Capitol Alert

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, in an interview with The Bee's Kevin Yamamura:

If the administration's point today in putting forward a $41 billion solution is to try to impress upon us the urgency of the situation, it's not necessary. We feel the urgency of the situation, and that's why Speaker Bass and I and our staffs have been working diligently throughout the holidays to try to meet the administration halfway or more on their economic stimulus proposals. The fundamental problem, of course, with what the administration laid out today is that they don't bring a single Republican vote to pass the revenue elements of their proposal.

Democratic Asssembly Speaker Karen Bass, in a prepared statement:

The governor's proposal released today has one positive message: he may finally be coming around and realizing he needs to approve the responsible package of budget solutions the legislature passed December 18.

That package includes $18 billion in real cuts and new revenues to head off the cash crisis and take a big swipe at the deficit. It includes $3 billion in new funds for transportation projects and $3 billion in expedited projects voters have already approved. That means we'd be creating 367,000 new jobs at a time California needs all the new jobs we can get.

So far, legislative leaders have compromised, but the governor has been holding up these budget solutions and these new jobs. We've compromised by easing environmental restrictions for transportation projects. We've compromised by expanding public private partnerships. We've compromised by putting half a billion dollars in state employee compensation on the table.

The governor's latest proposal assumes the cuts and revenues from the legislative budget solution package. That's progress. So let's get agreement on that package, keep California from going over the financial cliff, and then tackle the next round of hard challenges to find solutions to the rest of the deficit.

There are significant questions about what revenue the lottery can really bring in...there are concerns about whether California can manage the additional borrowing the governor is proposing ... and there are problems with cuts that seriously harm the students in our schools.

All those issues can be addressed as we move through the rest of the budget process. Right now the most important step is for the governor to recognize that all his demands aren't nearly important as the jobs we want created.

I appreciate the governor acknowledging today the necessity of the cuts and revenues the legislature approved and I hope the governor's first act of the new year will be to sign the responsible package we are putting before him.

Republican Assembly leader Mike Villines, in a prepared statement:

Republicans believe the Governor took important steps to address California's growing budget crisis by including budget reform and proposals to streamline government in his latest budget plan. We also join with him in making economic incentives and job creation a top budget priority.

We are also pleased to see the Governor has adopted the Republican's proposal to let voters choose to redirect billions in existing tax dollars to protect the priorities of working families in these tough budget times. However, Republicans cannot support the Governor's proposal to impose $14 billion in higher taxes on Californians. We believe this will devastate an economy already in turmoil and will hurt people who are struggling to make ends meet. Before we should even consider raising taxes on people, we need to take action to reduce government overspending starting with the elimination of all automatic increases, and enact an economic recovery plan to grow our economy and create jobs.

We cannot wait until the summer to enact responsible budget solutions for California. When the Legislature comes on Monday, we should vote immediately to pass the over $6 billion in common solutions that were in the special session budget plans put forth by Democrats, Republicans and the Governor. Taking urgent action to pass these reductions can get us through our immediate cash flow crisis. If we also take action now to get Californians back to work and to help stimulate our economy, we will be in a better position to address our state's budget problem for next year and the years ahead.

Senate Republican leader Dave Cogdill, in a prepared statement:

I applaud the Governor for including elements of the Republican budget plan into the proposal released today. During these tough economic times, it makes sense to go back to the voters and ask them to redirect money for their intended purposes, such as children's health and mental health programs, instead of sitting idly in the bank.

While Republicans have serious concerns about raising taxes during a recession, we appreciate that the Governor's proposal includes difficult, but necessary reductions to bring state spending closer in line with revenues.

Instead of simply asking taxpayers to send more of their hard-earned money to Sacramento we should focus on economic stimulus. Growing and protecting jobs in California has a direct relationship to a robust state treasury. Stimulating our economy should be the Legislature's top priority and it is unfortunate that the majority party has blocked these common-sense reforms to get more Californians back to work.

In addition, we need to ensure the state never again faces a deficit of this size by enacting long term structural reforms such as a spending cap and rainy day fund.

Republicans continue to stand ready to be a part of a responsible budget solution. The Governor's early release of his budget underscores the magnitude of the state's budget problems and the need for urgent action in addressing this crisis.