What's in California's new $262B operating budget?
Hide Transcript Show Transcript  THAT BUDGET NOW GOES ON THETO GOVERNORS DESK WHERE HES EXPECTED TO SIGN IT. HERES A LOOK AT SOME OF ETH DETAILS. THE BUDGET SETS ASIDE $25 BI LLION TO GO INTO THE STATE RESERVES, WHICH IS THE LARGEST AMOUNT IN HISTORY. IT INCLUDES $8 BILLION IN STIMULUS MONEY FOR CALIFORNIANS WITH INCOMES OF UP TO $75,000. DEPENDING ON THEIR FILING STATUS, THEY COULD GET PAYMESNT RANGING FROM $500 TO $11.00 THE BUDGET ALSO SETS ADESI BILLION DOLLARS OVER SEVERAL YEARS TO PAY FOR WILDFIRE PR EVENTION AND RESPONSE EFFORTS. THE ASSEMBLY AND THE SENATE HAD AGREED ON A BUDGET TWO WEEKS AGO BEFORE THEIR JUNE 15 DEADLINE. LAST YEAR, THE STATE ANNOUNCED ENSPDING CUTS AS THEY ANTICIPATED A RECORD BUDGET DEFICIT BECAUSE OF CORONAVUSIR INSTEAD, STATE REVENUES SOARED WITH THE BIGGEST YEAR OVER YEAR INCREASE IN MORE THAFON DECADES. >> TO BE ABLE ACTUALLY IACMP PROGRAMS AND MAKE FUNDAMTAEN DIFFERENCES, THIS IS A NEW EXPERIENCE FOR ALL OF US. WE SPEND A LOT OF MONEY AND ATTH BUILDS THE BASE FOR THE FUTURE. DEIRDRE: THE BUDGET WILL EXPD THE CAL GRANT PROGRAM AND REBOOT THE MIDDLE-CLASS SCHOLARSHIP. AND A BIG PART OF THE BUDGET IS INTENDED TO HELP THOSE IMPACTED DURING THE PANDEMIC. Share Copy Link Copy  California lawmakers approved a $262.6 billion operating budget on Monday. The budget represents an agreement between Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state's top two legislative leaders, all Democrats.Newsom will likely sign the budget into law before the state's new fiscal year begins on Thursday. While the budget lawmakers approved covers much of state government, some details remain unfinished, including decisions on how to spend money on wildfires and the drought.Here's a look at what's in the budget:CASH FOR BUSINESSES AND MOST TAXPAYERSThe budget includes $8.1 billion in rebates for most taxpayers. The amount depends on income, children and how taxes have been filed. Adults with children who earn $30,000 a year or less will get $500. That's in addition to the $600 checks they got earlier this year, for a total of $1,100.Adults who earn between $30,000 and $75,000 will get $600 if they don't have children and $1,100 if they do. People who file their taxes using a taxpayer identification number  mostly immigrants  get more. Adults with children earning $30,000 or less will get $1,000. Adults with children who earn between $30,000 and $75,000 will get $1,000. Immigrants who are not citizens get more money because they were excluded from federal pandemic relief checks.The budget also includes $1.5 billion in grants for small businesses harmed by the pandemic  money they don't have to pay back.UNIVERSAL 4-YEAR-OLD KINDERGARTENThe budget provides ongoing funding to expand the state's two-year kindergarten program to include all 4-year-olds for free. The program would phase in the expansion to everyone by the 2025-26 school year at a cost of $2.7 billion per year. Right now, abut 91,000 4-year-olds are enrolled in "transitional kindergarten." This proposal would boost that to about 250,000 children.MORE MONEY FOR HOMELESS SERVICESThe spending plan commits $12 billion for homelessness programs over the next two years. That includes $1 billion for local governments  a rare multi-year commitment from the state to pay for local homelessness programs.ELIMINATING PANDEMIC CUTSLast year, lawmakers passed a number of spending cuts because they thought they were facing a $54.3 billion budget shortfall caused by the pandemic. That shortfall never happened. This budget restores those cuts. Most state workers will get their salaries restored, plus raises. The court system, public schools, and public colleges and universities all get their funding restored.EXPANDING MEDICAIDThe budget would pay the health care costs for low-income immigrants who are 50 and older and living in the country illegally by making them eligible for Medicaid. It would eventually cost $1.3 billion per year when fully implemented. The budget also eliminates a rule that makes more people 65 and older eligible for Medicaid.MONEY FOR MORE COLLEGE STUDENTSThe budget includes $155 million to make more people eligible for Cal Grants  money to help students pay for college that they don't have to pay back. This money will help students who are older and have been out of high school longer qualify for these grants.MORE IN-STATE STUDENTS AT CALIFORNIA COLLEGESThe budget requires three of the state's most popular public universities to admit more in-state students. Under the plan, UCLA, UC Berkeley and UC San Diego would replace 900 out-of-state students with California students each year. Out-of-state students pay more tuition, so the state would pay those schools $184 million over the next three years.FREE SCHOOL LUNCHThe budget includes $54 million this year and $650 million in future years to pay for free breakfast and lunch for all public school students.