Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday unveiled a $286 billion state budget proposal for 2022-23 that invests in COVID-19 response, wildfires and drought, climate change, homelessness, and lawlessness.
Newsom’s plan, which kicks in July 1, provides $648 million to support firefighters, provide more helicopters and dozers, and delivers an additional $1.2 billion (building on last year’s $1.5 billion investment) to step-up forest management and other practices that could save lives from wildfires.
On top of last year’s $5.2 billion water package, the governor’s proposal makes an additional $750 million investment for immediate drought response to aid residents, farmers, and wildlife as California continues to grapple with a historic drought.
The budget proposal, however, did not include the additional investment in water storage projects requested last month by several North State lawmakers.
“Governor Newsom needs to wake up on water storage,” said Sen. Jim Nielsen. “There is an urgent need to fully-fund and immediately build large above-ground water storage projects like Sites Reservoir, and his proposed budget falls billions of dollars short. Groundwater recharge and conservation, while important, simply aren’t enough.”
The governor’s plan is also expected to decrease California’s reliance on fossil fuels by preparing the economy and workforce for a clean energy future by investing billions in climate tech research and development, electric “clean” cars, preparing Californians for career opportunities, and readying infrastructure to withstand extreme weather.
“With major new investments to tackle the greatest threats to our state’s future, the California Blueprint lights the path forward to continue the historic progress we’ve made on our short-term and long-term challenges, including responding to the evolving pandemic, fighting the climate crisis, taking on persistent inequality and homelessness, keeping our streets safe and more,” Newsom said, in a news release. “As California’s robust recovery continues, we’re doubling down on our work to ensure all our communities can thrive.”
As for confronting homelessness, the Governor’s proposal adds $2 billion for mental health, housing, and services, as well as funding to clear homeless encampments. The new investments will expand on last year’s $12 billion package to create 55,000 new housing units and treatment slots in the state for people exiting homelessness.
The proposed budget also creates universal access to Medi-Cal, regardless of imigration status; provides universal pre-kindergarten; and increases access to before and after school programs and summer school; and invests hundreds of millions in grants and tax breaks to small businesses suffering from the pandemic.
In response to growing lawlessness in California, Newsom proposes to bolster local response to stop and apprehend criminals. The budget includes $255 million in grants to local law enforcement and creates a new “Smash and Grab” Enforcement Unit to combat organized retail crime and grants for impacted small businesses.
He also proposes funding for more prosecutors to hold perpetrators accountable, ensuring District Attorneys are effectively and efficiently prosecuting criminals, and creating a new statewide team of investigators and prosecutors to go after perpetrators.
He also plans to get guns off the streets by creating a new statewide “gun buyback program.”
“Governor Newsom’s budget, in typical fashion, throws more taxpayer money at issues without substantive reforms or appropriate oversight,” said Assemblyman James Gallagher, in a statement. “A prime example of this is his $255 million proposal for law enforcement grants to deter retail theft while not reforming soft on crime policies like Proposition 47 that would actually disincentivize crime. More money will make zero difference if criminals are arrested and immediately released.”
While the governor’s investments in wildfire prevention received bipartisan support, Gallagher said the state needs to speed up the scale and pace of treatment to meet the state goal of treating 500,000 acres per year.
“Doing this requires substantive reforms like streamlining CEQA and investing in facilities, like biomass, to ensure processing capacity,” Gallagher said. “Reforestation without actually doing the work of removing dead and dying trees in the burn scars just creates fuel for the next fire. We must promote policies that remove barriers for both the state and private landowners to do this work.”
Newsom’s gas tax holiday also received bipartisan support.
The state’s automatic gas tax hike scheduled for July 1 will not go into effect, Newsom said, giving taxpayers some relief as California continues to grapple with the most expensive gas on average in the country.
According to AAA, the current cost at the pump is about $4.65 for a gallon of regular unleaded, over $1.30 above the national average. Californians pay approximately 51 cents per gallon in state excise taxes on gasoline, which is the highest in the U.S. ■