Gov. Jerry Brown begins wooing GOP support for tax plan

Gov. Jerry Brown's budget may hit legal roadblock
(01-12) 04:00 PST Sacramento - -- Cutting various state programs as proposed this week by Gov. Jerry Brown could prove more difficult than anticipated after the Legislative Analyst's Office said Wednesday that it might take a two-thirds vote of the Legislature to approve the cuts. The news comes less than three months after voters approved Proposition 25, which lowered the requirement to pass a Budget to a simple majority. Yet that measure might not be as useful as many backers once hoped, be...

Brown's budget gets mixed reviews, San Bernardino County assemblymembers react
Days after California’s Governor released his Budget proposal reactions have been mixed, ranging from cautious optimism to rejections of various aspects. San Bernardino County’s two Democratic assemblymembers said they were pleased Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown released a proposal that was not based on budgeting gimmicks and that would allow lawmakers to produce an on-time Balanced Budget. They also said they were pleased Brown was honest with voters and put forward ideas that would no...

Calif. state workers: Turn in cellphones
SACRAMENTO, Jan. 12 (UPI) -- Half of California's 96,000 Taxpayer-funded cellphones for state workers must be turned in -- and thousands of cars and vans may be next, Gov. Jerry Brown said. "It is difficult for me to believe that 40 percent of all State Employees must be equipped with Taxpayer-funded cellphones," Brown said Tuesday in ordering 48,000 state workers' phones turned in by June. "The current number of phones out there is astounding," said Brown, a Democrat, who took over last week fr...

Gov. Brown strips cell phones from state employees
(01-11) 18:40 PST Oakland -- Gov. Jerry Brown issued his first Executive Order Tuesday, taking aim at a convenience that wasn't in vogue the last time he was the state's Top Official: cell phones. The Governor ordered state agency and department heads to collect half of the approximately 96,000 state-issued cell phones used by Public Employees, a move he said will save California at least $20 million a year. Brown also plans to return his own state-issued cell phone, said Evan Westrup, a spok...

Gov. Brown offers gimmick-free budget, experts say
(01-12) 04:00 PST Sacramento - -- Gov. Jerry Brown promised Californians that his Budget proposal would avoid gimmicks, and Budget experts who reviewed the plan said Brown has mostly stuck to his word. In tackling the projected $25.4 billion Deficit, Brown has proposed $12.5 billion in cuts and an additional $12 billion in taxes and avoided relying on solutions that have little chance of materializing, the experts said. Such gimmicks used to balance the Budget in the past have merely pushed t...

Gov. Brown offers gimmick-free budget, experts say
(01-12) 04:00 PST Sacramento - -- Gov. Jerry Brown promised Californians that his Budget proposal would avoid gimmicks, and Budget experts who reviewed the plan said Brown has mostly stuck to his word. In tackling the projected $25.4 billion Deficit, Brown has proposed $12.5 billion in cuts and an additional $12 billion in taxes and avoided relying on solutions that have little chance of materializing, the experts said. Such gimmicks used to balance the Budget in the past have merely pushed t...

Gov. Brown strips cell phones from state employees
(01-11) 18:40 PST Oakland -- Gov. Jerry Brown issued his first Executive Order Tuesday, taking aim at a convenience that wasn't in vogue the last time he was the state's Top Official: cell phones. The Governor ordered state agency and department heads to collect half of the approximately 96,000 state-issued cell phones used by Public Employees, a move he said will save California at least $20 million a year. Brown also plans to return his own state-issued cell phone, said Evan Westrup, a spok...

Gov. Brown offers gimmick-free budget, experts say
(01-11) 04:00 PST Sacramento - -- Gov. Jerry Brown promised Californians that his Budget proposal would avoid gimmicks, and Budget experts who reviewed the plan said Brown has mostly stuck to his word. In tackling the projected $25.4 billion Deficit, Brown has proposed $12.5 billion in cuts and an additional $12 billion in taxes and avoided relying on solutions that have little chance of materializing, the experts said. Such gimmicks used to balance the Budget in the past have merely pushed t...

