Governor Brown did something Thursday that no Governor has done for decades, perhaps ever. He appeared before the budget committee made up of both Assembly and Senate members and even took questions from lawmakers.
Brown urged Republicans to put his tax extension measure on the ballot and asked members of both parties to get out of their comfort zones. Brown also made it clear that without the tax extension, he’ll pursue an all-cuts solution to the state’s nearly 27 billion dollar budget shortfall.
“If we don’t get the tax extensions, I am not going to sign a budget that is not an all-cuts budget and it’s going to be turbulent,” said Brown. “Because I don’t want to be here four years and play games or evasion and everything just erodes. I think we’ve got to meet the moment of truth now.”
Brown has only about two weeks to work out a budget deal with lawmakers. That’s because he’s running out of time to put his tax measure on a June special election ballot. He needs Republican support to do that.
