California governor Gavin Newsom promised a balanced budget for the Golden State, but has instead led it into an economic meltdown with a staggering deficit.
When entitlements and woke ideology supersede fiscal wisdom, the tragedy of liberal governance is once again revealed to all. It’s no surprise that in today’s climate of extreme entitlements and out-of-control spending, fiscal mismanagement has transformed beyond even what was forecasted–making Californians wonder if we are on the road to total financial ruin.
Fox News reports, there are concerns about California’s fiscal future as the state’s budget deficit may exceed the already large number predicted by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Newsom announced last month that California will face a $22.5 billion budget deficit next year. Compared to last year, when the state enjoyed a surplus of about $100 billion due to federal COVID relief and surging capital gains, this year’s figure represents a sharp decline.
In spite of the large drop-off predicted from year to year, it may not have been large enough.
According to a report published by the California Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO), a government agency that analyzes state budgets, Newsom’s forecast undershot by about $7 billion because tax revenues were lower than expected by about $10 billion.
Gabe Patek, the legislature’s budget analyst stated “In particular, using recent revenue collections and economic data, we estimate there is a two‑in‑three chance that state revenues will be lower than the governor’s budget estimates for 2022‑23 and 2023‑24, Our best estimate is that revenues for these two years will be roughly $10 billion lower — implying a larger budget problem by about $7 billion.”
With the budget crisis in California just now becoming reality, Newsom has now began to cut spending to his climate change agenda.
Politico reports, Governor Gavin Newsom wants to cut billions of dollars from climate spending and delay funding major programs to reduce a $22.5 billion budget deficit.
There are plans to delay $7.4 billion in planned spending and cut items like a $3 billion payment to offset inflation, according to the Democratic governor.
Additionally, he proposed deferring spending billions on areas such as public universities, transit, behavioral health, building decarbonization, and watersheds. In the proposed budget, some $3.9 billion could be spent on housing, workforce development, and climate change, if enough money materializes.
About $3.1 billion of the nearly $4 billion “trigger cut” would come from climate change and transportation. Additionally, Newsom proposed cutting billions from electric vehicle funding, despite his order to phase out sales of new, gas-powered vehicles by 2035. The budget would reduce multiyear climate spending by about $6 billion.
In what can only be described as a concession to entitlements and woke ideology, California’s naive governor Gavin Newsom has led the state into an economic meltdown. With spiraling debt and a deficit estimated at $22.5 billion, it might almost seem that California is a textbook example of how liberal governance can bring about financial ruin – it would take an exceptional level of entitlements and out-of-control spending for this kind of fiscal mismanagement to occur! Californians now find themselves looking towards their future with a feeling of dread, asking the question which must soon cross all our minds: is this the beginning of total financial ruin?
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