Legislature, Governor Must Do Better To Get Deficit Under Control

Facing a $14.5 billion and rising budget deficit, Governor Schwarzenegger last month declared a fiscal emergency in California, calling the Legislature into a special session to consider responsible steps to get the deficit under control. Under the Governor’s emergency order, the Legislature has just 45 days, until February 24, to take action on a plan to find budget savings in this year’s state budget.

With the February 5th election behind us, lawmakers and the Governor must refocus and get serious about reducing wasteful spending and rejecting new programs we cannot afford. We must get our budget priorities straight, and not shy away from making the tough but necessary decisions required to get California back on track.

That’s why I was disappointed to see the Governor’s January budget proposal rely upon budget tricks and unrealistic proposals in laying out the state’s spending priorities for next year. One of the reasons our state has such severe financial problems today is because lawmakers have used gimmicks for years so they could ignore our growing deficit and keep overspending as if there were no problem.

As highlighted previously in these columns, on paper the Governor’s January budget looks like it makes 10 percent across-the-board cuts, but after accounting for gimmicks it only makes a 2.3 percent cut. While there is some merit to not picking winners and losers, using sleight-of-hand to make a 2.3 percent cut seem like 10 percent is neither helpful nor responsible.

It is also very troubling to see the Governor’s January budget include a number of phony budget proposals targeting vital programs relied upon by many Californians, sparking public outrage across the state.

One proposal would close 48 state parks across California, despite the fact that this would only save 3 percent of the Department of Parks and Recreation’s budget. Another would trigger the early release of more than 22,000 inmates from our prisons. Some dangerous inmates – including gang criminals, weapons traffickers and stalkers – could be set free to save just 3.3 percent in next year’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation budget.

Do we really need to close state parks or let dangerous criminals go free to achieve such modest budget savings? I’m sure that if we work together, we can find better, more responsible ways to find significant budget savings in every department without threatening public safety.

Our budget challenges are already being used as an excuse to propose higher taxes such as: repealing the state home mortgage interest deduction, a fee for firefighting within your home owners insurance, higher vehicle license fees and internet sales tax fees to name just a few. My Assembly Republican colleagues and I will stand firm in rejecting any attempt to punish you and your family with higher taxes to pay for the mistakes of Sacramento politicians.

The clock is ticking. Lawmakers have until February 23 to answer the Governor’s call to action and adopt necessary budget savings that will make a difference in addressing our massive budget deficit. Now is not the time for political games or unrealistic solutions that won’t address the problem. The people of California deserve better from their representatives during these difficult fiscal times for our state. I am hopeful that we can meet the deadline and get the job done so we can build a stronger California.

Assemblyman Huff is Chairman of the Assembly Republican Caucus. He represents portions of Orange, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties.