The governor then called an immediate special session of the legislature on the current-year budget due to fiscal emergency.
The proposed budget is largely balanced on the back of cuts to health and human services, including large cuts to Medi-Cal, In-Home Supportive Services, CalWorks, Healthy Families, and SSI. Significant cuts are also proposed for state employee compensation ($1.6 billion) and to corrections ($1.2 billion).
One of the most interesting nuggets of the budget is a proposal to transfer $4.2 million from the Emergency Housing and Assistance Fund to the state's general fund. The fact that there is money to transfer from this program comes as a shock to advocates and to members of the legislature who had been fighting for these funds to be restored since the governor blue-penciled them in 2008.
Apparently these funds are interest revenue from emergency housing funds appropriated in the past, and from unallocated funds from previous years. With these funds now identified, advocates will argue that they be used for their intended purpose of emergency housing operations rather than transferred to the general fund.
Additional items of note include:
Another attempt to transfer $452.3 million in Mental Health Services Act (Proposition 63) funds to pay for existing mental health services. This would require voter approval in the June 2010 election to amend the non-supplantation provision of the act. Additionally, if federal funding does not come through, the transfer amount will increase to $847 million.
The governor also proposes the elimination of the Office of Planning and Research. The duties of OPR's planning and policy development would be moved to other state departments.
Elimination of funding ($36 million) for the Transitional Housing Placement for Foster Youth-Plus Program.
Take Action on on redevelopment and help protect housing funds now!
In continuing efforts to increase access to supportive housing for high utilizers of public health resources, and maximize the efficient use of scarce public resources, City and County Departments issued the first collaborative Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) last month.
