Assembly Democrats Put Up a Budget Worth Fighting For
Finally, there's a budget proposal worth fighting for, and it couldn't have come at a more critical time.
On Tuesday, Assembly Democrats, led by new Speaker of the Assembly John Pérez, proposed an innovative budget planthat closes the nearly $18 billion budget gap while focusing on jobs, as an alternative to Gov. Schwarzenegger's job killing, all-cuts budget.
This proposal takes the economic high road by saving hundreds of thousands of jobs for teachers, police, firefighters and other workers, and creating jobs in the private sector that will spur economic growth and new revenues for the state without raising taxes on working families.
Speaker Pérez:
California has to produce a budget that promotes job creation and makes economic sense. We shouldn't make budget decisions that cut jobs and short-change our overall recovery and long-term growth. The California Jobs Budget will protect and create 465,000 jobs in the private sector and local communities, while also protecting funding for schools, public safety, and a basic safety net.
The proposal would ease California through the worst budget deficit of a generation. It protects working families from devastating cuts in service like home care and child care, and saves jobs for teachers, police, firefighters and others who provide vital services at the state and local levels. It proposes only half of the Governor's fee increase for UC and CSU students, and rejects his proposed $4.3 billion cut in education.
This package would mitigate deep budget cuts by choosing working families over Big Oil and large multinational corporations. A new oil severance fee will help fund a private sector job creation program. And delaying unnecessary corporate tax breaks will save $2 billion that can be invested in job creation, child care, health care, and job services for the working poor.
The Speaker's office detailed the proposal in a release yesterday:
