Gov. Jerry Brown today advanced a budget proposal that apparently is balanced for fiscal year 2014-15, which begins on July 1. It would spend a record $106.8 billion on the general fund, which is up a hefty 23 percent from the $86.8 billion of his first budget three years ago, for fiscal 2011-12.
The new budget includes a $1.6 billion “rainy day fund,” or 1.5 percent of the total.
The budget addresses what the governor has called the “Wall of Debt” run up by the state, currently totaling $24.9 billion. The major items are:
* $6.1 billion in deferred payments to schools, which will be eliminated;
* $3.9 billion for the Economic Recovery Bonds voters approved in 2004, at the insistence of Gov. Arnold Schwarenegger, which will be eliminated;
* $3.9 billion in loans from special funds, which will be reduced by $1 billion, to $2.9 billion;
* $5.4 billion in unpaid costs to local governments and schools for state mandates, which will remain the same;
* $2.4 billion for the under-funding of Proposition 98 for schools, which will be reduced by $600 million, to $1.8 billion.
Spending increase
In a question-and-answer session with reporters, CalWatchdog.com asked about the $20 billion increase in spending over three years.
The governor replied that most of the new spending is going to pay down the Wall of Debt. “When you pay off that debt, you improve the debt, you don’t make it worse,” he said.
