Tim Cavanaugh Talks California Budget Blues on L.A. Fox News: 10 PM Pacific Time

If you live in Los Angeles, catch Reason.com managing editor Tim Cavanaugh on local Fox news tonight at 10 PM and 11 PM. 

Topic: Gov. Jerry Brown released his 2012-2013 budget proposal [pdf] late this afternoon. 

With cuts to welfare and Medi-Cal, a reasonably ambitious pension reform scheme, suspiciously optimistic revenue projections, calls for higher taxes, a $9.3 billion deficit (which longtime Golden State watchers will recognize as an improvement over past years), and a threatened $4.8 billion cut to schools and community colleges, it's a real 167-page saga.

How much of it is for real? How much is poison-pill posturing to push through tax hikes? Does the pension reform have a prayer? Who will be the first to call this collection of fatty blobs (including $23 million million for additional staff and administrative costs for the High-Speed Rail Authority) an "austerity budget" filled with "devastating cuts"? 

All this and more, explained in plain English (you can work blue after 9 o'clock, right?). 

Where: KTTV Fox, Channel 11. 

When: Starting at 10 PM. 

Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

10PM Pacific Time? That's like a thousand o'clock regular time. And you should be able to work blue whenever discussing Cali finances.

[Sevo]

Posted this earlier in the cat-fight thread between Dunphy and others; better re-posted here:
Gov Moonbeam offers cuts in general welfare, medical welfare and (some) ed, since there's no way to balance the CA budget and there's no way he's going to anger his union constituency:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/......DTL&tsp=1
Yep, that's our Jerry!

[insensitive monster]

Yawn, much ado about nothing. Wake me when the first bond default happens.

[yogi]

Someone has to buy the bonds first. Caveat emptor.

[yogi]

I do contract work for the City of LA and the State of CA and have talked to the of some employees I've gotten friendly with about how the heck the City or State in going fund their pensions. They seem to know that CA will have to sell-off assets to meet its contract obligations - the Port of LA, airports, coastal reserves - that sort of stuff. Politically, CA might go as far right of center as is now from left of center in a couple of decades.

[insensitive monster]

I'm guessing the politicos would rather have the 2012 prophecy come true than move an inch to the right.

[yogi]

The CA politcos are owned by the public sector unions. The existing union members want their pensions payed no matter what has to be done.

[insensitive monster]

Pants Fan, you watching that Sweden Russia game? 0-0 going to OT.

[A Serious Man]

I eagerly look forward to see how the California Democratic party will blame our state's impending financial destruction on Republicans.

[Jeffersonian]

Both of 'em.

[Sevo]

A Serious Man|1.5.12 @ 10:26PM|#
"I eagerly look forward to see how the California Democratic party will blame our state's impending financial destruction on Republicans."

Jerry's given it a test-run already:
""The stark truth is that without new tax revenues, we will have no other choice but to make deeper and more damaging cuts to schools, universities, public safety and our courts," Brown wrote in an "open letter to the people of California"[...]and his inability to persuade Republicans to put a tax measure on the ballot earlier this year."

See, both of those Repubs won't agree to raising taxes! It's *their* fault, dammit!
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/.....1M8M8O.DTL

[A Serious Man]

Other than property taxes, which is the third rail in this state that no one touches, where else could they possibly find a meaningful stream of tax revenue?

I did see on the news the other day some asshat Democrat demanding that Kim Kardashian agree to endorse his plan to make millionaires pay more in taxes. The news broke this down to mean that under the plan she would pay a whopping $600,000 more in taxes, just enough to ensure that a state employee can put his kids through college and afford a second summer home after he retires at 55.

[Sevo]

"The news broke this down to mean that under the plan she would pay a whopping $600,000 more in taxes, just enough to ensure that a state employee can put his kids through college and afford a second summer home after he retires at 55."

That'll be in the copy under the fold. The headline will be "Tax the Rich!" And Moonbeam will champion it!

