RivCo Leaders Respond to Governor's Proposed $122.6 Billion Budget

By PAUL J. YOUNG, City News Service:

RIVERSIDE, CA- Riverside County lawmakers Thursday offered a tepid response to the $122.6 billion budget blueprint released by Gov. Jerry Brown, lauding his desire to restrain spending but questioning some of his other goals.

“I am pleased the governor continues to demonstrate moderate fiscal restraint in his 2016-17 spending plan,” said Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez, R-Lake Elsinore, who serves as vice chair of the Assembly Budget Committee. “However, I remain concerned with the direction of some of his proposed spending priorities.

“Continued economic growth and new jobs for middle and low-income Californians depend on good roads, improved water infrastructure designed to handle future droughts, well-funded classrooms built to meet the needs of today’s workforce and paying off unemployment insurance debt that is crippling employers.

“As we progress through this budget process, I will continue to advocate for responsible budgeting that reflects the core interests of California’s working class families.”

Brown’s 265-page plan touted the “elimination” of the $26.6 billion on- budget deficit that he inherited in 2010, as well as the fact that “education funding is at its highest level ever,” and that nearly $400 million would be available to “low-wage working families” in the form of earned income tax credits. But the governor cautioned the Legislature against big spending proposals.

“It would be shortsighted in the extreme to now embark upon a host of new spending only to see massive cuts when the next recession hits,” he said, pointing out that another recession probably is “not far off.”

Brown called for boosting the state’s rainy day fund by $2 billion for contingencies and allocating $740 million for Medi-Cal.

He wants K-12 spending at $10,591 per student -- a nearly 50 percent increase over funding levels of five years ago. The governor is also advocating a cap on state tuition for University of California and Cal State campuses, holding fees at 2011 levels.

“I am pleased to see the plan includes a proposal to hold tuition and fees at current levels,” said Assemblyman Jose Medina, D-Riverside. “More needs to be done, however, in order to ensure high-quality education and increased access at our public colleges and universities. The January budget is merely the initial framework. I look forward to working with the governor and my colleagues to continue to prioritize higher education.”

Sen. Richard Roth, D-Riverside, praised the “critical investments” planned for educational services but stressed the need for Brown to lead the way in making “smart investments that will create jobs and improve the quality of life for all Californians.”

Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia, D-Coachella, generally was supportive of the governor’s plans -- particularly a proposed $80 million investment for restoration of the dying Salton Sea -- but he hoped for a detailed review of policies and programs to “assess how they contribute to reducing the state’s current economic disparities.”

The governor will press for an $807 million commitment to make improvements to levees, parks, prisons and other state facilities. He also submitted a $36 billion infrastructure improvement plan to fix California’s highways and roads -- ranked near the bottom nationally -- over the next decade.

“It appears that the governor has proposed a budget that reflects the tenuous nature of our economy (and) has sent a signal to entrenched Sacramento special interests that there is not a blank check for government expansion,” said Sen. Jeff Stone, R-Palm Desert. “I look forward to adopting a final spending plan that reigns in spending, protects public safety, helps pay for needed infrastructure improvements ... and avoids any attempt to raise taxes.”

Stone’s Republican colleague, budget hawk Sen. John Moorlach of Costa Mesa, said he was most concerned by what was missing in the governor’s to-do list, including rectifying the state’s ballooning unfunded pension obligations, which are carried off-budget and total an estimated $181.5 billion.

Moorlach, a certified public accountant, also worried about the lingering $8 billion that California owes the federal government for unemployment insurance debt incurred during the Great Recession and the high gasoline taxes that Californians pay -- without commensurate investment in transportation infrastructure.

The cumulative pump tax is 56 cents per gallon, according to the California Energy Commission. State oil producers and transporters are also saddled with cap-and-trade obligations, requiring them to purchase “allowances” to do business under California’s strict environmental regulatory apparatus. How much of those expenses are passed on to consumers is a matter of dispute.

Brown said he will endeavor to expand that cap-and-trade program in the next fiscal year.

(Image via Shutterstock)