[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Frank D. Russo

The California Budget Project has created a nifty 14 page table that provides a good overview of the Schwarzenegger Administration’s proposed budget, the Senate passed budget, and the Assembly passed budget together with links to additional information.

In columns, side by side, there are short paragraph or sentence descriptions of areas to be reconciled of these three different versions as the legislature’s conference committee on the budget works its way through them. The conference committee began its work Friday, following passage of different versions of the state budget by the two different houses after more than 100 hearings of budget subcommittees and committees starting early this year.

You can watch the Conference Committee on the California Channel for live results and view past meetings through the archives of the California Channel. Of note, there also is a press conference by Assembly and Senate Democrats on the budget shortly before the Conference Committee began its work.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

• Quarterly Status Reports: hundreds of thousands to ultimately lose coverage
• Proposal to eliminate adult dental care could increase ER use, hurt clinics
• Children on Healthy Families would also face cuts

By Hanh Kim Quach
Health Care Policy Coordinator
Health Access California

At a public hearing Monday, the Senate Budget Subcommittee, which oversees state public programs, postponed decisions on a number of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s proposed cuts to the Medi-Cal and Healthy Families Program. The two programs, along with all state departments, are under pressure to cut 10 percent across-the-board in an effort to close the state’s $14 billion shortfall. The two programs provide coverage to nearly 7 million Californians – nearly 20% of the state.

Monday’s hearing was part of the normal budgeting process for the 2008-09 fiscal year, which begins July 1. Lawmakers prefer to delay decisions on major items until after the governor releases his May revision of the budget, which reflects the latest number on income taxes to the state. The Legislature and Governor have already approved a $1 billion mid-year emergency cuts package in February, which included a 10% rate reduction ($544 million reduction) to Medi-Cal providers.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

• Federal dollars for SCHIP will run out Nov 16 without Congressional action
• Board will reconsider emergency regulations on November 5

By Anthony Wright
Executive Director of Health Access California

The Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board (MRMIB), which oversees the Healthy Families program--California's version of the State Child Health Insurance Program--today decided it would wait until at least November 5 to decide whether it should adopt emergency regulations to pave the way for creating wait-lists and disenrolling children from the program.

FEDERAL STALEMATE

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

President Bush's reckless veto of the bipartisan State Children'sHealth Insurance Program reauthorization could leave California in abind and force tens of thousands of kids out of coverage, the Sacramento Bee reports. SCHIP provides $2 for every $1 Californiaspends on the Healthy Families program, and these funds are essentialif Democrats are to strike a deal with Governor Schwarzenegger on amore comprehensive approach.

California Democrats played hardball—and won— intheir effort to kill a GOP-sponsored ballot measure that would havesplit the state's electoral votes by Congressional district and givethe Republican nominee an Ohio-sized margin, the San FranciscoChronicle reports. As one consultant put it: when they pull out aknife, we take out a gun.

The Bee has a thoughtful profile of the aggressive, passionate and very smart Assemblymember Dave Jones,who has earned a reputation as somewhat of a liberal crusader, andworkaholic to boot. This year, Jones is one of the only Californialegislators to endorse John Edwards for President, another example ofthe assembly member bucking conventional wisdom.

There's more...

Photo courtesy of The Spoof.com