California Dysfunction

What's it going to take? Clearly, California legislators have either forgotten, or conveniently ignore the fact that they serve at our suffrage.

Today, the state has started paying vendors and other state workers with IOU's, because the state Senate and Assembly could not, or will not make any cuts in government. When they talk about cuts, they always talk about cutting schools, law enforcement, prisons, and in the latest discussions, cutting funding to health services to the handicapped.

Recently, California voters overwhelmingly shot down 5 of 6 ballot measures, all of which would have increased taxes, fees, or otherwise make things more uncomfortable to live in California.

Tell you what? How about you and I help with the process? Here's a link to every State Agency in California: http://www.ca.gov/About/Government/agencyindex.html

Peruse the list and ask yourself how many of these agencies California can temporarily do without, with the perspective that Legislators passed over each and every one of these agencies in favor of cutting schools, prisons, law enforcement and health care services.

I'll get the ball rolling with a few:

• The California Department of Aging. I get it, we get old. Shut it down
  • Savings: $212,225,000
  
  
• California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission - Who needs money-matters advice from a near-bankrupt government? Nix!
  
  • Savings: $3,115,000
  
  
• California Volunteers. Charged with increasing the number of Californians involved with service and volunteerism throughout the state, but it costs a ton of money to do it? Teach by example and volunteer!
  
  • Savings: $34,732,000
  
  
• CalPERS! OK, don't cut it completely, but it costs huge bucks to administrate it. In this day and age, one guy with a good computer program can administrate it.
  
  • Savings: $172,007,000

Lawmakers have been at this for years. I spent 10 minutes and I found more than $422,000,000 to cut. I bet you can find a lot more. The target is $25,000,000,000. Get going.

The next step is to start making some noise with your legislators. Remind them who they work for, and let them know if they don't start operating responsibly, you may not suffer their nonsense any longer.

The dollar figures are straight out of the Governor's Proposed Budget (which is a lot cheaper than the actual budget).

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