News

Special to The Bee

Budget gridlock has become an expensive tradition in Sacramento. For the last 20 years, lawmakers have failed to meet the June 30 deadline 17 times. But this year legislators have set a record with their summer political games bleeding into the fall.

California, once the Golden State, now has the dubious distinction of starting the new fiscal year in the red and without a budget, again. The Legislature's most important project was about 100 days overdue; and each additional day without a state budget further eroded California's credit rating.

Last year's budget impasse forced California to issue more than 450,000 IOUs worth $2.6 billion. Taxpayers are justifiably outraged by the failure of their elected officials to do their job and tackle the very real problems facing our state.
The budget delay has likely cost taxpayers billions of dollars. As every taxpayer knows, this money would be better spent improving schools, health care, public safety and transportation.

The recession has devastated California's economy and revenues, but it is not the cause of this year's budget gridlock. Budget delays are now the norm in Sacramento. Legislators from both parties take advantage of the two-thirds vote requirement and hold their breath until they get what they want. Petulance has replaced problem-solving, and taxpayers are paying the price.

Nearly every year, a handful of politicians are able to bring the budget process to a screeching halt. But this year's roadblock has set a new standard for irresponsible behavior. The real victims of this political stalemate are taxpayers. The bad news is that the budget process is broken. The good news is that we can fix it.

Since the Legislature has declined to do anything about these costly budget delays, voters can take action that would go a long way toward preventing future impasses by supporting Proposition 25 – the On-Time Budget Act.
Proposition 25 would improve California's budget process by making three important changes to the way the state Legislature does business. It would require the state budget to be passed with a simple majority, protect taxpayers by maintaining the two-thirds vote requirement for any tax increases, and hold politicians accountable for failing to do their job. If Proposition 25 is approved, legislators will forfeit their pay and benefits for each day the budget is overdue – and they will not be allowed to pay themselves back later. It's a simple formula: No budget, no pay or benefits.

Opponents of Proposition 25 are trying to mislead voters with claims that it will allow legislators to raise taxes without the two-thirds vote required by the state constitution. It will not. Proposition 25 will not change the two-thirds vote required to raise taxes – it will only require a simple majority vote for passage of the state budget. California is one of only three states that require a two-thirds vote for passage of a state budget. Those who defend preserving the two-thirds vote requirement as a way to hold down government spending ignore the fact that state budgets have continued to grow despite its "protections."

The majority vote has worked well for the other 47 states, and there is every reason to assume it would benefit Californians by discouraging political games at budget time.

During the past two decades, the Legislature has failed to meet the budget deadline 85 percent of the time. Clearly it's time for a change. Partisan politics will not solve California's budget crisis. We need debate, compromise and solutions – not the annual spectacle of the state budget being held hostage by lawmakers more interested in politics than progress. Proposition 25 will hold legislators accountable at budget time – and it will protect taxpayers by encouraging lawmakers to stop dragging their feet and start moving forward with real solutions for our troubled economy.

Henry "Hank" L. Lacayo is state president of Congress of California Seniors.