Assemblymember Laird Releases Assembly Budget Subcommittee 07-08 Report

State Legislature Exerts Oversight to Ensure UC & CSU Mitigation of Growth Impacts

SACRAMENTO – Assembly Budget Committee Chair John Laird (D-Santa Cruz) today released the 2007-2008 Assembly Budget Subcommittee Report.  

To view the complete report, click here.  The Joint Budget Conference Committee, chaired by Mr. Laird, is tentatively scheduled to begin Friday, June 1 at 3:00pm in room 4203 in the State Capitol.  In addition to Mr. Laird, Conference Committee members include: Assemblymembers Niello (R-Fair Oaks) and Leno (D-San Francisco), and Senators Ducheny (D-San Diego), Hollingsworth (R-Murrieta) and Machado (D-Linden). 

ASSEMBLY BUDGET SUBCOMMITTE REPORT SUMMARY:

On May 23, 2007, the Assembly Budget Subcommittees completed their recommendations for crafting the Assembly's version of budget for 2007-08.  In total, the Assembly's version of the budget contains $105.0 billion in available General Fund resources, $104.4 billion in General Fund expenditures, and a total available reserve of $1.4 billion. 

The Assembly version is similar to the Governor's May Revision proposal in that they both have almost identical actual reserves and neither have a lot of new programs.  However, there is one key fundamental difference: the Governor chooses to add $595 million to the $2.5 billion debt payment to Wall Street, while the Assembly maintains aid to underprivileged children, grants for SSI/SSP recipients, and support for critical academic preparation programs.

Some key elements of the Assembly's version of the budget are as follows:

General Fund Reserve Equal to the Governor's May Revision Reserve. Provides total available reserve of $1,363 million, just $3 million short of the Governor's May Revision reserve, once adjusted to reflect the concern that the Governor's $832 million Home-to-School proposal is likely unachievable.  

Tough Solutions.  Includes difficult budget solutions, including cutting the CalWORKS COLA and taking nearly $500 million in benefit from public transit to the General Fund. 

Economic Recover Bonds Repayments.  Includes $2.5 billion in repayments of the Economic Recovery Bonds.  This includes $1 billion that the Governor could decide to forgo prior to June 1 of this year to assist the General Fund reserve. 

Williamson Act.  Rejects the Governor's proposal to eliminate the Williamson Act Subvention for local governments. 

CalWORKS for Children. Rejects the Governor's most draconian cuts to CalWORKS, including $324 million in cuts that may have taken aid away from as many as 190,000 of California's neediest children. 

SSI/SSP COLA.  Rejects the Governor's proposal to cut the January, 2008 COLA for SSI/SSP.

Clean Air and Protecting the Environment.  Begins implementation of AB 32 and provides significant funding for clean air and environmental protection efforts with critical bond appropriations.

K-12 Education.  Provides full funding of Growth and COLA for education, and provides $79 million to pay off education mandate debts. 

Access to Higher Education.  Rejects Governor's proposed cut of $29 million for Academic Preparation programs for the UC and CSU.

Public Transportation.  Rejects the Governor's proposal to cut public transit by $832 million to fund Home-to-School transportation out of the Public Transportation Account, and restores full funding for local transit operations and STIP transit capital projects.

Proposition 42.  Provides full funding for Proposition 42, including $83 million in repayments, and adds PTA spillover to Proposition 42 and adjusts allocations beginning in 2008-09, resulting in an increase of hundreds of millions of dollars for the STIP, local streets and roads, and the PTA.

In summary, the Assembly's version of the budget provides a reasonable $1.4 billion reserve, maintains funding for critical programs, makes difficult cuts, and repays various General Fund debts.