That's a tough one.
I don't know if anyone knows.
Maybe they need another $100 billion academic study to find out.
Posted on 02/08/2009 10:05:32 AM PST by NormsRevenge
California is broke.
But lost in the day-to-day drama over IOUs, furloughs and huge deficits is a basic question many Californians might be asking: Where has all our money gone?
A Mercury News analysis of state spending since Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took office in late 2003 found that he and the Democratic-controlled Legislature have spent money well beyond the rate of inflation and California's population growth — $10.2 billion more.
Yet the programs that received most of that money are priorities that Californians broadly support or have demanded at the ballot box: tougher prison sentences for criminals, health care for uninsured children and an aging population, and a cut in the "car tax" that they pay every year to register their vehicles.
The problem, according to a report last week from the state auditor, is that Republican and Democratic politicians in Sacramento have shirked their responsibility for the past decade, papering over shortfalls that started after the dot-com bubble popped in 2001.
Like homeowners paying off one credit card with another, they used accounting gimmicks and more debt, rather than raising taxes or cutting spending, to balance the books. As the economy worsened and tax receipts plummeted — from $102.5 billion last year to an estimated $87.5 billion this year — the house of cards collapsed.
Recession's effect
"We got what we wanted and we've never figured out how to pay for it. And then we had this recession, and that made everything worse," said Stephen Levy, director of the Palo Alto-based Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy.
"Everybody's got somebody to blame, but in the end these are services people wanted," Levy added. "Look at the screaming when you close a swimming pool, let alone try to cut education."
(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...
“politicians in Sacramento have shirked their responsibility for the past decade,”
“We got what we wanted and we’ve never figured out how to pay for it. And then we had this recession, and that made everything worse,” said Stephen Levy, director of the Palo Alto-based Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy
The past decade? BS - how about the past 3 decades or more. With Mr. Willie Brown as the main perp. The recession had nothing to do with the cause. Pull your head out of your lying @ss Mr. Levy.
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Let’s not forget the $3 billion for stem cell research (”We’ll show George Bush!”).
He said he wanted ALL of the ones listed.
His mother said he couldn't afford ALL of the choices. He had to pick two because that's all he could afford.
He did
Lesson learned.
A 3-year-old gets it.
Adult politicians don't get it!
No they don’t.
When addressing this mess the illegal problem is COMPLETELY avoided.
They would be afraid to show how much the illegals are costing the state. I would love to see what that number is, state by state.
OMG!
California state government and local education are really really messed up.
You know, a leader would have used his bully pulpit, to point out that the accounting gimmicks were paving the road to...
That's a tough one.
I don't know if anyone knows.
Maybe they need another $100 billion academic study to find out.
The 2006 ADA for K-12 was 5,864,761 students. The budget that year was $47 billion or $8,000 per student. It appears the student population increased to 6,275,000 in 2008 with a cut to $35 billion or $5600 per student. That's an increase of 400,000 students in one year. Where did they come from?
$8k/studen for ADA? No way I believe that.
what a lie! Arnold did not cut the car tax. The Dems raised it something like 300% or 400% and the voters revolted. Arnold and the legislature rescinded the increase. Only in Dem la la land does a decision not to raise taxes become a decision to cut taxes.
Saying the money “went for” [insert item here] is only half the story. Government workers get better pay and benefits than the private sector, meaning the government overpays for their services. Government also overpays by insisting on “prevailing wage” on construction projects. If I were King of California, the first things I’d do would be to contract out as much of the work as possible, and eliminate the “prevailing wage” requirements.
Scroll to the bottom of the linked page.
Pardon, but I don’t see per pupil spending? Did you link the wrong page?
The ADA number is in the last table. That's the average number of warm butts sitting in class on a given day. That is how the money is allocated...per warm butt, not per pupil.
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