.

Whether you think it's good or bad, it's certainly a HUGE change.

[ProudDad]

5. No it wouldn't

California is required, like ALL states, to produce a balanced budget.

It's time the republicans were TAKEN OUT OF THE LOOP ENTIRELY!

[slackmaster]

7. What part of "future budget obligations" do you not understand?

:crazy:

[shanti]

9. that's baloney

prop 25 has no poison pill. it will still take a 2/3 vote to raise taxes. we're sick of the yearly stalemate! YES ON 25!

[xchrom]

2. every year this debacle happens -- and every year it seems to get worse.

gaaaack!

[ProudDad]

4. Good old prop 13

What a brilliant idea to put the repukes in charge of California's budget... :sarcasm:

[slackmaster]

6. The 2/3 majority to pass a budget has nothing to do with Proposition 13

One provision of Proposition 13 requires a 2/3 majority to impose a new tax, or to raise taxes. The 2/3 majority requirement to pass a budget has been in place a lot longer.

The 2/3 majority requirement to pass a budget has been in place since 1933.

[KakistocracyHater]

8. cut the pay of the highest paid State Workers & furlough the next highest

paid State workers. Collect taxes from those corporations who've yet to pay, or do to them what was done to Willy Nelson & Wesley Snipes-what are the co.s going to do, outsource even more? I'd also collect everything due if a corporation is moving its' headquarters overseas. Make California THE go-to electric car capitol of the USA; manufacture bullet trains & install them on the Gold Coast & elswhere in the US. Change housing building standards to require 18th Century style windows in all north-facing rooms, except bathrooms, this small step would reduce electric use. Make low-flow bathroom SINKS the norm. Make spinach the new standard on sandwiches & burgers & discourage lettuce farmers from growing it.