Workers Angered as State Furloughs are Upheld
Workers at the San Jose DMV are angry about a State Supreme Court ruling that upholds Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's furloughs. Some employees left work yesterday wondering how they're going to pay the rent.
When he first heard about the furlough, Lou Salinas said he was glad to have Friday off of work, but then he remembered the last time he had to take three unpaid days off.
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"When the furloughs were announced last June I had to move out of my apartment because I couldn't' make ends meet," said Salinas.
The State Supreme holds a hearing September 8th on whether the governor was within his rights to order the furloughs. Along with his lighter wallet, Salinas says he's expecting longer lines for customers.
"Come Monday, we have a line out the front door, and sometimes halfway down the block," said Salinas. "There are like 200 people waiting to get in."
CA Set to Start Issuing IOUs
California has been without a budget since July first, and now, it appears, the state is just weeks away from running out of money.
State Controller John Chiang said Wednesday he'll have to start issuing IOUs next month to businesses that contract with the state if a budget isn't passed by then.
California is facing a $19 billion budget shortfall.
Democratic legislators are in a stalemate with Governor Schwarzenegger and GOP lawmakers. Democrats want to see a budget with tax increases, while Republicans insist on a plan that raises no taxes and relies heavily on spending cuts.
Protests in the State Capitol
Meanwhile, a protest over proposed California budget cuts spilled into the streets of the state capital and led to the arrest of nearly two dozen people who blocked a downtown intersection.
Sacramento police arrested 22 people who blocked a major artery in front of the Capitol for several hours Wednesday afternoon. One was booked into jail on suspicion of inciting disorder, while the others were cited and released.
No injuries were reported.
The protesters, some in wheelchairs, were angry about cuts proposed by Governor Schwarzenegger to in-home health care services. They carried an effigy of the governor holding an ax and wearing a sign reading "Cuts Kill."
One of the event coordinator says it was intended to remind policymakers "that real people's lives are at stake" in budget cuts.
