New bill helps curb state spending
Brandon Russell | Staff Writer
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Salary increases, payment for overtime, and any kind of bonuses for state employees who make more than $150,000 per year will be barred for two years if Assembly Bill 53 becomes a law.
The bill was passed unanimously April 1 in the Assembly Public Employees, Retirement and Social Security Committee at the state Capitol, with several community college students in attendance to show their support.
“At a time when we are asking our seniors, our students, and our poor and infirm to bear the budget burden year after year,” said California State Assembly member Anthony Portantino (D-Pasadena), who proposed the bill, “the least we can do is ask those state employees who are most well-off to forgo any salary increases until we steer our way clear of our budget crises. We get to save millions and we get to send a message.”
The message is that California will not overcome its budget crisis until the state ends “exorbitant pay raises” to state employees and ensures that the budget burden is equally distributed, Portantino said.
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Community college students were present to show their support for the bill. In addition to Troy Carter, vice president of the Student Senate for California Community Colleges, several Los Rios students attended in favor of AB53, including Matthew Miranda, a City College student and ASG member, and watched as representatives from University of California and California State University systems spoke against the bill, citing unfairness. University employees are considered state workers and their salaries would be affected by the bill if it becomes law. There was heated response to those speaking in opposition to the bill.
“They just got grilled,” said Matthew Miranda, a City College student and ASG member. “It wasn’t even funny.”
Karen French, University of California director of legislative affairs, said AB53 specifically jeopardizes the UC system’s ability to keep key positions in medical education attractive to prospective applicants.
University representatives agreed that AB53 would put unjust pressure on the already struggling school systems.
“I would suggest that this bill deal with the total state budget and not just pick out the few management roles that you can carve out in order to make a political point,” said Karen Zamarripa, a CSU representative.
“We’ve indicated that we can’t serve 10,000 students that we would love to. Given the budgets that we’ve gotten from the legislators, we can’t do that.”
If AB53 is passed by the state Senate and signed by the governor, it would take effect beginning January 2010.
