California can’t cope with its budget deficit without federal help, Gavin Newsom says

California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he was confident Thursday that the state will work through a state budget deficit now estimated at $54.3 billion. But he said his optimistic outlook is conditioned on one thing: “More federal support.”

The governor said additional federal spending will be critical for California to pull its way out of the recession’s effect on the state’s spending plan.

“It is absolutely incumbent upon our federal partners to recognize, as many do ... the magnitude of this moment and how it’s directly related to COVID-19, not mismanagement,” Newsom said.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump tweeted that “well run States should not be bailing out poorly run States, using CoronaVirus as the excuse! The elimination of Sanctuary Cities, Payroll Taxes, and perhaps Capital Gains Taxes, must be put on the table. Also lawsuit indemnification & business deductions for restaurants...”

Newsom sought to make that case that California had managed its finances well until the coronavirus hit.

The governor pointed out that just 90 days ago, he was projecting a budget surplus of $6 billion.

Newsom said that 4.3 million people have filed for unemployment insurance since March 12, with almost $12 billion worth of unemployment checks sent since March 15.

“Because of this pandemic, because of what it has done, these revenue shortfalls are bigger even than the state of California,” he said. “We need the federal government to recognize this.”

Newsom said he is very grateful for the bipartisan support that California has already received, “but sadly, the enormity of this moment requires even more support.”

This story was originally published May 7, 2020 at 2:40 PM.