CDCAN
CALIFORNIA DISABILITY COMMUNITY ACTION NETWORK
DISABILITY RIGHTS NEWS REPORT
#065-2006  June 27, 2006 - Tuesday evening 9:40 PM
Advocacy Without Borders:
Connecting people with disabilities & seniors to rights and unified action
IN MEMORY OF WARREN A. MATTINGLY WHO PASSED AWAY MAY 24
1225 8th Street Suite 480 - Sacramento, CA 95814  916/446-0013  Fax: 916/446-0026
To Respond to THIS email report reply to: martyomoto@rcip.com   
CDCAN website: www.cdcan.us

BREAKING NEWS:
* LEGISLATURE PASSES AB 1801 - STATE BUDGET
* BEATS JULY 1 DEADLINE FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2000
* SENDS SPENDING PLAN TO GOV. SCHWARZENEGGER

SACRAMENTO -  The California State Legislature passed, for the first time since 2000, a state budget before the end of the state budget year (June 30), Tuesday evening, sending the $131 billion spending plan to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.  [Note: A full report on details of the budget as it impacts people with disabilities and seniors will be included in the next CDCAN Report. ]

Senate Races To Approve Budget First - Assembly Follows
The Senate took action first, passing AB 1801, which contained the 2006-2007 State budget, by a vote of 30-10 Tuesday evening just before 8:30 PM.  The budget received support from all 25 Democrats in the Senate and 5 Republicans, including Senate Republican Leader Dick Ackerman.  The budget was opposed by 10 Republican members. Passage of the State budget requires 2/3rds vote or 27 votes of the 40 member Senate.

The Assembly followed the Senate by passing the budget bill, AB 1801 by a vote of 54-23, with 46 of the 48 Assembly Democrats supporting it and 8 of the 32 Assembly Republicans, including Assembly Republican Leader George Plescia (Republican - San Diego). The final vote came at 9:30 PM Tuesday evening.  The budget requires 2/3rds vote or 54 votes of the 80 member Assembly.  As of 9:36 PM the Assembly was in session working on final action on a few remaining budget related bills and Assembly Democrats went into caucus at 9:40 PM.  However both houses completed final action on the main budget bill and budget related legislation (trailer bills) with major impact to people with disabilities and seniors (AB 1807 relating to health budget issues, and AB 1808 relating to human services,

Though debate was relatively short compared to previous years, several Republicans in both houses, including Assemblymember Keith Richman (Republican - Northridge) warned of huge future "structural" budget deficits of over $11 billion and opposed the spending plan.  Other Assembly Republicans raised concerns about state or federal funding of abortions which slowed votes on the budget. 

Assemblymember John Laird (Democrat - Santa Cruz), chair of the Assembly Budget Committee,  in his speech to the Assembly on the floor, said that the budget reflected a priority of Assembly members for employment programs for persons with developmental disabilities. 

Budget Trailer Bills Impacting People with Disabilities and Seniors
In addition to the actual budget , the Legislature also passed the following bills key to
* AB 1807 - Health budget trailer bill covering developmental services including supported employment programs, mental health, MediCal and other health related budget issues. 
* AB 1808 - Human Services trailer bill includes foster care, 2007 federal SSI cost of living restoration language (repeals previous budget action last year that would have  withheld the federal cost of living for 3 months beginning January 2007)
* AB 1802 - Education trailer bill covering education, includes appropriates $2 billion in one-time funds, reduces community college fees
* SB 1132 - transportation trailer bill includes re-payment of $1.3 billion of Proposition 42 transportation funding taken from years 2003-2004 and 2004-2005. 

Other Budget Trailer Bills
* AB 1806 - General Government trailer bill covering general government budget issues
* AB 1803 - Resources trailer bill (passed both houses)
* AB 1809 - Revenue and taxation provisions trailer bill
* AB 1810 - Supplemental Appropriations bill for current budget
* AB 1811 - Modifications to budget bill including scheduled repayment of debt, West Nile Virus funding - what was negotiated with legislative leaders and Governor

CDCAN Capitol News Reports and Alerts
These CDCAN Reports are partially funded by a small grant from the USC UCEDD, Grant #90DD0540 from the Administration on Developmental Disabilities.  The opinions expressed or content in these reports do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the USC UCEDD.
The California Disability Community Action Network is a non-partisan link to tens of thousands of Californians in every community, including people of color, people of every type of disability, including people with physical disabilities, people with developmental and other disabilities, people with traumatic brain and other injures, people with mental health needs, seniors, people with MS, Alzheimer's and others, and all of their families, community organizations and providers, direct care and other workers, and other advocates. These action alerts and news reports is for all of them.   If you would like to get on this distribution (and conversely, get off of  it) please send an email with that  request to:  martyomoto@rcip.com OR sign up via the NEW CDCAN website at www.cdcan.us  Sharing information is part of our organizing effort. Please feel free to forward or copy  this (attribution is nice but not necessary). We're all in this together!
MANY THANKS to Training Toward Self Reliance, UCP, California NAELA, Californians for Disability Rights, Inc (CDR), CHANCE Inc, Parents Helping Parents, Arriba, Strategies Toward Empowering People, Parents Helping Parents, Asian American parents groups, Resources for Independent Living and many other Independent Living Centers, several regional centers, People First chapters, IHSS workers, other self advocacy and family support groups, developmental center families, and hundreds of individuals.  Thanks also to partnerships and the good people with the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, and also the Department of Health Services, the Department of Developmental Services, Department of Social Services and the CA Health and Human Services Agency and other agencies, and the State Legislature and staff, the Legislative Analyst Office.  Good people who do good things can make a difference together.