California Budget Crisis Diaries: Day 12 of the budget impasse

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California Budget Crisis Diaries: Day 12 of the budget impasse
By Hoa Quach, SDNN

California’s elected leaders had little to celebrate at the close of business on Friday, because they had to spend their weekend at the Capitol. But a new week has begun, and legislators are confident progress has been made. Here’s a recap of what happened in Sacramento while the rest of the state’s residents were soaking in the great weather.

Days away: The Big 5 (Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and party leaders) held a series of closed-door meetings during the weekend - and they now say a budget agreement may be reached as early as Friday. This is good news considering financial experts estimated last week that a balanced budget may not be reached until August or later.

Herculean reforms: Schwarzenegger - channeling his “Hercules” movie character - is demanding massive reforms. Although some of his proposals caused frustration with Assembly Speaker Karen Bass (D-San Diego), who went as far as to boycott meetings, the Governor is still proposing them. His proposed reforms include changing California’s welfare, also known as CalWorks.

“Our welfare program is based on joint responsibility,” said Schwarzenegger in his weekly radio address. “We in government give people the bootstrap but they have to pull themselves up. The only problem is that right now, nearly 80 percent of California’s recipients are not meeting simple federal work requirements but the families still receive the checks and the benefits..." Read more

California Budget Crisis Diaries- A day by day update