[Mr. FIFY]

Shit, the summer home alone would eat up six-hundred large...

[Binky]

a threatened $4.8 billion cut to schools and community colleges

"It's for the children!"

[Binky]

a threatened $4.8 billion cut to schools and community colleges

"It's for the children!"

[Binky]

"And the squirrels!"

[DEM]

Hijackers behaving like hijackers. "Send us all your money or the kids get it." Sadly many people fall for it every time.

[Sevo]

OT:
Careful what you wish for. Looks like whale-hugger gets busted for hugging whales:
"Marine biologist charged with feeding whales"
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/......DTL&tsp=1

[db]

When they get busted for "receiving" whales that's when the headlines get really hot.

[tigerlily]

I don't believe for a second the budget deficit is only $9.4B. California's books have been cooked to a crisp year after year for more than a decade now.

[Jeffersonian]

It's like Greece without decent baklava.

[A Serious Man]

The best Korean BBQ though.

[Sevo]

"I don't believe for a second the budget deficit is only $9.4B. California's books have been cooked to a crisp year after year for more than a decade now."

The bond buyers are hoping (like Greece) to grab the last round of profit before the bonds tank.

[Sevo]

Oh, and I'm not that brave.

[yogi]

I don't know my around the bond market, so I can't this up, but I am interested in knowing just what percentage of the bonds for the bullet train, stem cell research grants, and school refurbishment have really been purchased by investors with the cash money that's needed to keep the projects going.

[Mr. FIFY]

"Projects"? Isn't that racist?

[Old Mexican]

[...]suspiciously optimistic revenue projections[...]

Haven't all been optimistic? Otherwise no township, state or country would be in debt.

[johnl]

Is this the KTLA that's Cox SD channel 14?

[Mr. FIFY]

Why do liberals always only mention "cops, firefighters, and education" as what will be cut?

Oh, wait...

[PS]

Exactly, you forgot about parks!

[Paul]

It's amazing that an elected representative of the people would propose destroying so much of the social fabric of his state. Taking a hatchet to our schools, those without health care and the now half of the population in or on the cusp of poverty while refusing to ever touch a single dime of anything all those the millionaire and billionaire thieves out there are shuffling through loopholes and sending overseas first?

It's appalling to see in the 21st Century.

[PS]

I agree, let's first stop sending billionaires overseas.

[np]

he hasn't been able to take a hatchet to anything (that would result in a significant enough reduction to make a difference) since everyone is defensive of their turf and that's the problem. For example at the beginning of last year:
http://articles.latimes.com/20.....n-20110127
Nine big-city mayors, meeting with the governor, criticize the budget proposal. Brown says the $1.7 billion in redevelopment funds would be better used to help schools and local services.

In fact, he could not successfully force moving funds out of the redevelopment budget to pay for other services due to Prop 22 I believe. So he resorted to other measures in the mean time, proposed tax increases, closing state parks, etc.

But finally at the end of the year, the state Supreme Court allowed closure of the redevelopment agencies themselves (ha!) And what's the infatuation with high speed rail?

There aren't any more "loopholes" to close down. Any more taxation is going to send people out of state even further. Remember the Amazon debacle? And please don't tell me you're one of those who want Prop 13 repealed. In fact ideally, CA politicians should be able to make do on property taxes alone with the allowed 2% increase each year, or at most with minimal state tax.

The irony is that if CA politics were as frugal as Brown himself, we wouldn't be in this mess!

[np]

Fuck, I think about the rise of the Indian casinos and the tax revenue from that. Where did it all go? How come despite additional income, CA finances have gotten worse?

[Homad Raseem]

OK wow thats exactly what I am talkin about dude. Good stuff.

http://www.Privacy-Pros.tk

[Canman]

"(including $23 million million for additional staff and administrative costs for the High-Speed Rail Authority)"

$23 million million is $23 trillion. Could this be a high-speed rail estimate that actually sounds high?