BUDGET FINALLY IN HAND POLITICAL STANDSTILL REACHES RESOLUTION - 26 DAYS LATE.Byline: David M. Drucker Sacramento Bureau SACRAMENTO - Ending a 26-day impasse, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (German pronunciation (IPA): [ˈaɐ̯nɔlt ˈaloɪ̯s ˈʃvaɐ̯ʦənˌʔɛɡɐ] and legislative leaders shook hands Monday on a $103 billion state budget that closes a $15 billion deficit without raising taxes, but still protects spending for health and welfare services for the poor. A deal to protect cities' and counties' tax revenues - a key barrier to putting the 2004-05 budget to bed - was adopted, as were compromises on other obstacles to a spending plan that had frustrated frus·trate tr.v. frus·trat·ed, frus·trat·ing, frus·trates 1. a. To prevent from accomplishing a purpose or fulfilling a desire; thwart: the Republican governor so much he was still on the campaign trail a week ago threatening to oust oust tr.v. oust·ed, oust·ing, ousts 1. To eject from a position or place; force out: "the American Revolution, which ousted the English" Virginia S. Eifert. Democratic lawmakers in the November election if they did not support his fiscal agenda. ``I'm a very happy governor today, because we just have agreed on a budget. It's a budget that California needs, that the people of California deserve,'' Schwarzenegger told reporters late Monday night. ``We negotiated very hard, we gave proof that by working together ... we can do the impossible.'' The governor and top Democrats and Republicans from the Senate and Assembly, collectively known as the Big Five, met for almost five hours Monday night, emerging just before 11 to announce a final budget agreement. ``When we accepted the fact that we were really 'girly men,' we just were able to get over that and agree to a budget,'' joked Senate President Pro Tem president pro tem n. pl. presidents pro tem Informal A president pro tempore. John Burton John Burton is the name of:
Legislative aides worked over the weekend looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. solutions, as the state was prepared to withhold $570 million in payments to public schools, community colleges and local road projects Wednesday if a budget was not in place by then. Agreement on the local government funding issue paved the way to resolve political differences over funding for higher education higher education Study beyond the level of secondary education. Institutions of higher education include not only colleges and universities but also professional schools in such fields as law, theology, medicine, business, music, and art. and health and human services Noun 1. Health and Human Services - the United States federal department that administers all federal programs dealing with health and welfare; created in 1979 Department of Health and Human Services, HHS for the poor, allowing the final components of the budget to come together. A vote by the full Legislature is expected Wednesday or Thursday. The local-government compromise protects the sales tax sales tax, levy on the sale of goods or services, generally calculated as a percentage of the selling price, and sometimes called a purchase tax. It is usually collected in the form of an extra charge by the retailer, who remits the tax to the government. revenues that cities like Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. , in Ventura County, and Rancho Cucamonga Rancho Cucamonga (răn`chō k 'kəmäng`gə), city (1990 pop. 101,409), San Bernardino co., S Calif. ,
in San Bernardino San Bernardino, city, United StatesSan Bernardino (săn bûr'nədē`nō), city (1990 pop. 164,164), seat of San Bernardino co., S Calif., at the foot of the San Bernardino Mts.; inc. 1854. County, need to fund police protection and other services required by their growing populations, said lobbyist Jason Gonsalves, who represents both cities' interests in Sacramento. ``It looks like we'll have a local-government deal that's better than existing law.'' Also on Monday, Senate Republicans and Democrats agreed to amend legislation known as the ``sue your boss'' bill, which was also blocking a final budget compromise. The pact to amend the law was reached by Ackerman and the bill's author, Sen. Joseph Dunn, D-Garden Grove. Republicans - backed by Schwarzenegger - had sought to repeal Senate Bill 796, which former Gov. Gray Davis signed into law before leaving office last year. Detractors said it makes it too easy for workers to shake down employers in court for labor-code violations. Republicans dropped another demand - repeal of a bill that makes it difficult for public schools to hire private bus companies and other contractors. Republican and Democratic leaders in the Assembly said they would deal with Senate Bill 1419, authored by Sen. Richard Alarcon, D-Van Nuys, separate from the budget process during the month of August. The developments Monday came nearly six weeks after the June 15 constitutional deadline for the Legislature to pass the budget, and nearly a month after the governor's June 30 deadline for signing it. An on-time budget was one of Schwarzenegger's major promises, a goal he said would send a strong signal to Wall Street that California was putting its financial house in order. By late Monday, however, Schwarzenegger and Democratic and Republican leaders reached a handshake handshake - handshaking agreement on a spending plan that will spend roughly the same as the governor's $103 billion budget proposal. ``The governor was working all weekend, and the conversations he had with his local-government partners and at the staff level went very well, and that momentum seems to have carried into today,'' Press Secretary Margita Thompson said. ``Conversations continue, but a few things remain to be worked out, so we're hoping to be able to work through the final issues and announce something soon.'' A two-thirds vote of the Legislature is needed to pass a budget, requiring some GOP support in the Assembly and Senate. At least two Senate Republicans and six GOP assemblymen must support a spending plan if Democrats are unified. Schwarzenegger's budget plan calls for using $2.6 billion in local property and sales-tax revenues in the next two years to help fill the state's shortfall, in exchange for providing cities and counties protection from future state raids on local funds. The governor originally proposed ending any future raids on local funds in exchange for this contribution. But under the pending compromise pushed by the Democrats, Sacramento will be able to borrow local money twice each decade if such action is approved by two-thirds of the Legislature. A compromise on Schwarzenegger's plans to cut funding for higher education and health and human services for the poor also was headed for approval by the Big Five as the governor and legislative leaders met. ``There have been a number of changes that I do like in higher education (and) that I do like in health and human services,'' Sen. Sheila Kuehl Sheila James Kuehl (born February 9, 1941 in Tulsa, Oklahoma) is an American politician, and a former child actress. She is currently a Democratic member of the California State Senate, representing the highly urbanized 23rd district in Los Angeles County and parts of southern , D-Los Angeles, said. The Assembly's minority leader said it was time to close a deal on the budget. ``One year makes a big difference,'' Assembly Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy Kevin McCarthy may refer to any of the following individuals:
David M. Drucker, (916) 442-5096 david.drucker(at)dailybulletin.com |
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