Right around the stroke of midnight, I got an urgent e-mail from the Governor’s campaign entitled, "Day 1" — referring to the fact that we are now one day into the new fiscal year without a state budget. The e-mail directed me to a call for action on the Governor’s Join Arnold website where I read this message from the Governor’s Team:
The Governor’s 2008-09 budget proposal is a responsible plan that solves the state’s long-term budget problem, fully funds education, keeps our parks open and keeps prisoners behind bars – without tax increases. However, the state is facing an extremely tough budget year. California’s economy is the most diverse in the nation and that diversity has kept it strong. But with the subprime mortgage crisis and the stalled national economy revenues have flattened out.
This downturn highlights the fact that California’s budget system is in dire need of reform. Fluctuating tax revenue and auto-pilot spending, which dictates approximately 90 percent of state expenditures, have created more than a decade of unpredictable and unstable budget cycles which benefit no one.
Despite Governor Schwarzenegger’s efforts to increase rainy day funds to historic levels, slowing the growth in spending on new ongoing programs, and championing budget reform measures, California still faces a $17 billion budget gap in the 2008-2009 budget year.
California needs budget reform to make this budget work now and to fix the systemic problems that are so damaging. The good news is that this roller-coaster revenue problem has a simple solution: If we save money during the above-average years we will have enough money for the below-average years.
This is where the California Lottery comes in. Under the Governor’s budget plan California will modernize its underperforming Lottery. The state will then use the $15 billion in revenue that will generate over the next three years to establish a rainy day fund to be used in tough budget years like this one.
This plan will require voter approval at the ballot in November. Help the Governor make this plan a reality, send an email to your legislators today asking them to support the Governor’s budget proposal!
While I am not enamored with every aspect of the Governor’s budget proposal, it is light years closer to reality than the calls by legislative Democrats for as much as twelve BILLION in new taxes. So I clicked on the link provided, and then was able to customize my own letter to my legislators.
The final product, which was sent along to Senator Dick Ackerman and Assemblyman Todd Spitzer, on my behalf, reads as follows…
As my representative in Sacramento, I urge you to work with your colleagues in the Legislature and Governor Schwarzenegger to address the challenges facing our state by finding practical solutions that produce results.
I support the Governor’s responsible budget proposal that solves the state’s long-term budget problem, fully funds education, keeps our parks open and keeps prisoners behind bars – without tax increases. California’s budget system is fundamentally broken. We need real budget reform that will bring stability to the system.I believe Governor Schwarzenegger’s plan to do this by creating a rainy day fund that is backed by the California Lottery is a good one. If this plan had been enacted in 1998, the state would not be facing its current $17 billion budget deficit. I ask you to work with the Governor to pass this plan and put it before voters this year. California cannot afford to wait for reform to our dysfunctional budget process.
California needs the Governor’s budget plan because it will:
- End Fluctuating tax revenue and auto-pilot spending, which dictates approximately 90 percent of state expenditures. This process has, created more than a decade of unpredictable and unstable budget cycles, which benefit no one.
- Establish a rainy day fund basically a savings account for years when state tax revenues are above a reasonable, long-term average rate of growth. This fund will be used to even out funding for the state budget in years when revenues are below average.
- Protect the people of California and ensure that education, public safety and other important programs are protecting from huge swings in state revenues.
- Fund our priorities without raising taxes on the hardworking people of this state.
Sincerely,
Jon Fleischman
[Home Address Redacted]
Now I am not niave — at some point, invariably, the Governor will settle on a budget that I won’t like. Especially since I would rather grind state government to a complete halt than support a plan with even one penny in new taxes. But I applaud the Governor for using technology to push this important message at this time, and for waging a grassroots effort.
Hopefully many who received the Governor’s call to action live in areas where they have Democrat legislators — they are the ones who need to be barraged with e-mails. My representatives are squared away.
Oh yeah, don’t forget — you can call legislators and ask them to hold the line on new taxes, and the California Teachers Association will pay for the call.
In closing, enjoy this new state budget marquis, created in honor of the big spending Democrats, courtesy of the California Republican Party:
Disclaimer: I can’t be held responsible if you click on the wrong "Call for Action" by the Governor and end up on Al Gore’s e-mail list.
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