Nonpartisan analyst says Schwarzenegger’s budget proposal relies too much on federal aid
By Judy Lin, APTuesday, January 12, 2010
Analyst: Schwarzenegger’s budget overly optimistic
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s nonpartisan legislative analyst says Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s proposal to close a $20 billion budget gap is overly optimistic.
Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor says that is mainly because the governor is relying too much on additional federal money. Schwarzenegger has demanded an extra $6.9 billion from the federal government and has said he will eliminate or gut social programs if the funding is denied.
In an analysis released Tuesday, Taylor says the federal government probably will provide some additional help. But he says the likelihood of Washington agreeing to all the governor’s requests is “almost nonexistent.”
Schwarzenegger released his budget proposal for the coming fiscal year last week and called the Legislature into special session to start tackling the deficit.
