State leaders lobby Congress for federal funds

State leaders lobby Congress for federal funds:

"California's state leaders are in Washington today and Thursday for the first round of visits this year to press the federal government for billions of dollars to help the state's beleaguered budget."

In his budget proposal, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has assumed that the state will get $6.9 billion in federal aid for health care, incarcerating undocumented felons and special education, among other requests.
The governor has maintained the state is not getting its fair share of federal dollars and the four Republican and Democratic leaders of the Legislature are on the East Coast with him to press the argument. If that money does not materialize, Schwarzenegger has proposed the wholesale elimination of programs for the poor, sick and elderly.
So far, though, California's congressional representatives have been cool to the governor's demands, though they have pushed the Obama administration for more money for incarcerating undocumented felons. Schwarzenegger and lawmakers plan to meet with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, along with Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.


Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/19/BAQL1BKF9H.DTL#ixzz0d9oVCkJa