California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled drastic budget cuts on Thursday to cope with the worst fiscal crisis of his tenure.
Under the governor's 141 billion-dollar spending plan, the state would reduce health care programs for the poor, close 48 state parks and release tens of thousands of nonviolent inmates early.
At the same time, Schwarzenegger proposed expanding the state's debt load by more than 40 billion dollars to finance more construction at public schools, colleges and other major institutions.
The reductions were essential to close a 14.5 billion-dollar deficit created by the slumping housing sector and other economic factors, Schwarzenegger said in remarks published on the Los Angeles Times Website.
Under Schwarzenegger's proposals, health and human services spending would be reduced by 4.7 billion dollars and education by 4.4 billion dollars.
As he has in past years, Schwarzenegger also proposed steep reductions in the state's welfare program, CalWORKS. He would lower spending by 462 million dollars. He would also reduce payment rates for foster families and adoption programs and suspend planned cost-of-living increases for people on public disability programs. The governor's plan would also reduce payments for in-home supportive services aides.
The proposals conflict with most everything Schwarzenegger said about health care last year when he pushed a 14 billion-dollar plan to expand coverage for Californians and increase efforts for preventive care, the Los Angeles Times said.
That plan, which passed the state Assembly last month and is now in the Senate, aims to raise payments to those who care for the poor and expand the very programs the governor now suggests reducing.
Despite the state's substantial existing debt, Schwarzenegger proposed asking voters for permission to borrow 38.3 billion dollars more this year, with 11.9 billion dollars to expand and improve the state's water supply, 11.6 billion dollars to pay for public school construction projects, 12.3 billion for community college and university building projects, and two billion dollars to improve the state's court facilities.
Source:Xinhua
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