Proposition 56, the initiative designed to eliminate budget deadlock, has been called the “Budget Accountability Act” by supporters and the “Blank Check Proposition” by opponents.
Whatever one calls it, Proposition 56 promises to impact the state budget process, spending and taxes, as well as higher education.
Proposition 56 primarily calls for the lowering of the percentage of votes needed to pass budget resolutions in the Legislature from the current two-thirds majority to 55 percent.
The initiative also requires 25 percent of excess state revenue to be put aside, only to be spent under special circumstances.
As a punitive measure for late state budgets, the proposition requires that the legislators’ and governor’s salaries be withheld when budgets are not passed on time, which would save the state approximately $50,000 a day when the budget is late. The Legislature is also forced to stay in session until a budget is passed.
Proponents of Proposition 56 say the Legislature needs to be held accountable for passing a budget on time and that the initiative will make timely budget ratification easier.
California has not approved a budget on time for 17 years and was more than a month late last year in passing the budget.
Opponents of the proposition are most concerned with the lowering of the votes needed to raise taxes from the current two-thirds majority to 55 percent, and say Proposition 56 is an attempt to increase spending and make raising taxes easier.
Greg Turner, General Council of the California Taxpayers Association, said Proposition 56 “puts one party in control of raising taxes in California. It is essentially about raising taxes.”
A late budget has many implications for public schools, as well as the University of California and California State University systems.
Supporters of the initiative say the proposition will help in university budget planning, as university administrations won’t be forced to plan spending without knowing how much money will be available.
John Travis, President of the California Faculty Association, which represents Cal State faculty, said, “If it passes and forces the Legislature to pass budgets on time, we will have greater ability to predict what funds will be available for the fall semester or quarter.”
When the administration is forced to plan enrollment and funding without knowing what spending the actual budget will entail, it makes it easy for colleges to over-enroll. California Faculty Association Treasurer Kim Geron said a late budget “plays havoc with enrollment.”
The fiscal impact of the proposition will depend entirely on the spending and taxing proposals the Legislature enacts.
The budget process would be streamlined and the potential for deadlock decreased, but taxes and spending could be raised because the Democratic majority in the state Legislature could more easily muster 55 percent of the vote without Republican support.