California Gov. Edmund Brown recently proposed a balanced budget, which including adding billions of dollars to schools and healthcare, delivers on Prop. 1 and 2 and holds college tuition flat.

“This carefully balanced budget builds for the future by saving money, paying down debt and investing in our state’s core needs,” said Governor Brown. “Our long-term fiscal health depends on the wise and prudent actions we take today.”

When Governor Brown took office in 2011, the state faced a massive $26.6 billion budget deficit and estimated annual shortfalls of roughly $20 billion. Since then, the state has eliminated these deficits with billions of dollars in cuts, an improving economy and new temporary revenue approved by California voters.

Significant details of the 2015-16 State Budget:

Invests in Water, Flood Protection and Combating Climate Change

The Budget includes the first $532 million in expenditures from the Proposition 1 water bond to continue the implementation of the Water Action Plan, the administration’s five-year roadmap towards sustainable water management. Additionally, the Budget includes the last $1.1 billion in spending from the 2006 flood bond to bolster the state’s protection from floods. It also proposes $1 billion in cap-and-trade expenditures for the state’s continuing investments in low-carbon transportation, sustainable communities, energy efficiency, urban forests and high-speed rail. The successful implementation of these projects and continued and even steeper reductions in carbon pollutants are necessary to address the ongoing threat posed by climate change.

Implements Strengthened Rainy Day Fund and Pays Off Debt

Under the Budget, the state’s Rainy Day Fund will have a total balance of $2.8 billion by the end of the year – an insurance policy against future economic downturns. The Budget spends an additional $1.2 billion from Proposition 2 funds on paying off loans from special funds and past liabilities from Proposition 98. In addition, the Budget repays the remaining $1 billion in deferrals to schools and community colleges, makes the last payment on the $15 billion in Economic Recovery Bonds that was borrowed to cover budget deficits from as far back as 2002 and repays local governments $533 million in mandate reimbursements.

Increases K-12 School Spending by $2,600 Per Student Compared to 2011-12

For K-12 schools, funding levels will increase by more than $2,600 per student in 2015-16 over 2011-12 levels. This reinvestment provides the opportunity to correct historical inequities in school district funding with continued implementation of the Local Control Funding Formula. Rising state revenues mean that the state can continue implementing the formula well ahead of schedule. When the formula was adopted in 2013-14, funding was expected to be $47 billion in 2015-16. The Budget provides almost $4 billion more – with the formula instead allocating $50.7 billion this coming year.

Holds Tuition Flat for College Students

University tuition almost doubled during the recession, creating a hardship for many students and their families. The Budget commits $762 million to each of the university systems that is directly attributable to the passage of Proposition 30. This increased funding is provided contingent on tuition remaining flat. All cost containment strategies must be explored before asking California families to pay even more for tuition.

Expands Workforce Training

The Budget provides over $1.2 billion in funding to support a coordinated framework for adult education, career technical education, workforce investment and apprenticeships. These funds are intended to provide training and education to workers in California so they can develop the skills they need for self-sufficiency and greater personal advancement.

Provides Medi-Cal Health Care Coverage to 12.2 Million Californians

Due principally to the implementation of federal health care reform, Medi-Cal caseload has increased from 7.9 million in 2012-13 to an estimated 12.2 million this coming year. The program now covers 32 percent of the state’s population. This tremendous expansion of health care coverage for low-income Californians continues to be an administrative and financial challenge.

Prefunds Retiree Health Care

The state’s unfunded liability for retiree health care benefits is currently estimated at $72 billion. State health care benefits for retired employees remain one of the fastest growing areas of the state budget: in 2001, retiree health benefits made up 0.6 percent of the General Fund budget ($458 million) but today absorb 1.6 percent ($1.9 billion). Without action, the state’s unfunded liability will grow to $100 billion by 2020-21 and $300 billion by 2047-48. The Budget proposes a plan to make these benefits more affordable by adopting various measures to lower the growth in premium costs. The Budget calls for the state and its employees to share equally in the prefunding of retiree health benefits, to be phased in as labor contracts come up for renewal. Under this plan, investment returns will help pay for future benefits, just as with the state’s pension plans, to eventually eliminate the unfunded liability by 2044-45. Over the next 50 years, this approach will save nearly $200 billion.

The full summary of the Governor’s Budget Proposal can be viewed at this website and this website. 

Wilk Responds to Brown’s Budget Proposal

Assemblyman Scott Wilk, R-Santa Clarita, issued the following statement in response to Governor Jerry Brown’s 2015-16 Budget Proposal:

“Our state’s top budget priorities should be protecting classroom dollars, growing the economy, and paying down debt and I would like to thank the Governor for putting these priorities into action.

I hope the Governor listens to the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office recommendation to set $4 billion aside for budget reserve this year. Every dollar we save in good times is a dollar that can be used to fund Californians’ budget priorities in bad times.

However, I am concerned about the increased medical costs due to the expansion of eligibility but as the Governor noted there are 12.2 million Californian’s who are neither rich nor middle class who need health care and education. I wish the numbers were lower and the way to reduce those numbers is to boost our economy with higher wage jobs and on that score, I think the Governor and Majority party is failing.”

The 38th Assembly District encompasses Simi Valley, the northwestern section of the San Fernando Valley and most of the Santa Clarita Valley.

CSU Chancellor’s Office on Brown Budget Proposal

Governor Jerry Brown announced today his budget proposal for fiscal year 2015-16, which allocates an additional $119.5 million to the California State University (CSU).  The governor’s proposal provides a $25 million one-time allocation for another round of Awards for Innovation in Higher Education to fund efforts to improve four-year and transfer student completion rates at CSU campuses.  The proposal also includes a new one-time $25 million allocation to address the university’s most immediate deferred maintenance needs which total $1.8 billion.

“The governor’s budget proposal affirms his commitment to invest in the CSU and acknowledges the university’s vital role as a leading economic driver in the state and nation, providing quality degree programs that support the success and social mobility of the university’s highly diverse student population,” said Steve Relyea, CSU executive vice chancellor and chief financial officer.

The proposed $119.5 million allocation would fund a one percent net enrollment growth (continuing students, first-time freshmen and transfer students), sustain existing educational programs and address fixed mandatory costs.  In November, the Board of Trustees approved a Support Budget request that is $97.1 million more than the governor’s budget proposal.  The Support Budget request reflects the needs of the university.  If funded, it will enable the CSU to grow enrollment by three percent, fund student success and completion measures and address additional infrastructure and technology upgrades across the 23-campus system.

The CSU anticipates working with the governor and through the legislative process to ensure the university can continue to fulfill its mission and serve the students of this state with quality educational programs.

Story courtesy of SCV News and Gov. Brown.