The special election on the state budget package is today and the experts tell us that about 75% of voters will have smething better to do than cast ballots. That's unfortunate because this election will say a lot about the direction that California takes over the next several years. Click here to read what The Fresno Bee editorial board has to say about the election.
There are five measures on the ballot that will impact the budget. The sixth proposition, 1F, would prevents legislators and other state elected officials from receiving pay raises if the state budget ends the fiscal year with a deficit. That's the only measure that the polls show passing.
The key measure is Proposition 1A. It would extend the taxes passed by the Legislature and would create a spending limit on state government.
Whoa! The Bee's comment is way off the mark... "Voters face a choice between beginning to address our common problems (by passing 1A, 1C, 1D and 1F) and simply throwing up their hands in anger and giving up on the idea of functioning government. We understand the voter anger among Californians, but that anger needs to be targeted where it will do the most good"...
Voting against the propositions is in no way throwing up our hands. Passing them is not the only way to "begin to address our common problems" in fact, passing them does just the opposite. Passing the propositions is a vote to continue the status quo. A vote NO says to stop playing games and make some cuts. The concept is simple, whey you don't have enough money to pay the bills you cut back. Even when the things you cut seem like they are essential. Very few things are essential. Food, water, air, shelter, mental health... that is all that is essential for special assistance and even that should be temporary for those physically and mentally capable. Don't make the voters the bad guys here. We are the camels and our backs are broken.
A vote NO says to stop playing games and make some cuts. The concept is simple, whey you don't have enough money to pay the bills you cut back. Even when the things you cut seem like they are essential.
Easy to say if your own livelihood or needed services aren't being cut. If you're losing your job, your healthcare and just had a new baby, it might be a different story. Or if you're a disabled shut-in dependent on the services you received from your home health-care worker. The cuts probably won't hurt me personally, but they will be devastating for some people. If we wanted to share the pain, we would vote for a tax increase. If we want others to have all the pain, we vote for cuts. The ballot measures are a compromise of both. Not perfect by far, but a step towards fiscal responsibility.
Mike
I would be surprised that when all the issues are retabled for reprioritizing in dimly lit rooms, your democrat controlled state assembly and senate are going to do all that is politically possible maintain the status quo. I would not be surprised if the Governor assists them.
Mike, I know what you are saying and you are right; however, I am right too. A few weeks ago Scott asked the blog to be specific about what should be cut. I took the challenge and found it much harder to decide than I ever expected because there are so many programs like the type you referred to and people who would be crushed by their removal. However, there were also programs for fertility treatments, adoption expenses, computers for minorities, educational expenses for doctor and lawyers, English as a second language, special classes taught in a foreign language, etc. These types of programs are great but not essential and they are still in the budget. These types of programs are the cuts that must be made; we can not afford them any longer. The middle class takes the weight of the burden and we have been shouldering the pain for a long time now. The problem is the middle class is failing. Once we go down, it all comes tumbling down. Our family is feeling the pinch, we've responded by stopping all non-essential spending and we even have a bet going as to how long we can go without air conditioning (which has turned out to be a fun, albeit uncomfortable, experiment). All I am asking is that my government do the same thing. If they do it now and quit stalling then we won't be so deep in the hole that programs like you refer to will be cut as well.