Riordan Hits Davis on Budget

Republican gubernatorial hopeful Richard Riordan blamed Gov. Gray Davis for California’s growing fiscal woes, which could have been avoided, he said Friday, just like the energy crisis.

“A Dick Riordan budget would not look like a Gray Davis budget,” Riordan said during a speech at the Public Policy Institute in San Francisco.

Riordan said he would employ a combination of cuts and borrowing to balance California’s books, which he said are out of whack because of mismanagement by Davis. He said he favors a zero-based budgeting approach to cut the size of state bureaucracy and that he would appoint “inspector generals” to major state agencies to make them run more efficiently.

“I will make the departments justify every dollar they spend,” Riordan said.

A tough review of “thousands” of regulations that govern how businesses in California operate is also necessary, he said. He described California as an “anti-business” state whose numerous regulations are probably depriving residents of jobs.

Riordan placed responsibility for the state’s fiscal woes mainly with Democrat Davis, whom he accused of using budget surpluses to overexpand state government. Riordan said he would have spent the unexpected windfalls on one-time infrastructure expenditures as opposed to ongoing ones.

Riordan also took issue with Davis for failing to react quickly enough to the bust of California’s high-tech sector, which has contributed to the sharp downturn in tax revenue that is straining the state’s finances. The revenue shortfall is helping fuel predictions that California will face a deficit of $12 billion or more by the end of the 2002-03 budget period. The state’s current spending plan is about $103 billion.

Riordan aimed some of his sharpest criticism, however, at Davis’ refusal earlier this year to expand spending on school textbooks.

“This is a shameful display of mismanagement that is affecting our children’s future,” Riordan said. “It’s more than shameful, it’s downright immoral.”

Davis cited looming budget cuts when he vetoed legislation in October that would have earmarked $1 billion over four years for new textbooks. His administration has said that millions of dollars already allocated for textbooks remain unspent.

Garry South, chief political consultant to Davis, brushed aside Riordan’s contentions as ridiculous, noting that Davis began tightening the purse strings in May. The governor, he added, has vetoed $7.4 billion in spending since he took office three years ago.

“The whole hallmark of his entire administration and career has been one of fiscal responsibility,” South said.

Riordan also renewed his criticism of Davis’ handling of the state’s energy crisis and took fresh aim at S. David Freeman, who ran Los Angeles’ public utility under Riordan but now serves as Davis’ energy czar.

Prior to leaving the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, Freeman “learned I was about to fire him and I had the support of the City Council,” Riordan said.

Freeman has said that Riordan was jealous of him. “I did not know he was planning to fire me . . . and I doubt seriously he had the support of the City Council,” Freeman said Friday.

Riordan, who has been known for occasional public misstatements, provided his foes with fresh fodder Friday. At one point during his speech, he appeared to forget which office he is seeking.

“Restoring fiscal responsibility, applying tough management to the state’s money problems is one of the reasons I’m running for mayor,” Riordan told the crowd.