Senator George Runner
Serving the 17th District which incorporates portions of the Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura and Kern counties.

We're a month into the new fiscal year, and California still lacks a budget. The difference among proposed solutions is as big as ever. The debate is about whether to burden taxpayers with more taxes, fees, and debt to pay for more government spending or to cut spending to match our income.

The difference is also about priorities. Republicans believe the priorities should be private-sector job creation, avoiding new taxes, and living within our means. However, Democrats are bent on protecting government jobs, increasing taxes, and expanding government.

The different priorities were made clear when Governor Schwarzenegger presented an updated budget plan in May. His blueprint would close California's $19 billion deficit without raising taxes on our state's struggling families and small businesses. Republicans in both the Senate and Assembly quickly signed on to this responsible, affordable budget solution. This is a serious spending plan that prioritizes funding and makes difficult, but necessary, decisions.

Democrats responded with proposals to scrap the governor's blueprint and write a new budget that adds more spending and more taxes. They believe in big government, very big government. While they claim that their opposition to any serious spending cuts is about saving jobs for Californians, it's truly about protecting state employee jobs at taxpayers' expense.

Legislative Democrats can't even agree among themselves. Their proposals call for a combination of new taxes and more borrowing to fuel more government spending only with different details.

Just 18 months ago, Californians were saddled with $12.5 billion in new taxes, the largest tax increase in history. And, once again, the majority party's battle cry is, Raise More Taxes! This year alone, Democrats have proposed $36 billion in new taxes and fees.

Their tax-and-spend plan will come at the cost of the private-sector jobs that drive our economy, the jobs where most Californians make their living.

It takes 25 private-sector jobs to support one government job, according to the Economic Development Department. The number of government jobs should mirror what's happening with private-sector jobs. But, that's not what's happening. Over the last five years, California has lost 1.3 million private sector jobs. At the same time, state government has grown by more than 38,000 positions.

Whether their solution is more taxes or more debt, the Democrats' plans will pull more taxpayer money out of the private-sector economy to pay for more government. Government is effectively choking the life out of our private sector that generates the revenues we need to fix our economy.

We need a balanced state budget, without new taxes or more borrowing, and we need it right now!