|
February 4, 2009
Your Urgent Help Needed To Stop Bad Budget Deal
Dear FCL Supporter,
Time is of the essence!
A code of silence surrounds current budget negotiations at the State Capitol over fears that powerful interests could derail a budget deal.
Rumors abound that a budget deal is in the works, and while we anticipate that there will be painful cuts, we are also hearing that the legislative leaders will agree to a hard spending cap and a new round of corporate tax breaks that could cost the state between $1 and $2 billion per year.
The state’s cash crisis has created a new sense of urgency at the Capitol, and our fear is that legislators will accede to minority interests out of desperation. As a result, lawmakers could be compelled to make poor choices that will negatively impact Californian’s for generations to come (see February 1 Action Alert).
TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE -- TAKE ACTION NOW!
Please write letters and make phone calls to Governor Schwarzenegger and party leaders. Tell them to:
- Reject a hard spending cap. Budgets are balanced by making tough choices, not by imposing rigid formulas.
- Reject proposals to cut corporate income taxes. According to the California Budget Project, corporate income tax collections have declined by half since 1981.
- Protect the state’s safety net from severe cuts that threaten the health and wellbeing of our most vulnerable residents. A strong safety net also provides economic stimulus and increases the prosperity of local communities.
- Reject the proposed increase in the state sales tax. Increase the personal income tax rate on the highest incomes instead.
- Accept the governor’s proposal to end parole for low-level prisoners who have not been convicted of a serious or violent felony, or a sex offense. Other states do this with no negligible impact on public safety.
- Take “off budget” items (weakening environmental laws and workplace regulations) out of budget negotiations. The budget impacts all Californians. It should never be a mechanism for extorting favors for special interests.
Letters should be addressed to:
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 445-2841
Fax: (916) 558-3160
Senate Majority Leader Darrell Steinberg
State Capitol
Room 205
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 651-4006
Fax: (916) 323-2263
Senate Minority Leader Dave Cogdill
State Capitol
Room 305
Sacramento, CA 95184
Phone: (916) 651-4014
Fax: (916) 327-3523
Assembly Speaker Karen Bass
State Capitol
Room 219
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 319-2047
Fax: (916) 319-2147
Assembly Minority Leader Mike Villines
State Capitol
Room 3104
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 319-2029
Fax: (916) 319-2129
Sincerely,
Jim Lindburg
Legislative Advocate
Friends Committee on Legislation
717 K Street, Suite 500-B
Sacramento, CA 95814
Ph: (916) 443-3734
Fax: (916) 448-6109
|
