Wow! A state budget passed on time! Wow! But what kind of “wow” is it?

Once again we’re left with a “smoke and mirrors” budget that doesn’t solve the problem and just passes the deficit to the next year. SO far Governor Brown has stood behind his campaign pledge and vetoed this budget because of the usual “Smoke and Mirrors,” but how long will he do so?

What we need are politicians that instead of bending to special interests, will stand up for the best needs of the state, which is a REAL balanced budget.  But that isn’t going to happen. If you look back to 1979, the voters passed the Gann Limit initiative. This measure limited the growth of government based upon population and inflation. It mandated self-constraint, however, even with so many good ideas, it’s been severely weakened (1988 and 1990 ballots, as a start) to the point that it is virtually powerless.

Government is like a child always in need of money, continuously reliant on his parents. As the kid gets older he continues to go back asking for and getting money, with the parents warning him that he needs to gain better fiscal control and manage his funds. The kid promises to do better, but continues to get support from his parents, until — suffering financially themselves — they finally say “No” and mean it. The child is now forced to take drastic measures to cut back on his finances, but he actually learns from the experience and now lives BELOW his means (very unlike government).

The failure of state politicians to create a rainy day fund annoys the heck out of me. Come on here! Once again, Sacramento needs to live BELOW its means in tax revenue. I was taught by my parents and still follow their teachings (and I’m 51) to set money aside for a vacation, for a car, for house repairs, etc., so when the time comes, I’m prepared. Why can’t Sacramento???

So how long are we going to allow Sacramento to continue to pick our pockets with the promise of doing better next time? It is time for us to stand tough and say “No more” and demand that Sacramento learn to live below its means. How can they do that?

Back in 2009 I wrote a short piece in the Flashreport with my suggestions regarding the constant budget problems in Sacramento. While my ideas might not be perfect, I’ve yet to see anyone else come up with a workable solution.