THE TGIF SPECIAL BY….
Call it a “backlash” “revolt” “tea party” or whatever. The message was clear. Californians have had enough! Our lawmakers have spent this state to the edge of bankruptcy, and the tax increases recently enacted (and will remain in effect for the next two years) is all they’ll get. There’ll be no more! That’s the message from taxpayers to the legislature in the wake of the special election.
Now, our lawmakers are picking themselves up, dusting themselves off, putting bandages on their bruises and pretending to try to find a way to fix the budget. It’ll be interesting to see when they’ll finally get serious about it. According to Sacramento Bee columnist Dan Walters, “Democrats may be willing to slash cherished health, welfare and education spending, as well as law enforcement, prisons and firefighting, to drive home the impacts of California’s income-outgo imbalance.”
That is NOT getting serious about it. That’s merely punishing the voters. You’ll know if they’re serious if they follow the substantial recommendations of the California Performance Review Panel which (in 2004) laid out the plan to save thirty two BILLION dollars over five years by eliminating duplicative bureaucracies, improving internal systems, stamping out fraud and requiring performance-based budgeting.
According to that report, instead of one agency handling taxes like in other states, California has FOUR TAX AGENCIES that are duplicative, inefficient, confusing to taxpayers, competitive with each other and LOSING MONEY.
Much of the state’s waste comes from Health and Human Services which amounts to one-third of the state budget. Fraud is rampant in Food Stamps, Medi-Cal and CalWorks programs. The Performance Review Board noted “The legislative Analyst’s Office has put the estimated loss due to fraud in the Medi-Cal program at $1.8 billion annually. Some estimates go as high as $3 billion.
Subsidizing illegal immigration and non-English languages costs California more than $10 billion a year. The drain of taxpayer funds is felt in the public schools, the state’s welfare system, the unemployment insurance fund, jails and prisons, and much more under Health and Human Services.
The average cost per inmate in California is about $49,000….twice the cost to run prisons in other states. Then, there are the high salaries for state boards and commissions which only meet once or twice a month….and only serve as parking places for termed-out lawmakers…and I could go on and on.
Suffice it to say….there are valid cuts that can AND SHOULD be made if Lawmakers are serious…and they can do it without cutting public safety (police and fire), the elderly and disabled. So far, the governor and lawmakers have shown THEY AREN’T SERIOUS.