My Fellow Californians: Things Could Get Real Ugly From Here.............

My fellow Californians, you may or may not have read about the latest state budget proposal from the "Governator", but I can assure you that you will likely feel the effects of his financial proposals in the months and years to come.

Regardless of how the inevitable budget battle plays out, things are likely to get real ugly here in the Golden State over the next few years.

Click here for a quick overview of the major proposals in the "Governator's" 2010-2011 California State Budget.

Now, I will be the first to agree that government spending on any level in this country is to some degree wasteful and inefficient. Moreover, our country needs to look critically at how we spend taxpayer dollars at both the federal and state levels because we simply cannot continue on the path that we are on with deficits at all levels of government.

However, unless we believe that all government spending on programs to provide a financial safety net for deserving citizens is wasteful, then cuts in many of these programs will be catastrophic for many of these  recipients directly and harmful in some way to all of us indirectly.

Here are some potential social impacts related to the proposed cuts:

- Cut the CalWorks program, the state's primary welfare-to-work program. So, do we expect that these recipients will just quietly go away or find some other financial support vehicle, given the current state of the economy? I wouldn't bet on it.

- Cut the prison budget by shifting nonviolent prisoners to county jails. I hope they choose the right prisoners to shift to these less secure facilities. I guess it must be better to have overcrowded county jails rather than overcrowded prisons.

- Raising more revenue by catching more speeders and red light violators. I don't know about you, but I started noticing a more visible presence by CHP about six months ago. Now, I understand why. The state has decided that it will help close its revenue gap by pulling over more drivers for speeding and whatever else they can make stick. Cities are getting in on the act as well by being more aggressive with parking fines.

- Reducing the juvenile prison population and closing the facilities that house them. With serious juvenile crime on the rise coupled with above-average unemployment amongst juveniles, I suspect we will be needing more juvenile prison facilities, not less.

Lastly, the "Governator's" budget is built on a very questionable premise that the federal government is going to give California some $6.9 billion that the "Governator" says the state is "owed". If this money doesn't materialize, the budget cuts will get more draconian.


See what others have to say about the state of California's finances and its proposed budget for 2010-2011:

"Invitation to Disaster"
"California: Is Default Inevitable?"
"California Budget To Raise Millions From Red Light Cameras"
"What Happens When California Defaults?"

Stay tuned........................