Last Updated on July 2, 2020 by
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:
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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.