Increasing the earned income tax credit, expanding Medi-Cal to cover all the uninsured, making early education available to all 4-year-olds. Those are among the budget priorities released today by Assembly Budget Committee Chairman Phil Ting (D-San Francisco).
He says the state is on better financial footing now, but still has years of cuts to make up for.
“We cannot ignore the fact that not all Californians have benefited from our state’s renewed prosperity," Ting says.
His committee's budget proposal uses projections from the Legislative Analyst's Office, which assumes $7.5 billion in discretionary funds for the 2018-2019 fiscal year. Of that, Ting proposes putting $3.2 billion in a reserve fund and using $4.3 billion to pay down debts and fund various projects. He says many of the priorities listed in his plan could be phased in and out as needed.
As it's now written, Ting says, the federal tax bill being considered in Congress would not directly affect the state budget. But that could change.