California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the 2010-11 budget agreement on Oct. 8—a record-breaking 100 days after the budget year began. Using 23 line-item vetoes to eliminate $1.2 billion in proposed spending, Schwarzenegger continued his outright attack on the most oppressed sectors of society, mainly poor children and AIDS patients.
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Programs such as CalWORKs were cut by an appalling $365.9 million—$256 million of it coming from the complete elimination of child care subsidies. The cuts to CalWORKs will lead to the immediate loss of child care services for more than 30,000 poor and working families who are frantically searching for alternatives.
Public education will suffer the effects of a $2 billion deferment, forcing K-12 and community colleges to take measures such as increased class sizes, tuition hikes, cuts in class offerings and more.
Imprisoned workers are facing dire cuts as more than $1 billion in health care costs are slashed while racist prison guards, overcrowding, extended terms and trumped up sentences remain the norm.
Service Employees International Union Local 1000, the union representing over 100,000 state civil service workers, was forced to concede to a 3 percent increase in pension costs.
The rich, however, continue to have their pockets lined by the state, despite the budget crisis. One of the wealthiest families in the state, who own a timber company in northern California, received a $30 million tax break. Such tax breaks clearly illustrate the role of the government under capitalism—to protect the profits of the class of owners while providing workers with the absolute minimum necessary to keep them working.
A broad-based fight-back movement that includes students, workers, unemployed and youth of all nationalities must be organized to defend against budget cuts. The Party for Socialism and Liberation will continue to fight back against budget cuts in California and throughout the country. Stop the cuts and tax the rich!
