Governor cuts deals to grease budget talks - California

[Kadie]

Governor cuts deals to grease budget talks
He hopes working with interest groups will avoid fights later

Lynda Gledhill, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau
Wednesday, April 28, 2004

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Sacramento -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, choosing charm over brawn, has been reaching out to key interest groups in the Capitol, trying to work out agreements that will smooth the way toward an on-time, balanced budget.

Whether sitting down for meetings with leaders of Indian gaming tribes or making a personal appeal to the heads of the state's league of cities, Schwarzenegger is working behind the scenes to cut deals before he unveils his revised budget plan early next month.

The negotiations hold advantages for both sides.

Groups that negotiate with the governor can get something in exchange for working out terms of the spending cuts rather than having cuts imposed on them. And Schwarzenegger, under pressure to keep a campaign pledge not to raise taxes, can get help with closing a $12 billion budget gap by dealing directly with those groups, heading off battles with their allies in the Legislature.

Schwarzenegger will need all the cooperation he can get. Tax collections are not likely to produce a spring windfall that will help the governor out of his fiscal jam. Even with about $1 billion in unexpected revenue from a successful tax-amnesty program, tax receipts tallied so far are about what the state anticipated.


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