By John A. Perez and Darrell Steinberg
Special to The Bee
Published Thursday, Aug. 05, 2010

California is currently facing one of its most urgent moments since the Great Depression. The global recession has battered our budget, caused millions of jobs to be lost and threatened our state's golden dream of opportunities for all our citizens.

The decisions we make to close the deficit will define California for years to come, so it's vital that we make the right decisions with the budget. We must adopt a budget that keeps faith with the values and priorities of Californians, is focused on their most urgent concerns and closes our deficit without destroying a fragile economic recovery.

Sadly, the governor and legislative Republicans have not stepped up with realistic solutions. Instead they irresponsibly refuse to compromise and insist on an exclusively ideological approach that will wipe out hundreds of thousands of jobs for teachers, cops, firefighters and the employees and owners of small businesses throughout California. That is not a future Californians want.

Legislative Democrats take our responsibility seriously, and we have proposed a balanced, fair and creative solution to closing our deficit. Despite making more than $30 billion in cuts over the last two years we recognize that a credible solution must include additional painful cuts. We offer billions more in additional cuts to virtually every program that receives state funding, including education. But we draw a smart line to ensure that cuts don't unduly impede the state's economic recovery. We propose significant reforms to fix our broken tax system.

Cutting spending is a necessity, not a virtue unto itself. We reject the governor's unrealistic and economically shortsighted proposals to wipe out investments that help Californians keep their jobs. We reject gratuitous cuts to critical services for vulnerable children, the disabled and the elderly. By holding the line, our plan ensures that $5 billion in federal money continues to flow into California's economy.

Our proposal also recognizes that job creation is central to solving our state's budget deficit and improving our economy. Our plan saves hundreds of thousands of jobs that the governor's plan would eliminate. We also include funding to help small businesses create thousands of new jobs throughout California.

We propose essential reform to the state's tax code. Our proposal reduces the overall tax burden for Californians, reduces state revenue volatility, and stimulates our economy. The proposal makes modest increases in taxes that are federally deductible, while dramatically cutting the state sales tax. We also propose closing an unfair loophole for big oil companies and delaying new corporate tax breaks that haven't taken effect yet. If California's working families must be asked to sacrifice, it's fundamentally fair that huge corporations and big oil companies bear some of the burden as well.

The "California Jobs Budget" reflects our commitment to keeping faith with California's values while finding creative solutions to our most urgent challenges. We are confident that this is a plan that closes our deficit without ruining our recovery.

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