One of our loyal FlashReport Blog readers is apparently Ana Matosantos, Governor Schwarzenegger’s Director of Finance (who has a featured column on our main page today). After perusing the blog, she sent this submission over for your reading pleasure…
Setting the Record Straight
Ana Matosantos – Director of Finance
In the debate over California’s spending on prison versus higher education, the following facts may be helpful.
In 2003-04 California spent $4.9 billion on prisons, or 6.3 percent of the state budget. At the same time, spending on higher education was $6 billion, or 7.7 percent. In 2009-10, California will spend $9.3 billion or 11 percent on prisons, and $6.5 billion or 7.5 percent on higher education.
Thirty years ago, California spent 3 percent of its budget on prisons and 10 percent of its budget on higher education. Today, California spends 45 percent more on its prisons than on higher education.
In these numbers, higher education is consistently defined to include California State University and the University of California. Higher Education funding does not include California Community Colleges, they are funded within Proposition 98.
The Governor’s proposal makes higher education a priority. It increases funding to the University of California and the California State University and does so by requiring cuts in prison spending.
January 7th, 2010 at 12:00 am
This is the best “The Farm” has to offer?
Why don’t we set the record straight on the impact illegal aliens are having on our state budget. Um…to the tune of approximately 10 billion a year…
What do you think we spent on illegals 30 years ago?
How about this for a trade Ana, one convict you want to release for every state employee you give a pink slip?
And not to beat on the illegal alien drum…but why do we need to spend billions of dollars on education when we can simply import millions of poor, uneducated illegals from the third world.
I mean…we are led to believe that illegal aliens are an economic benefit. If that is the case, then how about we shut down our state funded institutions of “higher” learning and use the savings to incarcerate criminals.