Senate GOP Leaders Release Wish List For Calif. Budget
SACRAMENTO (CBS/AP) — After months of talks but no real progress, negotiations over solving California's budget deficit appear to be stalled after Republican lawmakers released a list of 53 policy changes and budget reforms.
They say getting those changes is their price for obtaining enough GOP support to call a special election. Gov. Jerry Brown wants voters to decide whether to extend increases to certain taxes enacted two years ago as part of his plan to close the shortfall.
But the GOP wish list, released more than 2 1/2 months after Brown released his budget proposal, angered Democratic legislative leaders, who called it overreaching.
On the list, pension cuts for current and former employees, ending the 10-year system for teachers facing layoffs and a hard cap on future state spending, KNX 1070's Ed Mertz reports.
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Assembly Speaker John Perez of Los Angeles says if Republicans don't want to compromise, "they'll force us to act as if they are not parties to this discussion."
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