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Late word this evening that will get everyone's attention: Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has informed legislative leaders that if three of the six budget-related ballot measures fail next Tuesday, the state faces a $21.3 billion deficit between now and next July. In a letter to the four legislators this afternoon, Schwarzenegger actually offered two new assessments from his budget team of what lies in store for California: a $15.4 billion shortfall if Propositions 1C, 1D, and 1E pass, and the aforementioned $21.3 billion if they fail. This comes after Schwarzenegger told reporters in Culver City today that he intends to release...

This just in from friends on the scene... California Republican Party (CRP) opposes Prop 1A-1F Mike Villines & Tom Campbell had spoken in favor of 1A and Steve Poizner against.

NO on Prop 1-A: THE "RAINY DAY" BUDGET STABILIZATION FUNDThis "budget deal" is a bailout for big spenders who will extract another $16 billion dollars in taxes and continue to increase state spending. It is not a "rainy day" fund at all. The California Legislature, that has over taxed and spent, will just have another slush fund to use at their will. It does nothing to restrain bloated deficits nor restrain tax and spend legislators. NO on Proposition 1-B: EDUCATION FUNDING. PAYMENT PLANMandates more deficit spending for an education system; that needs massive reform, not another $9.3 billion dollars in...

The state's largest teachers union, which has been one of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's most visible foes over the years, is the largest single financial backer of the Republican governor's budget-reform package on the May 19 special election ballot. Newly released campaign finance reports for the election show that backers of the six budget-related measures are raking in far more cash than the opposition, and the gap is widening. "We've got a lot of work ahead to educate voters about the importance of six complicated ballot measures, but we're confident we'll have the resources to do that job," said Julie Soderlund,...

Five state ballot measures aimed at solving California's budget crisis are falling short of the support needed to pass in the May special election, a sign that voters may force lawmakers into another fierce clash over tax hikes and spending cuts, according to a poll released Wednesday. The state's dismal economy has already partly unraveled the budget deal that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Legislature reached last month, with a drop in tax collections leaving a new $8-billion shortfall. Rejection of the ballot measures would widen the gap to nearly $14 billion. The least popular measure, Proposition 1C, is also...

The old admonition, "When something seems too good to be true, it probably is," virtually screams from accounts of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposal to "privatize" the California Lottery. Actually, to give credit where it's due, it's a Goldman Sachs/Lehman Brothers proposal; the governor is the pitch-man. The details are subject to negotiation, but the deal works something like this: The state turns over the California Lottery and monopoly control over lottery gambling in California to a private consortium (led by Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers, could it be?) for the next 40 years. In exchange, the consortium pays the state...

In the movies, the hero often signs off on a major agreement by slashing his hand or thumb and sharing blood with his new partner. In politics, it's a lot less messy, since the partners just share money. Over the weekend, the California Teachers Association agreed to back all six of the budget measures on the May 19 special election ballot. It's a move that likely drew a deep sigh of relief from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, ... The deal was sealed Monday when the CTA gave $47,500 to Budget Reform Now, the Schwarzenegger-backed group leading the campaign effort. On that...

Welcome to the live thread for the California Primary Election. Polls are open until 8pm tonight. If you are a registered voter, it is your duty to vote and defend your rights and civil liberties, protect your pocketbook, and vote the bums out where applicable. Feel free to discuss issues key to your local area that others may be interested in. Post your polling place experiences if you like. And post numbers as they come in later tonight.

Proposition 1C is being billed to California voters as the affordable housing bond. But the reality is that it has very little to do with housing – and even less with affordability. (snip) There is no way to determine exactly how much of the bond money will eventually go toward actually building housing. But the most generous reading suggests that it will be no more than $550 million – or less than a fifth of the measure's $2.8 billion principal. Of the remainder, about $1 billion would go toward such welfare items as: homeless shelters; youth housing; down-payment assistance for...

There are very few absolutes in politics, but let's be clear about this November's election - a vote for any of the proposed bonds, Propositions 1B - 1E and Prop 84, is a vote for the same type of fiscal recklessness that led to the recall of Governor Gray Davis in 2003. Think about it. Since 2003, tax revenues have exploded in California - up $20 billion annually. The Governor's Workers' Compensation reforms are an underappreciated reason for this increase and the economic activity associated with this increase. Unfortunately, the Legislature, Democrats and some Republicans, and the Governor, have spent...

Tom McClintock visited our editorial board and delivered a devastating analysis of the infrastructure bonds that changed my vote on 1B. (I was already opposed to 1C and 1D.) He noted that historically bonds were used to pay for major projects that last for at least a generation, under the theory that if it takes 30 years to pay off, the people here in 30 years should still be benefiting from it. He said that argument was crucial to rationalizing passing bonds, since, with interest costs, they end up costing $2 for every $1 spent. But McClintock said the highway-transit...

