Gov. Newsom announces $38B deficit, proposes tapping reserves and cutting spending to close it
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced $291 billion state spending plan Wednesday with an estimated $37.9 billion deficit.
That's a significantly smaller budget hole than the Legislative Analyst's Office predicted in December. It estimated the state would face a $68 billion deficit.
That difference is likely due partly to a rebounding stock market. But Newsom says his finance officials also have revenue and spending disagreements than the legislative advisers.
"We just are a little less pessimistic than they are about the next year," he said.
The governor is proposing to draw $13 billion from the state's reserves to cover some of the deficit. He's also proposing $8.5 billion in spending cuts. Nearly $3 billion of that would come from climate programs and another $1.2 billion from housing programs.
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