California State Government has $80 BILLION ON HAND? (Sacramento, Manteca: loan, costs)

[18Montclair]

What?

Some are practically salivating over the $41.3 billion in “reserves” from what they call “the 250 wealthiest special districts” in California. They contend it is obscene for any special district to have extra money in reserves while the state is hurting and faces yet another mega-deficit. This time around the deficit is $26.6 billion.

Even though all of that $41.3 billion held by special districts was collected for a specific purpose and restricted by state law on how it can be used, there is a suggestion that perhaps it is time for the state to change state law. It is the same argument behind the redevelopment agency money grab effort.

So if it is all bets are off on legal requirements on what money can be collected and spent for, maybe the state should go after the biggest pot of fund balances in California - its own.

At the end of the last fiscal year Sacramento had $80.2 billion in its coffers.

Manteca Bulletin - Sacramento should tap the $80B they have on hand first

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by 18Montclair

What?

The article doesn't talk about what agencies have the money and what they do with it. It also doesn't mention that if you don't allow special districts to set aside money for a rainy day, then those districts will blow all their money in good times and have nothing left when bad times come (which is what the state does).

Even if the kinds of issues I just presented weren't a factor, I don't think the $80 Billion would really fix the underlying structural problems which are: 1. unfunded pension liabilities and 2. skyrocketing health care costs for MediCal.

Business as usual needs to change. Throwing more money at problems just puts off the day of reckoning for another year or two.

[Curmudgeon]

Nothing will change until there's a change of culture and a change of faces at the Capitol. Until both of those occur it is and will remain, so-old, same-old.

[DMenscha]

The special district I sat on the board of had to fork over a loan (not much of a loan so much as a "we're taking this money and we'll pay it back soon) to the state of about 14K last year. We are definitely a small fish in a big pond, but I don't doubt that there's uncommitted money out there.

[Bulldogdad]

Gotta love my boy Dennis.

Just to let you know he has a interest in not seeing Manteca's RDA disbanded because of how well it is run and what it has done for the development of Manteca and the surrounding area. It truely is one of the better run RDA programs in the state.

Tell em tiger.