Prop. 140 penny-pinching causes cutbacks in some state legislator's staff and services.Prop. 140 penny-pinching causes cutbacks in some state legislators' staff and services Belt-tightening demands of Proposition 140 are racing through the Southland offices of state lawmakers, gutting the local staff and the services they provide for individuals and businesses alike. At the Panorama City office of Assemblyman as·sem·bly·man n. A man who is a member of a legislative assembly. assemblyman Noun pl -men a member of a legislative assembly Noun 1. Richard Katz, three of the six paid staffers quit just in time to get the state's severance package A severance package is pay and benefits an employee receives when they leave employment at a company. In addition to the employee's remaining regular pay, it may include some of the following:
Katz, a San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. Democrat who has hinted he may run for mayor of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. , isn't alone. In the Van Nuys district office of state Sen. Alan Robbins, one employee took the severance pay Severance Pay Compensation that an employer gives to someone who is about to lose their job. Notes: Severance pay is not always paid to employees. It depends on the situation in which the employee is losing their job and whether legislation requires severance to be paid. and another became a part-time worker. Five other state employees who are more than 50 years of age are now considering early retirement. Meanwhile, paid workers at the Mid-Wilshire office of Assemblyman Mike Roos, another potential mayoral candidate, have all left, and the office is now run completely by volunteers. Said the local aide of one lawmaker: "If someone comes to us for constituent service, like a problem with the Department of Water and Power, we can only point them in the right direction. We aren't able to spend time solving the case for them." Approved by voters last November, Proposition 140 imposes term limits on both state senators and assemblymen and requires a 40 percent cut in the Legislature's $165 million staffing budget. The 80-member Assembly must slash its budget by 59 percent while the Senate, which has 40 members, will absorb the rest. While the cutbacks aren't required until July 1, nearly 700 lawyers, consultants and secretaries have joined other legislative staffers from Sacramento and district offices in leaving state government. That, in turn, has had a ripple effect ripple effect Epidemiology See Signal event. on citizens who look to those district offices for help. In the Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, offices of some lawmakers, for example, income tax assistance has been nixed, small business programs cancelled and mailers detailing upcoming or pending legislation trimmed. "If somebody wanted some information on a bill, the consultants we used to call aren't there," said Teri Burns, press spokesperson for Robbins. "We are still plugging along, but we aren't able to get things as fast as the people want." In some instances, however, the term limits have provided a bittersweet bittersweet, name for two unrelated plants, belonging to different families, both fall-fruiting woody vines sometimes cultivated for their decorative scarlet berries. windfall for staffers who must now look for work. John Wasielewski, chief of staff at Mike Roos' local office, is considering running for his boss' assembly seat if the lawmaker steps down as he has hinted. |
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