Take a minute this weekend to answer the following question:
The Legislative Analyst’s Office announced today that revenue in the recently adopted State budget will fall short of projections by $8 billion, with significantly increasing budget shortfalls in subsequent years. Should that news be filed under:
A) Color me surprised,
B) We told you so,
or
C) Fill in the blank ?
If you select C, please provide an answer as to where you believe the news should be filed. Be creative. Post it in the comments or shoot me an email. Let’s not assume that "Tax increases should have been higher" is the best answer.
In the meantime, read Senator Dennis Hollingsworth’s take on the matter:
Senator Hollingsworth Statement regarding Legislative Analyst’s Office Projecting $6 Billion Deficit
“The fact that the LAO is projecting a $6 Billion deficit for the 2009-2010 Budget is not a surprise. I said early on this budget was not going to fully solve the problem. We had anticipated the budget shortfall would be around $10 billion, and it still could reach that number.”
“Now we need to focus on re-evaluating some of the solutions previously discussed that include helping the private sector create jobs and stimulate the economy. We also need to use any federal stimulus money California receives efficiently and effectively and look at streamlining government by reducing spending. We can’t go back to the taxpayer’s again to ask them to fix the problem, especially after hitting them with a $1,000 price tag just three weeks ago.”
“Clearly, more work is needed and I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Assembly and Senate to achieve that task.”
###
Without yet digging into the details, I’m not clear on the reason for the difference between the LAO’s $8 billion and Hollingsworth’s $6 billion, but the former refers to the revenue shortfall and the latter is the budget gap … although one could argue there is no difference. Bottom line: What’s $2 billion between friends? Higher taxes could have taken care of that, no problem. Or, maybe even budget cuts. One big box blown up might have handled it.
The survey question still stands.
March 14th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Time for another public employee pay raise!
March 16th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Based on the recent CA govt employment figures, I hereby change my entry:
Time to hire even more CA state employees!
March 18th, 2009 at 12:00 am
As clarity about the difference between the $8 and $6 Billion reported Deficit. The LAO Report -http://www.lao.ca.gov/2009/bud/feb_overview/feb_overview_031309.pdf – on pages 20-21 indicates “As a result of this revenue drop, we project that the state would end the 2009-10 fiscal year with a $6 billion deficit if no further corrective actions are taken (that is, the $8 billion revenue drop less the assumed $2 billion reserve).”