Cal. Senate Passes All Time Record Budget of $122.5 Billion, $5 Billion More Than Last Year

State legislators in our Democrat dominated California State houses, will meet Wednesday and approve the 2016-7 state budget, hitting their deadline for a new spending plan.

The proposal includes $170.9 billion in state spending, which includes the general fund, dedicated funds and bond money. The Assembly and the state Senate are each scheduled to start their floor sessions at 3 p.m.

The final budget deal includes extra money for the state's rainy-day fund, as well as new funding for child care and welfare. The Legislative Women's Caucus scored some significant victories this year. Gov. Jerry Brown backed a $2 billion bond to help the homeless earlier this year.

The budget deal would remove detailed transparency requirements for a new accounting system, which some republican's protested (see Travis Allen, below). Financial analysts advised for the state to stockpile more money in reserve to guard against an economic downturn, which this budget does, to some small degree.

Republican Assemblymember Travis Allen writes:

"While the Governor has been touting 'fiscal restraint' since January, in a classic bait and switch, Jerry Brown and his Democrat colleagues today displayed the opposite. The 2016-17 record budget, at $122.5 Billion, spends $5 billion more than last year's record budget, despite estimates that California is bringing in $1.9 billion less in tax revenue than forecast. Adding insult to injury, the Governor himself has forecasted a $4 billion deficit within three years as California continues its ever increasing spending spree." "What is abundantly clear is that once again Democrats alone are intentionally overspending taxpayer money on a bloated state bureaucracy, high speed rail, expanded welfare programs, and Obamacare in order to create a false "fiscal emergency" that will lead to future calls for higher taxes and borrowing.

"One party domination in California has resulted in the nation's highest taxes, worst regulatory and litigation environment, and created our present day situation where Californians experience the nation's highest poverty rate and businesses leave our state in droves.

"Instead of business as usual and simply pushing the red button in California Republicans' traditional "no vote" on the budget, I abstained as a wake up call to Californians: Sacramento Democrats will come back, this November and in future years, to ask for ever increasing taxes, fees, and bond measures to pay for future expenditures ignored by today's irresponsible budget."

California's Fiscal Reality by the Numbers (according to Governor Brown):

$4 Billion deficit by 2020.

$1.9 Billion less in revenues received in this fiscal year.

$5 Billion more in spending over last year's record budget.

Lowlights from Democrats' Budget:

$10 vehicle registration fee increase on every car owners.

Increased cell phone charges of nearly 400 percent.

Additional $145.2 million spent on high-speed rail.

$2.1 Billion for an "optional" Obamacare expansion.