January 8, 2004
| TO: | Cla Members/ Systems/ Network Contacts |
| FROM: | Mike Dillon, Lobbyist Christina Dillon, Lobbyist |
| RE: | News From The Capitol |
I. PREPARING FOR A "SHOCK AND AWE" BUDGET TO BE RELEASED FRIDAY
Tuesday night, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger held his much anticipated State of the State address in the Assembly Chambers, with legislators, constitutional officers, and a massive media pool looking on in interest. In our collective memory we can never remember such excitement over the annual gubernatorial speech. The North Lawn of the Capitol was blanketed with media tents, as more than 250 media credentials, including media from five foreign countries, were issued to those looking to cover the Governor's speech.
As you have probably read in your local papers, the Governor pledged to embark upon "a new spirit" in the Capitol, with a "new common cause." He stressed the need for California voters to approve a $15 billion debt recovery bond that the legislature approved in late 2003, to "avoid economic chaos." Governor Schwarzenegger stressed that his Budget proposal to be released on Friday will highlight cuts, instead of taxes, as "we can't tax our way out of this problem. A tax increase would be the final nail in the coffin." This desire to find massive cuts in the state Budget seems to correspond to information we received on Monday from a noted political reporter. He told us that he had heard the cuts were going to be so extensive that people "should be prepared for shock and awe" when the detailed plan is released.
After the Governor's speech on Tuesday, several Democrats voiced their concern over the Governor's unwillingness to increase taxes, and potentially jeopardize programs with deep cuts. This year's Budget should prove to be no less dramatic and nail-biting than last year's. We will be putting out an alert to the field on Friday afternoon when we have had a chance to review the Governor's Budget in detail.
II. SENATOR ALPERT WILL INTRODUCE NEW LIBRARY BOND BILL IN 2004
Senator Dede Alpert, the Chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, and member of the Proposition 14 Library Construction and Renovation Bond Board, has declared her intent to introduce a new library construction and renovation bond for the upcoming year. You may recall that Senator Alpert, a tireless champion for libraries, carried SB 40 last year, on behalf of CLA. The bill would have provided funding for library construction, but was stalled in the middle of the session, when State Treasurer Angelides asked all bond authors to place their measures on hold until the state's tremendous Budget deficit could be addressed. The Senator then placed her measure on her own Senate Appropriations "suspense file" indefinitely.
In December, Senator Alpert announced that she would be proceeding with her SB 40 in 2004, as the need for more library construction grants is mounting daily. However, faced with legislative deadlines for the 2003-04 session, Senator Alpert would have to hurriedly move her SB 40 off of the "Suspense File" to the Senate Floor, and out of its so-called "house of origin (the Senate) by the end of this month. Noting that there are numerous competing bond measures also sitting on the Appropriations "Suspense File," Senator Alpert has chosen to introduce a brand new library bond measure for 2004. This will give CLA more time to work with the author, the new Administration, and secure bi-partisan support for our measure. We will alert you when the bill is officially introduced, and outline the pertinent details of the measure.