State budget update

Where are We? Where are We Going?, from the California Budget Project, summarizes the Governor's recent proposals for closing the state budget gap. Proposed cuts include:

• Eliminating Healthy Families (which provides low-cost state health insurance for children)
• Cutting $1 billion from Medi-Cal -- which could include cuts to eligibility, benefits, and provider paymentsLimiting Medi-Cal for certain immigrants to emergency services
• Eliminating CalWORKs (support for poor families) and CalWORKs child care assistance
• Cutting funds for schools (spending per pupil would drop to $6918 from $8257)

Advocates are taking action and protesting the proposed cuts. For more information, contact:

• California Partnership, 213-385-8010
• Health Access, 213-413-3587 or 510-873-8787, also has a budget factsheet
• Western Center on Law and Poverty, 213-487-7211 or 707-373-4572