State Assembly To Tackle Ongoing Budget Deficit

Sacramento, CA — At 3pm today the State Assembly will meet to debate and then vote on a package of solutions to address the current year budget shortfall, prevent a cash shortage next spring and hopefully significantly lower the projected ´09-´10 budget deficit of $28 billion.

The package will be a combination of $8.1 billion in cuts, $8.1 billion in new revenues and $800 million in other solutions.

From Assembly Democratic Speaker Karen Bass, “The cuts and revenue increases (taxes) we are going to vote on in session Tuesday are real, with no gimmicks or new borrowing and they are consistent with the recommendations of the non-partisan Legislative Analyst´s Office. This package contains difficult cuts and revenue increases that are tough for everyone to swallow, but they are what is needed to address our fiscal disaster responsibility and they should be supported by a strong majority in each caucus, Democratic and Republican. I´m confident Assembly Democrats will once agains step up to the plate and show real leadership by accepting cuts we don´t like as we already have. California needs our Republican colleagues to finally do the same regarding revenues. We are running out of time.”

Written by Bill Johnson