Jerry Brown's budget earns business leaders' raves
They like it, they really like it. That's the early reaction to Gov. Jerry Brown 's Budget from Bay Area business leaders, Economists and a labor representative I spoke to on Tuesday. The Governor gets an A+ for "honesty" and for generally grabbing the bull by the horns, even on taxes. Concerns were expressed on the proposed elimination of state redevelopment and enterprise zone funding, and a requirement that corporations use a "single sales factor," based on their actual sales in California...

Jerry Brown's budget earns business leaders' raves
They like it, they really like it. That's the early reaction to Gov. Jerry Brown 's Budget from Bay Area business leaders, Economists and a labor representative I spoke to on Tuesday. The Governor gets an A+ for "honesty" and for generally grabbing the bull by the horns, even on taxes. Concerns were expressed on the proposed elimination of state redevelopment and enterprise zone funding, and a requirement that corporations use a "single sales factor," based on their actual sales in California...

Analyst praises Brown budget plan but sees many risks
In its first review of Gov. Jerry Brown 's Budget proposal, the state's nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office called the plan a "good starting point" Wednesday and praised the Governor for focusing on solutions to fiscal problems beyond this year. But the analyst's report identified several major ideas that could fall through, particularly in Brown's plan to shift a variety of services to local governments and eliminate redevelopment agencies. The 40-page review noted that "there is signifi...

Jerry Brown May Rescue Muni
Muni may get a slight nudge from Jerry Brown, but even if it happens, the emphasis will be on the "slight." Brown's new Budget gives transit agencies access to Money that they've been promised for years, but couldn't access under policies enacted by Arnold Schwarzenegger. Even though the State Supreme Court ruled that Schwarzenegger's policies were illegal, he kept trying to use the Money for his own projects instead of for transit riders. Over the last few years, transit service has b...

Jerry Brown's proposal to end redevelopment could have unexpected benefit for San Jose
For years, as San Jose grappled with Deficits that have pared the city's work force and slashed services, millions of Tax Dollars sat off-limits in the coffers of the city's redevelopment agency, where state law restricted its use to Economic Development. But Gov. Jerry Brown's proposal this week to eliminate redevelopment throughout California could reshape San Jose's chronic Budget battles, putting money set aside for projects like a proposed ballpark into the same pot as the funds to pay cops...

California slashes official cell phone use
New California Governor Jerry Brown ordered Tuesday the confiscation of half of the cell phones used by Public Employees in the state, as he slashes its Budget to rein in a huge Deficit. Brown, a Veteran Democrat who took over from Republican former film star Arnold Schwarzenegger this month, said far too many Civil Servants had their Mobile Phones provided from the public purse. "It is difficult for me to believe that 40 percent of all State Employees must be equipped with Taxpayer-funded cel...

California slashes official cell phone use
Stumble This! Los Angeles — New California Governor Jerry Brown ordered Tuesday the confiscation of half of the cell phones used by Public Employees in the state, as he slashes its Budget to rein in a huge Deficit. Brown, a Veteran Democrat who took over from Republican former film star Arnold Schwarzenegger this month, said far too many Civil Servants had their Mobile Phones provided from the public purse. "It is difficult for me to believe that 40 percent of all State Employees must be ...

Texas faces budget shortfall; GOP likely to 'slash and burn'
AUSTIN, Texas | There is one enduring political value in Texas: The state does not mollycoddle. In the best of times, it spends as little as possible providing aid to the unemployed, the sick and the injured. Texans have consistently elected lawmakers who will add to the Public Safety net only when threatened with a federal Lawsuit. And now that the state must overcome a $15 billion Budget shortfall, life for those who rely on the state for employment or support is likely to get even tougher. Th...

Illinois Taxes Rising; Wisconsin Hopes To Benefit
Illinois lawmakers have voted to increase the state's Income Tax almost 67-percent to help reduce the state estimated 15-billion dollar Budget Deficit.  Illinois Governor Pat Quinn supports the move, and promises to sign the measure.. Illinois is a fiscal mess. The state is months behind in paying it's bills and it's not just vendors and social service agencies waiting to be paid, but schools and local governments, too. The state's been borrowing so much and racking up such a huge Debt that Ill...

