Judge: State can take local funds
K KAUFMANN • THE DESERT SUN • MAY 5, 2010
Coachella Valley Cities Will Have To Return $95 Million To Help Plug Budget Deficit
Cities across the Coachella Valley are reluctantly preparing to turn over more than $95 million in redevelopment funds to the state on Monday after a Sacramento court upheld the California Legislature's right to take the money.
Sacramento Superior Court Judge Lloyd G. Connelly's decision Tuesday cleared the way for the state to take $2.05 billion in redevelopment funds from California cities over the next two years to help plug an estimated $18.6billion budget deficit.
“I'm just angry about the whole thing. It is shameful,” said City Manager Rick Daniels of Desert Hot Springs. “The court legitimizes thievery because the state can't manage its finances. It steals and bullies money from local governments.”
The $3.4 million in redevelopment funds Desert Hot Springs will give to the state this year means vital capital improvement projects — such as libraries, parks and street lights — will be put on hold, Daniels said.
Cities with more financial padding, such as Palm Desert, are taking a bigger hit, but it could have less of an immediate impact.