Davis Should Look Past the Next Election
“Davis Orders Hiring Freeze, New Budget Cuts” (Oct. 24) was disheartening. We now see that Gov. Gray Davis not only mishandled the energy crisis in California but has mismanaged our state’s budget. The governor has been on a spending spree the last two years as he sought to reward his political backers. Spending in the state’s general fund has increased 25% in the last two years ($66.5 billion in 1999-2000 to $82.9 billion in 2001-2002).
The governor took what was temporary, one-time money (i.e., capital gains tax revenue) and created structural increases in the budget that will now have to be reduced. The substantial debt California incurred due to the mismanagement of the electricity crisis has made matters even worse.
If the governor’s foresight went beyond the next election, our state would not be in such a poor financial position.
Gregory McGinity
Playa del Rey
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