Sacramento– Today, Assemblymember Devon Mathis (R-Visalia) pushes back against an unbalanced budget. June 15 has been the designated date by which the California Legislature must act on the state budget. The deadline was given a little more authority a decade ago by requiring forfeiture of legislators’ pay for every day the budget is not passed. To prevent this loss, the budget process was hastily expedited with little public or legislative participation.
“Once again we see more sleight of hand from the majority party,” said Mathis. “All we did today was ratify a half-cooked framework. Given the current circumstances and with so many struggling families, we should be prioritizing ways to make California more affordable.”
“So many Californians are hurting financially, and businesses are being pushed to their limits. However, here we sit in Sacramento, fast-tracking a budget that has little substance. Would you build a house with no real foundation? While this budget does protect vital services for which I have been advocating for years, it accomplishes these ends with gimmicks and budgetary tricks. All these tactics do is rob Peter to pay Paul. Unfortunately, Paul happens to be future generations of Californians.”
“Right now, this legislative body should be doing everything possible to get people back to work and give a hand-up to our business community. We do not need to include a $4.4 billion tax increase on businesses; we do not need to spend millions trying to change the state’s cap and trade program to make it the piggy bank of California. Our people and businesses can barely afford to keep the lights on right now. It is time for us to do what is right and truly make California a place where people can afford to live and do business.
