Past Forums
Recorded Live, May 13th, 2010, in Albany, California
Your Chance to Fix California's State Budget
California continues to face unprecedented budget challenges.
Thank you for joining Assembly Rules Chair Nancy Skinner, and Assemblymember Sandré Swanson at a forum on the Governor’s proposed budget.
With each budget forum, it is clear that each region of the state has an enormous diversity of views on how to balance California’s budget. This makes the task of creating a budget that represents the needs of all people that much more difficult.
Download the Albany Budget Forum Voting Results (PDF 4.16 MB)
That said, the more voices we hear—the more likely it is that the final product will reflect the majority’s wishes when it comes to how to allocate the state’s resources.
Recorded Live, May 8th, 2010, in San Diego, California
On Demand Video Coming Soon.
Your Chance to Fix California's State Budget
California continues to face unprecedented budget challenges.
Thank you for joining Assembly Budget Committee Chair Bob Blumenfield and Speaker pro Tempore Fiona Ma at a forum on the Governor’s proposed budget.
With each budget forum, it is clear that each region of the state has an enormous diversity of views on how to balance California’s budget. This makes the task of creating a budget that represents the needs of all people that much more difficult.
Download the San Diego Budget Forum Voting Results (PDF 4.16 MB)
That said, the more voices we hear—the more likely it is that the final product will reflect the majority’s wishes when it comes to how to allocate the state’s resources.
Recorded Live, May 7th, 2010, in Reseda, California
On Demand Video Coming Soon.
Your Chance to Fix California's State Budget
California continues to face unprecedented budget challenges.
Thank you for joining Assembly Budget Committee Chair Bob Blumenfield, Speaker pro Tempore Fiona Ma , Assemblymember Felipe Fuentes, and Assemblymember Brownley at a forum on the Governor’s proposed budget.
With each budget forum, it is clear that each region of the state has an enormous diversity of views on how to balance California’s budget. This makes the task of creating a budget that represents the needs of all people that much more difficult.
Download the Los Angeles Budget Forum Voting Results (PDF 4.16 MB)
That said, the more voices we hear—the more likely it is that the final product will reflect the majority’s wishes when it comes to how to allocate the state’s resources.
Recorded Live, April 30th, 2010, in Garden Grove, California
Your Chance to Fix California's State Budget
California continues to face unprecedented budget challenges.
Thank you for joining Assembly Budget Chair Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield, and Assemblymember Jose Solorio at a forum on the Governor’s proposed budget.
With each budget forum, it is clear that each region of the state has an enormous diversity of views on how to balance California’s budget. This makes the task of creating a budget that represents the needs of all people that much more difficult.
Download the Orange County Budget Forum Voting Results (PDF 4.16 MB)
That said, the more voices we hear—the more likely it is that the final product will reflect the majority’s wishes when it comes to how to allocate the state’s resources.
Recorded Live, April 29th, 2010, in Sacramento, California
Your Chance to Fix California's State Budget
California continues to face unprecedented budget challenges.
Thank you for joining Assembly Appropriations Chair Assemblymember Felipe Fuentes, and members of the Assembly Budget Committee at a forum on the Governor’s proposed budget.
With each budget forum, it is clear that each region of the state has an enormous diversity of views on how to balance California’s budget. This makes the task of creating a budget that represents the needs of all people that much more difficult.
Download the Sacramento Budget Forum Voting Results (PDF 6 MB)
That said, the more voices we hear—the more likely it is that the final product will reflect the majority’s wishes when it comes to how to allocate the state’s resources.
Recorded Live, April 24th, 2010, in Fresno, California
Your Chance to Fix California's State Budget
California continues to face unprecedented budget challenges.
Thank you for joining Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez, Speaker pro Tempore Fiona Ma, and Assemblymember Cathleen Galgiani at a forum on the Governor’s proposed budget.
With each budget forum, it is clear that each region of the state has an enormous diversity of views on how to balance California’s budget. This makes the task of creating a budget that represents the needs of all people that much more difficult.
Download the Fresno Budget Forum Voting Results (PDF 4.16 MB)
That said, the more voices we hear—the more likely it is that the final product will reflect the majority’s wishes when it comes to how to allocate the state’s resources.
Town Hall State Budget Meeting
By: Rich Rodriguez
The Speaker of the Assembly wants to know where you stand on the budget. Saturday John Perez hosted a town hall meeting in Fresno to hear directly from the people. Participants were polite but they didn't mince words. A home health care worker told the Assembly Speaker not to balance the budget on her back.
People in the room got to vote on suggestions concerning the fee policy for the U–C and CSU systems. The prevailing attitude was to add 600 million to the deficit and slow the fee increase to four percent.