We will devote quite a bit of space in the FlashReport in the coming weeks to articulating why the five "big bonds" measures on the November ballot -- Propositions 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E and 84 -- should all be rejected by California voters. You've heard me make the case over and over if you are a regular reader, but if you are new to this site, I can sum up the main over-arching reasons to reject all of this borrowing in just a few paragraphs: For decades, the liberals who control the state legislature, along with a string of Governors...

CBS) SHERMAN OAKS Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger urged Tuesday voters to support a $37.3 billion plan on the November ballot to improve California's roads, schools and levees. The governor appeared at the Sherman Oaks Galleria to build support for Propositions 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, and 1E, which together represent a multibillion-dollar plan to overhaul the state's infrastructure. "California has always been an economic, environmental and technological leader, and this November we have the historic opportunity to make sure we continue this trend by building the roads, schools, levees and housing of the future," Schwarzenegger said. Proposition 1A would protect Proposition 42...

Housing is too expensive in California, and there is a shortage of supply. Government is the cause of both problems. Proposition 1C would do nothing to remedy the obstacles to home construction that have caused the supply of houses to lag behind demand. In the few places where new homes are allowed, state and local governments have placed tens of thousands of dollars in taxes, fees and environmental and other mandates on each new house. These costs are always passed along to home buyers. Proposition 1C is a $2.85 billion general obligation bond with the goal of financing low-income housing...

Trailing badly in July, a $2.8 billion housing bond slated for the November ballot has significantly improved its standing in the latest Field Poll -- proving the adage in the survey business that it's all in how you ask the question. The three other infrastructure bond measures are all leading in the survey released Thursday, but their support barely tops the 50 percent margin. With 40 days until the Nov. 7 election, poll Director Mark DiCamillo said the survey suggests potentially razor-thin outcomes for the infrastructure measures that generated bipartisan euphoria in the spring when the Democratic Legislature and Republican...

Californians' wariness of new debt is just one problem facing backers SACRAMENTO – After years of criticism about failing to invest in infrastructure, lawmakers now face questions about whether they are trying to do too much. The Legislature and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger placed a record $37.3 billion package of public-works bonds on the Nov. 7 ballot for roads, schools, housing and flood control. BIG BONDS The governor and legislative leaders have placed a record bond package on the Nov. 7 ballot: Proposition 1B – $19.9 billion for transportation Proposition 1C – $2.85 billion for housing Proposition 1D – $10.4 billion...

Environmental groups, lured by the prospect of more than $4 billion for public-transit projects, are backing away from opposing the massive transportation bond on the November ballot. The environmentalists also are daunted by the nearly $7 million in campaign funds amassed by the bond's supporters. Over the weekend, the 75-delegate board of the Sierra Club of California decided against opposing the $19.95 billion bond package, which includes the money for public transit and $14 billion for road construction, plus other projects. Bill Allayaud, the group's legislative director, said Northern California members pushed to fight the bond, while many Southern California...

A move by Democrats to allocate about $1 billion from two voter initiatives on the November ballot has upset Republicans, who say it reneges on the deal that led to a massive infrastructure package going before voters this fall. An Assembly committee on Wednesday is scheduled to consider legislation by Sen. Wesley Chesbro, D-Arcata, that would specify funding for parks if the bond measures are approved by voters. Republicans had rejected spending on parks this spring during negotiations over a public works package that asks voters to approve money for transportation, levee repair, schools and affordable housing. That package, worth...

General Election - November 7, 2006 Prop. 1A Transportation Funding Protection: YES! For years, the Legislature has raided our highway taxes for general fund spending. Though it’s more window dressing than relief, this measure makes it marginally harder to do so. Prop. 1B Transportation Bond: NO! Although some of this money is for long overdue road construction, most goes for equipment, maintenance and social programs that will be obsolete decades before our children have finished paying off the debt. Californians pay the third highest tax per gallon of gasoline in the country – and yet we rank 43rd in per...

To hear Governor Schwarzenegger tell it, he didn't need any convincing by Democrats to support a separate bond measure for more affordable housing. And he wishes the infrastructure package was much, much bigger. In one of the unreported tidbits from the Wednesday north state press bus interview, Schwarzenegger was asked why he didn't mention the $2.85 billion housing bond at his town hall event that morning in Redding. He blamed it on a simple oversight, not having his notes in front of him. But he didn't stop there. "To be honest with you," he said, "I don't even know why...