Jan 21 2009
Consequences of the Legislature’s Inaction
While we all settle in after the inauguration, it is clear that California still has a long way to go.
Instead of remaining in town and fixing the budget, or at least seeming to work on it, the legislative leaders took of for Washington DC. Leaving the state in fiscal and economic chaos. I understand yesterday was “historic” (although that would imply that other inaugurations were not part of history). But there are larger and pressing problems to be solved at home.
For instance, hundereds of millions of dollars have stopped flowing to nonprofits and contractors around the state. Work has stopped on infrastructure projects. It can actually cost more to stop work on a project than finish the project. Nonprofits who rely on grants from the state to do such things as: feed and help the homeless, help battered women, protect children from abuse, and provide a place for teens to go instead of joining gangs, are all out of money.
Anything that comes from bond money - borrowed money - has been stopped. No action on anything that comes from bond money. This includes school construction and environmental projects.
This is a concrete sign of the impact these fiscal disasters are having. What is wrong with the legislative leaders that they think this is a time to go celebrate?
Instead, they should come to work. And work hard. Not simply “play” at negotiations and meetings. They need to work on the budget, and only the budget, until these problems are solved.
