Free Republic

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a package of bills on Tuesday to balance the state's budget, which should allow the state to stop issuing IOUs instead of paying bills and to prepare for a crucial sale of short-term debt. After weeks of negotiations, the Republican governor and top lawmakers in the Democratic-led legislature early last week agreed to several measures to close the state's massive budget deficit of more than $24 billion. On Friday, the legislature passed many of the measures to close most of the gap but left it to Schwarzenegger to use line-item cuts...