Posted on 08/05/2012 7:14:19 AM PDT by Kaslin
Last May, Governor Jerry Brown threatened to close 70 state parks in order to help balance the budget and plug the holes of the sinking ship that is California.
Immediately, park-loving activists went to work and through bake sales and donations, the public helped save 69 of the 70 parks.
But then, oops---California auditors recently looked under their government couch cushions and located over $286 million in “misplaced” funds.
From the L.A. Times (emphasis added): “Gov. Jerry Brown's administration on Friday announced that $119 million more in untapped money was found in a sweeping audit of state accounts, bringing to more than $286.5 million the sum lawmakers were unaware of as they repeatedly cut government services…The additional money that lawmakers were unaware of includes funds for healthcare programs, reimbursement of crime victims and cleanup of underground petroleum tanks.”
“Unaware of”?? Even if I won the lottery and became a gazillionaire, I can’t imagine not being aware of $286.5 million.
A Mercury News review found at least 17 accounts that “appeared to have significantly more serve cash than what individual departments reported to the finance department.”
This sudden bounty of cash is causing a few more headaches for Brown.
For one, the activists, local governments and non-profits that collected money to save the state parks are now asking for refunds.
"There was a sense of betrayal," said Carolyn Schoff, head of the California League of Parks Associations, an alliance of nonprofits. "We're the ones in the trenches raising funds for state parks, and now there's a dark shadow over us."
Another problem is the obvious—how in the world can one state “misplace” so much money? Lots of finger wagging is happening, with each department scrambling to place blame elsewhere.
One of the largest discrepancies occurred within the Public Utilities Commission, which regulates telecommunications and energy services.
A spokeswoman for the commission said the accounting discrepancies are probably only "recording errors."
Sigh.
Democrat lawmakers are saying the audit “would not have changed how the state pieced together its budget this year”—yet these same lawmakers have used the funds to pay bills and according to the Times, the Legislature now owes them $4.3 billion (with a ‘b’), “a nearly sixfold increase since 2008.”
These major monetary discrepancies perfectly explain why Republicans are constantly screaming and shouting about “big government”. Any state that is so out of control that it can misplace enormous amounts of money—making politicians and Union fat cats richer and richer while her cities are filing bankruptcy--needs a major dose of checks and balances.
The good news in all of this is that perhaps these mishaps will result in some job openings to help boost California’s rising unemployment rate. I suggest they start by hiring a few good accountants--and maybe an Oversight Committee or two.
On a personal note--because I live here in La La Land-- I remain ever hopeful that the good citizens of California will finally see the light and will stop voting for the same old Democrats who seem intent on running this beautiful state further into the abyss.
Progressives accuse Conservatives of being liars, but if they packaged what is said by Progressives everywhere, and applied it to vegetable gardens, food shortages in the world would disappear.
IMHO
Kali-Fornia is bankrupt!
Unfortunately, everyone in the USA will have to pay to bail these progressives (nee, LIEberal/Socialist/Marxist/Fascist bastards) out.
I deeply resent having to pay for LIEberal mistakes!
Here’s how it works. Let’s say you’re a bureaucrat in The Parks Service. (Or, the school system, or the public transport, etc.) Your agenda is to provide service to your constituents. If you report how much money you actually have, politicians higher up the food chain swoop down and take the money. So, you hide it inside the accounting mechanisms under your control. I did the same thing as a manager in a company. I needed to upgrade computers so I could finish the contracts I was responsible for. I piece-parted them under a “repairs” account at a much higher price than if I’d been allowed to go out and buy them. Had my boss known he’d have taken the money as he got to keep a tiny portion of the unspent budget as part of his personal bonus. (BTW, he usually bought a new car when he got his yearly bonus.) The fact that the company wouldn’t complete the contracts was irrelevant in his personal accounting.
California sad circus. I really feel bad for the conservatives living there. The libs? They are reaping what they have sown. Let ‘em drown. Let ‘em stew in their own juices. Just deserts, etc.
"Gov. Mitch Daniels announced last December that the state lost track of $320 million in corporate tax collections. State Budget Director Adam Horst then announced in April the state owed $206 million to Indiana's counties. Three top Indiana revenue officials resigned following the revelations."
HINT: It's spelled CALPERS.
“Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration on Friday announced that $119 million more in untapped money was found in a sweeping audit of state accounts, bringing to more than $286.5 million the sum lawmakers were unaware of as they repeatedly cut government services…The additional money that lawmakers were unaware of includes funds for healthcare programs, reimbursement of crime victims and cleanup of underground petroleum tanks.”
Hmmmmm. Was this misplaced on purpose, to be distributed to...at a later date.
Someone needs to check the white hut’s couch cushions before November.
That’s amount to about 6% of the total California budget that was misplaced....
“That’s amount to about 6% of the total California budget that was misplaced...?
One wonders in which or whose bank accounts the funds were “misplaced”?
Just asking.
“The Libs? They are reaping what they have sown.”
And, if Obama wins in November, the taxpayers will be reaping what has been sown by Libs. (As usual.)
IMHO
I just bet they did. More money to scam.
Tim Kaine, Democrat running for U.S. Senate, closed 11 rest areas around Virginia while $1.5 BILLION sat idly in the coffers. Bob McDonnell, the current VA governor, found the money and reopened the rest areas.
I’d love to see how much $$$ is hidden in Federal agency accounts.
Check the politician's bank accounts.
The departments in which that ‘lost’ cash was found obviously didn’t need that money to operate last year, so their budgets for next year should be reduced by those amounts. That way, they won’t have to worry about that leftover money at the end of the next fiscal year.
” Your agenda is to provide service to your constituents.”
Ok. You see where you went wrong, there?
And I remain ever hopeful that Leprechauns will leave a pot of gold at the foot of my bed.
In a “Hope and Change” moment, I looked under my couch cushions.....all I found was some lint, a toothpick a dime and a penny. I need a better class of couch!!
Big deal. That’ll just be considered a windfall and spent on more BS giveaway entitlement programs.
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