California expects a record $97.5B budget surplus

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/13/us/california-budget-surplus.html

by s1artibartfast • 4 years ago

23 27 4 years ago

nytimes.com

blinded2• 4 years ago

maybe it can buy a river or water from other states.

s1artibartfast3• 4 years ago

It could buy the water rights from a good portion of the states almond farmers.

ceph_• 4 years ago

Better yet, the cattle ranchers.

arkis22• 4 years ago

interestingly, a housing subsidy for lower income families has been proposed.

the WSJ bills it as 10 billion. The LA times bills it as 1 billion for "the next decade". It's all in the phrasing right?

regardless of the phrasing, to me it sounds like free money for homeowners and an anchor on the lower income if property prices dont keep increasing.

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-05-11/new-cali...

https://www.wsj.com/articles/california-legislative-leader-w...

blinded2• 4 years ago

Can't help but think this will create more buyers without more supply which will only drive up prices higher.

thghtihadanacct2• 4 years ago

Its eventually gonna buy a desal plant somewhere people wont complain and ship water all over.

partiallypro• 4 years ago

There are already a few in California. Environmentalists don't like them, so there will be no real expansion of them and certainly not to the level of being a net exporter.

Manuel_D• 4 years ago

Desalination only really makes sense with a surplus of energy. Driving desalination with the cooling system of a nuclear power plant would make sense, as it's otherwise wasted energy. But that's not popular in California, so that leaves other options like osmosis membranes that require energy.

vondur2• 4 years ago

Since the state has like 350 billion in deficit, they should consider that first.

wahern• 4 years ago

Do you mean debt? Or are you referring to some sort of projected, aggregate deficit?

thghtihadanacct2• 4 years ago

We got projects to pay for. How many big budget organizations out there dont hold debt? Lets look at the Feds debt while we at it, or apples. Luckily, this 100B surplus is just from this year and that debt gets paid over time ... mostly to people in california.

vondur2• 4 years ago

Well, the two large California pension systems are both each underfunded for over 100 billion each.

smileysteve• 4 years ago

A surplus inherently means there is not a deficit

mrtweetyhack• 4 years ago

It's called over taxation

mrgordon• 4 years ago

No they just spent less while schools were closed during Covid

s1artibartfast3• 4 years ago

This isn't true. it is the result of record tax collection, not savings or cost cutting. California token record taxes each year during the pandemic

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/QTAXTOTALQTAXCAT3CANO

Proven• 4 years ago

“No other state in American history has ever experienced a surplus as large as this,” Mr. Newsom said, outlining revisions to spending he first proposed in January for the 12 months starting in July.

As if that has something to do with how incompetently the state is run, rather than the inflation caused by the Fed and enormous federal overspending.

Once again, as California heads into a gubernatorial election, the massive surplus allows Mr. Newsom to sprinkle cash across the state.

Once again, rare gains will be spent on vote buying, and next year when record budget deficit hits California, they'll whine how they have no choice but borrow more and increase debt and taxes.

hattmall• 4 years ago

It should almost all go to education. That's where it came from, the surplus is basically the result of closing schools and shutting down services for nearly two years, coupled with the federal bailouts of course which account for about 40 billion. They should really save the money to deal with the fallout of many students being two years behind in their most formative years.

Let's not pretend California has suddenly become fiscally responsible.

SamReidHughes2• 4 years ago

What would spending 97.5B more on education accomplish?

hansvm2• 4 years ago

At current market rates it would enable class sizes of ~4 with more highly paid individuals functioning as teachers.

s1artibartfast3• 4 years ago

This isn't true. it is the result of record tax collection, not savings or cost cutting.

California took in record taxes each year during the pandemic

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/QTAXTOTALQTAXCAT3CANO

electriclove• 4 years ago

Solve homelessness in the state?

Nah..

California expects a record $97.5B budget surplus

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