California Needs a 'Recovery Plan'

In Response to Governor's "State of the State" speech, Butte County State Budget Coalition demands a state budget that preserves and creates jobs, limits cuts by increasing revenue

CALIFORNIA RECOVERY PLAN:

Create Jobs / Invest in Workers

Use every tool we have to put people back to work!

1.      Preserve threatened jobs, especially in human services industry; create a jobs program that works for rural California and our specific needs

2.      Families First policies – fund child care, disability programs, In-Home Supportive Services; adult/seniors day care, and other programs to help parents find work

Provide a Strong Safety Net & Eliminate Wasteful Bureaucracy

1.      Disabled and economically-disadvantaged Californians have endured years of brutal cuts to life-sustaining programs.  Find the courage to end this practice. 

2.      Make it easier, not harder, to help families get access to services & eliminate bureaucracy that gets in the way

3.      Support seniors with home health care / Support families with food / Support kids with basic needs grants

Bring Home the Federal Funds & Enhance State Revenue

A once in a generation opportunity is passing us by!

1.      ARRA/Stimulus opened a lot of doors to new funds, but California is walking the other way

2.      Do it now, do it fast , do it big – there are huge dollars at stake with a limited window of time to do something about it

3.      Find common-sense solutions to increasing state revenue. Explore “sin taxes” and close unnecessary corporate tax loopholes. End billion-dollar tax give-aways: tax oil producers like every other oil-producing state in the country does 

January 8, Chico, CA – In response to Governor Schwarzenegger's "State of the State" speech and anticipated budget proposal for FY 2010-11, dozens of local seniors, persons with disabilities and working families will join together on the steps of City Hall  to call on state leaders to demand a "California Recovery Plan." 

As the country faces one of the worst economic recessions in decades, Californians are in desperate need for a state budget plan that creates jobs and invests in our workers, provides a sound safety net for where there are no jobs, brings home Federal dollars and finds common-sense solutions for increasing state revenue for the relief of struggling families.

Through fair and comprehensive Recovery Plan, California could help alleviate the pressures on working families and other struggling Californian's by creating jobs, as well as investing in programs and services, such as child care, adult day care and home health programs that will help California’s families get back to work and back on their feet.

While Coalition members found some agreement in proposals the Governor outlined in his Wednesday speech, such as his call for a "jobs program," they remain highly skeptical of his long-term intentions. Linda Furr, of the Butte County League of Women Voters, pointed out that, "A jobs program first needs to preserve jobs we already have, especially in the human services sector - jobs that provide millions of dollars to the local economy and jobs that the Governor plans to eliminate in his budget."

But the reality of this difficult economic climate means that we have to acknowledge that unemployment isn't just going to go away. That's why California needs to ensure that a strong safety net is there when jobs aren't, or can't be created in the near future, to make sure that those California families who can't find work have what they need to weather this economic storm.

"Governor Schwarzenegger said that he has 'no choice' when it comes to cutting and eliminating state human service programs.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The truth is: he is choosing to devastate the lives of thousands of Californians rather than ask for relatively small sacrifices from his corporate benefactors," said Frank Smith, a Chico organizer of the community group "DOGFITE" (Disability Organizing Group for Initiating Total Equality).

The Coalition is also calling for both new federal and increased state revenue to fill this year's budget gap. While facing yet another $20 billion budget deficit, California can't afford to pass up millions of federal dollars that would help put the state back on the road to recovery. This includes an effort to:

-          End state-worker furloughs that have seriously delayed millions of dollars in federal assistance

-          Help families access Earned Income Tax Credit, TANF benefits, Health Insurance and other federally funded assistance

-          Promote smart "matching" at the state level to draw down hundreds of millions of federal dollars