Governor Gavin Newsom is wrong. His proposed budget is not “resilient;” it demonstrates an inability to learn the lessons from California’s volatile budget history.
The crippling deficit is merely one manifestation of the broader crisis. Newsom estimates a $37.9 billion deficit, about one-half of the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst Office’s (LAO) initial $68 billion calculation. In response, the Analyst says Newsom’s revenue estimate is “about $15 billion higher than ours . . . fall(ing) on the optimistic side of what we consider most plausible.”
Even if the governor’s estimate proves correct, California is once again facing a fiscal crisis that will likely last for several budget cycles. This prolonged fiscal crunch is not due to revenues simply returning to “normal.” It is a spending problem that requires fiscally sound solutions, not proposals that kick the can down the road in the hope that robust revenue growth will somehow return.
Nothing contained in this blog is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of the Pacific Research Institute or as an attempt to thwart or aid the passage of any legislation.
Gov. Newsom’s proposed budget fails the moment
Wayne Winegarden
Governor Gavin Newsom is wrong. His proposed budget is not “resilient;” it demonstrates an inability to learn the lessons from California’s volatile budget history.
The crippling deficit is merely one manifestation of the broader crisis. Newsom estimates a $37.9 billion deficit, about one-half of the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst Office’s (LAO) initial $68 billion calculation. In response, the Analyst says Newsom’s revenue estimate is “about $15 billion higher than ours . . . fall(ing) on the optimistic side of what we consider most plausible.”
Even if the governor’s estimate proves correct, California is once again facing a fiscal crisis that will likely last for several budget cycles. This prolonged fiscal crunch is not due to revenues simply returning to “normal.” It is a spending problem that requires fiscally sound solutions, not proposals that kick the can down the road in the hope that robust revenue growth will somehow return.
Click to read the full article in The Orange County Register.
Nothing contained in this blog is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of the Pacific Research Institute or as an attempt to thwart or aid the passage of any legislation.