Republican Says California Budget Surplus Should Go To Taxpayers
SACRAMENTO (AP) - The top Republican on the Assembly budget committee says the state's budget surplus shows that Californians pay too much in taxes.
Assemblyman Jay Obernolte of Hesperia said Wednesday that California's substantial budget surplus should ideally be returned to taxpayers.
He was reacting to Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown's nearly $132 billion general fund spending proposal.
The governor seeks to put an additional $5 billion into a Rainy Day Fund for what he says is an inevitable recession.
Obernolte says that's a good start but the state must do even more to prepare. He says the surplus should be spent on one-time investments instead of new programs that would commit the state to future ongoing spending.
He also wants to pay down debt and liabilities that he said currently exceed $200 billion.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press.