Budget battle lines form
Gov. Andrew Cuomo could face a blizzard of opposition from unions and interest groups as he works to cut the Budget. He gives the thumbs up as he tells emergency operations workers to keep up the good work as they monitor winter weather on Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2011, at the State Emergency Operations Center in Albany, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union) ALBANY -- The battle over New York's budget has already begun. Never mind that the document doesn't yet exist beyond the broad outlines Gov. Andre...

IL. Leads The Way To The Progressive World of Next Tuesday
I am overwhelmed with joy to report to you that here in IL. our progressive comrades, the Democrats, have prevailed with one of the LARGEST Tax IncreaseS in the history of the state! Forget about all that 'Corruption' Hate Speech and false Propaganda that you hear about this state. We are the harbinger of The Progressive World of Next Tuesdayâ„¢ ( watch out Detroit! We're takin' you Dowwwwn! ) Comrades, we all LOVE to pay taxes ( except Timmy-boy Geithner and Chuckles Rangel ). I...

Hilarious! California Healthcare Protesting Students Give California Budget Protesting Union Leaders The Bums Rush!
So Many Budget Cuts! So Many Protests! When Do They All Find Time To Work Or Do Whatever It Is That They Do? This is hilarious.  The union thugs leaders had the stage ripped right out from under their little union feet by the protesting morons Students. From the LA times: If today’s budget protests are any indication, Organized Labor needs to get, well, organized. After Gov. Jerry Brown unveiled his budget, a handful of Labor Leaders gathered on the north steps of the Capitol to talk about ...

Jockeying has begun over how to frame Brown's cuts, taxes
The backdrop of a Special Election has raised the stakes for how Gov. Jerry Brown's Budget is described and categorized. Republicans are already questioning Brown's characterization that his plan relies on half cuts and half taxes, roughly $12 billion of both, to solve a $26.4 billion Deficit. In particular, they call into question four items that Brown has dubbed Spending Cuts but involve taking outside money to reduce the state's general fund burden. These include taking $861 million in Prop...

AM Alert: It's the analyst's turn
Looking for more Budget charts and graphs? You don't have to wait long. Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor is holding a Press Conference this afternoon to present his office's latest report, titled rather succinctly, "Overview of the Governor's Budget." The report will be available on the LAO's website at 11:30 a.m. The Press Conference is set for 1:30 p.m. Just in time: The Budget committees in both the Senate and the Assembly are scheduled to start considering Brown's proposal tomorrow. As colle...

Pass the California DREAM Act
California Assemblyman Gil Cedillo reintroduced a bill today that would make undocumented College Students in California eligible for in-state Financial Aid. Prospects for passage of the California DREAM Act are brighter this year since Governor Jerry Brown said he supported a previous version of the bill, while Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed it three times. As a state measure, the law would have no effect on an applicant's Immigration status, which falls under federal authority. Even so, pas...

Public Transit Funding Slightly Better in Jerry Browns Proposed Budget
For the first time in three years, California public transit agencies could see a full dose of funding from the State Transit Assistance (STA) fund, thanks in large part to the passage of Proposition 22, which prevents legislators from raiding Local Government funds, and Governor Jerry Brown, who announced his “painful” Budget plan yesterday. The Brown administration said state funding for local transit agencies would amount to $329.6 million for Fiscal Year 2011-12, significantly mo...

Jerry Brown's Cell Phone Crackdown
Sacramento, Calif. — Gov. Jerry Brown is hanging up his state-issued cell phone, and he's ordered half the state Bureaucrats who have government-paid cell phones to do the same. "It is difficult for me to believe that 40 percent of all State Employees must be equipped with Taxpayer-funded cell phones," the new Governor said Tuesday. "The current number of phones out there is astounding." Brown used his first Executive Order since taking office a week ago to instruct department heads to c...