California Budget Vetoed By Governor, Calling It 'Not Financeable'

California Governor Jerry Brown has vetoed the budget passed last night by the state's Democratic legislature, setting up a potential standoff within his own party while challenging Republicans who obstructed his agenda.

In a press release, Brown placed the blame squarely on Republicans who rejected the tax extensions that were the centerpiece of his preferred budget plan. But he called the alternative presented by Democrats, who acknowledged its imperfections, a not financeable solution that relies on legally questionable maneuvers, costly borrowing and unrealistic savings.

Democrats in the Legislature made valiant efforts to address California's budget crisis by enacting $11 billion in painful cuts and other solutions, the press release said. I commend them for their tremendous efforts to balance the budget in the absence of Republican cooperation. Unfortunately, the budget I have received is not a balanced solution.

The budget, which aimed to close a $9.6 billion gap, deferred paying off debt in public education while relying on a series of funding measures that Republicans derided as disingenuous, such as a resurrected measure to sell off state buildings that had previously been determined to be not cost effective. It also factored in optimistic revenue projections while enacting deep cuts in public education, local law enforcement and the court system.

It's filled up with a lot of gimmicks and borrowing and very loose-standing legal opinions on how we can do some of the things they're attempting to do, Assemblyman Curt Hagman (R-Chino Hills) told ABC.It's not a real balanced budget.

Brown's decision appears to endorse that view, reflecting a determination by the governor that a late budget is better than a potentially unsustainable one.