It's not that Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor says the governor's deficit projection is right or wrong. It's that in the grand scheme of things these days, it doesn't make much of a difference - because, Taylor says, the budget is "roughly in balance."
Taylor: "We're in a very different
situation than we have been the last 10, 12 years - when at this
time, we would usually be sitting around and talking about $20,
$25, $30 billion deficits and what are our differences in the
numbers between the administration and us."
So given that, Taylor says the fiscal restraint in the governor's budget is "commendable." And he thinks Brown's proposed school funding overhaul deserves a good look. But he's also concerned about parts of the budget - especially the way the governor wants to use money raised by the newly-approved Proposition 39. And he's warning that external factors like the fiscal cliff in Washington could change everything.
