Reprint: CalMatters
cover photo: Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas speaks during a floor session at the state Capitol in Sacramento on Jan. 22, 2024. Photo by Fred Greaves for CalMatters
In summary
The Legislative Analyst’s Office projects the 2024-25 shortfall at $73 billion, putting more pressure on legislators and the governor to find savings.
The biggest challenge facing lawmakers and Gov. Gavin Newsom is the state budget deficit — and it just got bigger.
Today, the Legislative Analyst’s Office projected the shortfall as $15 billion higher, or $73 billion.
The analyst’s office had pegged the 2024-25 deficit at $58 billion in January, using Newsom’s revenue estimates when he presented his initial budget proposal.
On Friday, Newsom’s Department of Finance reported that preliminary General Fund cash receipts in January were $5 billion below (or nearly 20%) the governor’s budget forecast. Unless state tax revenues pick up significantly, the bigger number will make it more difficult to balance the state budget just through dipping into reserves and targeted spending cuts.
But exactly how the state can dig its way out — at least in the Assembly — remains to be seen. Speaker Robert Rivas told reporters today that the budget has been at the forefront of conversations among Assembly Democrats and that he is very concerned with the growing deficit.
He praised the governor’s commitment to preserving classroom funding, and said he didn’t see a way to avoid dipping into the state’s reserves, as the governor’s January budget plan proposed — though the speaker urged a prudent approach to using rainy day savings in case the budget picture worsens in future years.
“We are very concerned about short-term fixes for long-term problems,” said Rivas, who took over as speaker last summer, just days after the Legislature and Newsom reached a deal on the 2023-24 budget that covered a $30 billion deficit after two years of record surpluses.
“Clearly, we need to prioritize oversight and curb spending and our investments,” Rivas added.
In the coming weeks, Rivas’ plan calls for an oversight budget subcommittee he formed in December to review the state’s spending on housing, he said.
Get the facts before you vote in this year’s primary election.
But, as legislative leaders and the governor have noted, the budget deficit won’t be addressed just through oversight and cuts. It’ll also mean tougher paths for bills lawmakers introduce this year — including the return of the single-payer healthcare effort by Democratic Assemblymember Ash Kalra.
“It’s a good idea, but it’s a tough, tough sell, especially in the budget climate that we are experiencing now,” he said.
And while the governor has shot down any attempt to raise taxes or create new ones to increase state revenues, Rivas did not take a position.
“We look at all of the strategies when it comes to ensuring that we have a balanced budget — there are many of those tools that are available,” he said. “Which ones are appropriate, I’m not going to comment on that yet. That’s what we’re trying to figure out now.”
But Rivas may have to make some decisions soon: A spokesperson for Newsom’s Department of Finance issued a statement later today calling on the Legislature to take early action on $8 billion in savings to address the looming deficit. Newsom will propose an updated budget in May before negotiations with legislative leaders and a final spending blueprint in June.
Today’s updated deficit projection also prompted concern and criticism of Democrats from the Republican caucus. Sen. Roger Niello, vice-chairperson of the Senate budget committee, echoed the sentiment on oversight, in a statement; “It’s time for a course correction and a renewed commitment to responsible budgeting that puts the needs of our residents first.”
more on the state budget
https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/01/california-budget-lao-review-newsom/
https://calmatters.org/politics/2024/01/newsom-budget-california/
- To the Opinion Editor: Protecting the Franchise—Why State Intervention in Shasta County is EssentialPost Views: 15 The recent decision by California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber to challenge Shasta County’s “Measure B” is not merely a legal dispute over administrative procedure; it is a vital defense of the fundamental right to vote. In an era where extreme political factions increasingly use local
- ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME CASE NO. 25CV07740Post Views: 15 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME CASE NO. 25CV07740TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: Petitioner: David Robert Vega filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows: Present name: David Robert Vega Proposed name: David Robert Amato THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter appear
- NOTICE OF BULK SALE: ESCROW NO. 063-66503Post Views: 11 NOTICE OF BULK SALE(UCC SECS. 6101-6107)ESCROW NO. 063-66503 Notice is hereby given to the Creditors of Harpreet Kaur Brar DBA Layton’s Liquors, Sellers, whose business address is 39 S. Weed Blvd, Weed Ca 96094, County of Siskiyou, that a bulk sale is about to be made to WMK LLC, Buyer, whose business
- How a George Floyd-inspired California law accidentally weakened police accountabilityPost Views: 27 By Nigel Duara and Natasha Uzcátegui-Liggett, CalMatters This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. In 2020, with the death of George Floyd still dominating the national conversation over police accountability, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law taking away responsibility for investigating fatal police shootings from local authorities
- THE SIXTEEN: A Siskiyou County Man’s Revolutionary War BloodlinePost Views: 12 As America marks 250 years of independence, Paul Dean Davis traces sixteen direct ancestors who took up arms against the Crown — frontier fathers, sons, and cousins who built forts, buried their dead, and carried the new nation west. SISKIYOU COUNTY — Paul Dean (Damon) Davis doesn’t need a fireworks display to
