Saturday, May 15, 2010
California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled a new budget plan for California on Friday, claiming that the Californian economy faces growth and budget problems like eurozone countries such as Greece and Ireland.
Schwarzenegger said in a Sacramento press conference that California must cut spending to US$12.4 billion.
To achieve this goal, the governor proposed cutting the CalWorks welfare system; however, state lawmakers quickly rejected this. Schwarzenegger said cutting the state welfare system for low-income families would save the state government $1.6 billion.
The governor also proposed freezing funds to local public schools and cutting state workers’ incomes.
He wants to cut programs for the treatment of narcotics addiction for those using Medi-Cal and cut state mental heath services by 60%.
California is set to receive monetary aid from Washington, D.C. worth $3.4 billion.
California State Senate president Darrell Steinberg, a Democrat, said, “The cuts are absolutely unacceptable,” and the governor should focus on delaying business tax cuts.