Mythical "Massive" Budget Cuts

California department of Finance ^ | 01-09-04 | Arnold Schwarzenegger

[Amerigomag]

I've been listening all afternoon to the media about the "massive" spending cuts proposed by our new governor. Well here are the numbers compared to the budget proposed just one year ago.

Total Spending -- increased 2.8%

Education K-12 -- decreased 1.8%

Health and Human Services -- increased 5%

Higher Education -- increased 6.7%

Business, Transportation and Housing -- increased 0.7%

Courts -- increased 2.2%

Tax Relief (principally the VLF) -- increased 293%

Local Government Subventions -- decreased 9.6%

Youth and adult Corrections -- increased 1.5%

Resources -- decreased 51%

Enviornmental Protection -- decreased 20%

State and Consumer Services -- increased 4.5%

Other -- decreased 29%

[Amerigomag]

The budget passed in 2003 was actually about 4% larger than Davis proposed but the comparison to the two proposals is startling in light of the claims being trumpted by the media this afternoon.

[Support Free Republic]

[heleny]

Sharpen that blue pencil, Governor!

[heleny]

Total Spending -- increased 2.8%

On another thread, the proposed 2004-05 budget is $99.1 Billion, or about the same as what passed last year ($98.9 Billion according to a summary on the LAO's page) after the Democrats tacked on a few billion to Davis' proposal. That would only be a 0.2% increase.

[CyberCowboy777]

The "CUTS" cry is all to common.

While not a voter I pay taxes in Oregon (live in Washington)
and I heard this all day and night while the tax increase was debated.

They are not CUTS in the sense being projected, they are cuts in huge increases. Increases that exceed inflation and population growth numbers. Yet they bellow at the top of their lungs that we are cutting budgets to the bone.

I particularly like the statements from schools and jails - "We will have to lay off teachers and cut school days", "We will have to let prisoners out".

All the while up to 25% of school budgets are non classroom teachers and administrators and the State spends monies on cultural awareness programs instead of keeping Johnny Wife Beater in jail.

[Amerigomag]

That would only be a 0.2% increase.

Yup, that qualifies as a "massive" decrease in spending all right!

[NormsRevenge]

Thanks for posting this.

I was looking at the $99+ billion dollars budget proposal and wondering where we had seen that figure or anything approaching it before. Deja puuu :-\

WE'll see what ends up rolling out on the showroom floor after all the re-engineering is done..

I hope they have some money budgeted for air in the tires on this "lean mean" budgetmobile.

[Carry_Okie]

If Schwarzenegger lowballed in anticipation of not getting all he wants, then this budget is less of a substantive set of cuts than it appears to be.

[Amerigomag]

First, you're welcome.

What bothers me is that normally you expect to get less than you ask for during a negotiation.

Since Schwarzenegger is proposing more spending than in previous years, I'm sure the legislature will oblige him and then some. California is obviously headed for the largest budget in it's history if the bond passes. A budget that will be more than 20% out of structural balance.

I suspect the "he's a fiscal conservative" gang will slide into silence over the next few months.

I'm also beginning to believe that the "let it go broke" gang may be pointed in a sound fiscal direction with regard California's immediate, legislative problems. It won't "go broke" but the legislature will be forced to curtail it's spending.

[BIGZ]

What are, RECOURCES, ENVIROMENTAL PROTECTION, LOCAL GOVERNMENT SUBVENTIONS? What percent of the total budget does each account for?

[Amerigomag]

Ok, give me a minute. I've download the PDF doc and I'll get back to you with the details.

[Amerigomag]

Resources -- natural resources -- parks, water, fish and game, etc. -- $2.749B or 2.8% of proposed expenditures

Enviornmental Protection -- Cal EPA, Air Resources Board, Water Resources Control Board, etc. -- $0.846B or 0.8%

Local Government Subventions -- local government's share of the property taxes including the VLF -- $2.571B or 2.6%

All three budget subdivisions add up to 6.2% of proposed expenditures.

[goldstategop]

The Democrats will add more spending and tax hikes to this budget before the summer. So the budget cuts will vanish into thin air...

[Scenic Sounds]

It's a real mess. The only answer is to make the cuts that can be made and to raise taxes. In the current environment, it is politically difficult to raise current taxes, so instead we're going to raise future taxes through bonds.

There just aren't any magical answers. ;-)

[Amerigomag]

The Democrats will add more spending and tax hikes to this budget before the summer. So the budget cuts will vanish into thin air...

All predictions rest with the fate of Prop 56, 57 and 58. This forum may be real entertainment after the March primary.

Our next scheduled fun period will be after the deadline Schwarzenegger imposed on the legislature for state comp reform legisltaion

[Amerigomag]

There just aren't any magical answers. ;-)

Not at the state level anyway. Either everyone's ox gets gored or we wait patiently hoping California's GDP will out pace the drain from the consequences of unregulated immigration.

[Scenic Sounds]

Not at the state level anyway.

Well, we're doing exactly the same thing at the Federal level. We're raising future taxes through debt so that we can have lower taxes now.

In fact, if you take California's deficit and multiply it by ten (California has about ten percent of the United States' population), California's budget problems compare pretty favorably with the current budget problem at the federal level. ;-)

[Amerigomag]

Exactly .... except California can't print money.