Governor's constitutional amendment idea hit

Governor's constitutional amendment idea hit: 

"A proposal by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to require the state to spend more on higher education than on prisons 'is an unnecessary, ill-conceived measure that would do serious harm to the budget process,' says a new study by the state's independent legislative analyst."



The amendment to the state Constitution would prohibit spending more than 7 percent of the general fund on prisons beginning in 2014, while requiring at least 10 percent go to the University of California and the California State University.
Current spending has that in reverse. Nearly 10 percent, or about $8 billion, of the general fund goes to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
By contrast, nearly 6 percent, about $5 billion, goes to UC and CSU, according to the study released Tuesday.
Schwarzenegger denounced that trend earlier this month in his State of the State speech, to the applause of UC and CSU leadership.


Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/26/BASC1BNR8J.DTL#ixzz0dolSR0bq