Jul 31, 2008 8:49 pm US/Pacific
Schwarzenegger's Actions Gets Mixed Reactions
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―
In this tough economy, you would think the governor's actions would have to be a last resort. But according to the Controllers Office, the state is not on the brink of running out of money.
"Today, I'm exercising my executive authorities to avoid a full blown cash crisis," said the Governor.
With a signature, the governor eliminated 10,000 temporary jobs and ordered a pay cut for 200,000 state workers. Extreme action, but is it justified?
According to the Controller's Office, the state is not on the verge of a cash crisis.
"As far as we know, we have enough to get through at least September," says one employee.
The latest budget has ever been passed was September 5th. But if the state did run out of cash, there is the expensive option of looking to Wall Street for loans.
When CBS13 asked if that was uncommon, the response was," No, the state does it every year."
"I would lose my house, I would lose everything," says one state employee.
For state workers, a drastic pay cut could be devastating, but employees will get their full paycheck tomorrow because they are paid for the previous month they worked.
According to State Controller John Chiang, even if the budget negotiation drags on, he's not about to cut worker's pay.
"I have to tell the governor, with all due respect, I am not going to comply with his order," says Chiang.
While there is still some uncertainty about how this will play out, many state workers believe this all boils down to political posturing.
"I think the controller is going to stop him but I see it as a sign of disrespect that he's not caring about us as workers," says one state employee.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Reporting
Comments