Gov. Gavin Newsom
On Friday morning, Gov. Gavin Newsom will release his revised 2022-2023 state budget.
His proposal will focus on “building on the state’s ongoing work to confront California’s greatest existential threats, bolster our economic growth and make historic investments in California’s future,” his office said.
The revised budget proposal will be shared at approximately 10 a.m. and live-streamed on the governor’s Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages. It can be watched on TV stations on the TVu Grid as “CA_Governor_Pack” and on the LiveU Matrix under “California Governor.”
Gov. Newsom, who is up for re-election this year, originally presented his $286.4 billion budget in January. The spending plan included billions earmarked for transportation projects, including $4.2 billion for the construction of an electrified high-speed rail in the Central Valley.
California has a projected surplus of $45.7 billion, including nearly $21 billion for discretionary purposes.
The governor’s original budget proposal included $119 billion for K-12 education and about $309 million for the state’s preschool program, designated to bolster services for dual-language learners and students with disabilities.
It earmarked $1.5 billion for wildfire prevention and an additional $1.2 billion for other forest health and fire prevention investments over the next two years.
Ahead of the unveiled revised budget plan, the California Budget & Policy Center said it was looking for how Gov. Newsom will continue to address aid for people experiencing homelessness.
His January plan called for $2 billion for investments in behavioral health housing and encampment cleanup grants.
“The most effective strategies to address homelessness follow a housing-first approach that connects people with permanent housing first and then follows with services as needed,” the California Budget & Policy Center said.
Attention is also on whether the revised budget will include health care for part-time instructors at community colleges. His original plan included a $200 million fund to help cover health care costs, and a spokesperson for the California Federation of Teachers told EdSource that funding is expected to remain in the revised budget.
Additionally, the California Budget & Policy Center is looking to see whether Gov. Newsom’s updated proposal will include funding to improve the state’s paid family leave or disability insurance programs or immediately fund Medi-Cal for undocumented adult immigrants who have been excluded from the program.
email: kschallhorn@newspress.com
