Assemblymembers react to budget deal

Mullin said he was pleased to see the “draconian language” had been removed, and that he would continue to monitor the issue as the bill progressed.

But many Californians might be more interested in the stimulus checks. Those earning less than $75,000 a year will be cut a check for $350, and those earning up to $250,000 will get $200 per the proposal, which is still subject to change throughout the week. Households with dependents, meanwhile, could get up to $1,050.

Mullin, who had opposed the governor’s hope to use a portion of the state’s record-breaking $97.5 billion projected surplus to give car owners $400, said he was pleased with the new plan.

“Residents should reap some of the benefits from California’s budget surplus and this agreement will make sure that money is returned directly to hard-working Californians,” he said in an email.

A push to suspend the state’s gas tax, an idea also floated as a means of providing relief at the pump, which Mullin had opposed, appears to be dead as well. A 23-cent tax break on diesel fuel for one year starting Oct. 1, however, is part of the proposal.

Mullin said he was supportive of the diesel tax break to ease the cost of transporting goods and to help truckers “who have had high fuel costs impact their bottom line significantly.”

Assemblymember Marc Berman, D-Palo Alto, said: “Every Californian is feeling the impacts of global inflation and supply chain challenges. Providing a direct cash rebate to Californians gives them maximum flexibility to address these impacts, whether it be at the grocery store, the pharmacy, or the gas pump.”

“The plan also includes the governor’s diesel tax pause, which will provide relief to the commercial sector that utilizes the bulk of diesel fuel in the state,” he said.

The refund checks and infrastructure spending allow the state to avoid the state’s appropriations limit, also known as the Gann limit, which bars certain spending that exceeds a threshold adopted in the late 1970s. The limit is also the reason for last year’s “Golden State Stimulus” checks that went to the majority of Californians.

Legislators are expected to cast their votes on the budget proposal later this week before it goes to the governor’s desk for his signature.

In regards to nearly $20 million in earmarks for his district, Berman said he was proud to have secured money for affordable housing in East Palo Alto, a community plaza in Pescadero and a fire station in Palo Alto, among other projects.

“These investments will be felt by communities in the 24th Assembly District for decades to come,” he said.

In total, the budget sets aside $17 billion for an “inflation relief package” to include the refund checks and money to help with rent and utility bills. Another $12 billion will go into the state’s reserves, growing the fund to $37 billion, and $47 billion is added for infrastructure spending.

Another $200 million is proposed to go directly to reproductive health care and boosting abortion access, a move made in the wake of the overturning Roe v. Wade.