In one fell swoop, the coronavirus pandemic took California’s state finances from “Celebrate Good Times” to no cause for much celebration at all. Here’s our two-minute recap of what you need to know:
So when Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the state’s $202.1 billion budget — putting a lid on weeks of negotiations with California legislators — it contained a bit of a wishful thinking. The prime wishful thought: that the Trump administration and Congress would see fit to send about $14 billion in federal aid by mid-October, avoiding some of the most painful cuts.
The biggest hitch: President Donald Trump has expressed aversion to a federal bailout.
California’s spending plan looks to balance an estimated $54-billion deficit that was spurred by the coronavirus pandemic. The budget takes into account the Newsom administration’s projections of an 18% unemployment rate and a nearly 9% decline in Californians’ personal income.
It falls about $20 billion short of the pre-COVID budget proposal.