Speaker Perez is adamant about passing a budget on time and not hammering it out behind closed doors. He told reporters, "We feel very strongly that the best way to pass a budget that respects and reflects the values of all of us in California is to make sure we engage in a transparent and inclusive budget process."
Public safety is the Speaker's number one priority for California. Prior to the town hall meeting Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer took the opportunity to send a strong message to the legislature. Chief Dyer said, "Any efforts that the state makes to take, borrow or defer local revenues whether that be gas taxes, property taxes or transportation funds really does have a direct impact on our ability to provide public safety."
California is currently facing a 20–billion dollar budget deficit. Speaker Perez will hold four more town hall meetings across the state.
Recorded Live, April 23rd, 2010, in Palm Springs, California
Your Chance to Fix California's State Budget
California continues to face unprecedented budget challenges.
Thank you for joining Assembly Majority Leader Charles Calderon, and Assemblymember V. Manuel Pérez at a forum on the Governor’s proposed budget.
With each budget forum, it is clear that each region of the state has an enormous diversity of views on how to balance California’s budget. This makes the task of creating a budget that represents the needs of all people that much more difficult.
Download the Palm Springs Budget Forum Voting Results (PDF 4.16 MB)
That said, the more voices we hear—the more likely it is that the final product will reflect the majority’s wishes when it comes to how to allocate the state’s resources.
Residents help lawmakers pick fiscal priorities
Assembly Democrats kick off statewide town hall meetings on budgeting process Erica Felci
The Desert Sun
Assembly Democrats launched a statewide town hall series in Palm Springs on Friday, part of the majority party's effort to explain what decisions have to be weighed in closing the state's nearly $20 billion budget gap.
The two-hour event literally put the decisions in the hands of 50-some residents, who used clickers to vote on funding levels of health care, education, prisons and whether to raise taxes.
In order to highlight their budget priorities, Assembly Majority Leader Charles Calderon and Assemblyman V. Manuel Pérez, a Coachella Democrat, earlier Friday had visited a College of the Desert center that's training a green workforce.
Democratic leaders said such programs are at risk to be cut in the Republican governor's budget proposal.
The two-pronged Palm Springs visit is one of at least seven planned statewide to bring the traditionally Sacramento-driven budget process to residents.
The series continues today in Fresno, where the Assembly speaker and speaker pro tem will be among those stressing the importance of public safety funding and holding a similar budget forum.
The town hall series comes as state lawmakers weigh an $83 billion spending plan the governor unveiled in January. He's proposed sweeping cuts to health and human services and warned programs such as CalWORKs and Healthy Families would be eliminated without more federal funding.
“We want to prioritize in those areas that are hitting where people need the most help,” Calderon told The Desert Sun Friday, stressing the importance of health, unemployment assistance, education and job training.
“We think you have to make choices and you have to have priorities … I think our priorities can be a little bit better than what the governor is proposing.”
During the January unveiling of his budget proposal, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he would not raise taxes. Instead he's proposing:
About $8.5 billion in spending cuts targeting welfare, prisons, transportation and environmental programs.
Raising money by rolling back recent corporate tax breaks and expanding oil drilling off the Santa Barbara coast.
Covering about $1.4 billion of the gap through employee compensation changes.
Getting federal lawmakers to change the way programs are reimbursed in order to generate another $6.9 billion for California. However, a report by the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office later said the chances of securing that money “are almost non-existent.”
In Friday's budget workshop, Coachella Valley residents put a high priority on education spending and voted to increases taxes on corporations and vehicles. The event also was broadcast live online.
The crowd's budget decisions reduced the multi-year budget deficit to $4.3 billion. However, many of their policy decisions did not get a two-thirds approval, as is needed when lawmakers pass a budget in Sacramento.
The discussion also touched on several policy issues that struck a chord with residents, notably the amount that's spent on prisoner health care, on In-Home Supportive Services and even on the salaries of lawmakers' staffers.
Education was the priority for Hank and Derry Levy of Palm Springs, who have grandchildren.
“California was the top in the country and now the quality is suffering,” Derry Levy told The Desert Sun. “I'm paying a lot (in taxes) and I'm thinking, ‘What am I getting for it?'”
Education also was the theme during lawmakers' afternoon tour of College of the Desert's Desert Energy Enterprise Center.
lt;p>Officials there stressed training programs that are helping the unemployed and under-employed qualify for the growing green collar industry.
Programs like these can prosper with “predictable, ongoing funding,” said Edwin Deas, COD's vice president of administrative services.
“Give us the tools and we can create the training,” he said.
Past Forums
Resources
Click on the following links to learn more about California's Fiscal Emergency:
Contact the Office
Capitol Office
State Capitol
P.O. Box 942849
Sacramento, CA 94249-0046
Tel: (916) 319-2046
Fax: (916) 319-2146