U.S. Budget and Economy

As reported by numerous news sources, California now faces a $21.3 billion gap between revenues and spending. Many have attributed this gap chiefly to increases in spending. For example, a February 18th article from the Reason Foundation is titled "What Caused the Budget Mess? California's Spending Has Nearly Tripled Since 1990". According to the article, state spending (including the General Fund, special funds, and bond funds) has nearly tripled from $51.4 billion in FY 1990-91 to $144.5 billion in FY 2008-09. The numbers in the first table at this link agree with the 1990-91 figure but show $136.2 billion in 2008-09. The small difference is likely because this latter figure is an estimate which continues to change. Still, this represents an increase of 165 percent. The problem with this comparison is that the figures are not corrected for inflation or the growth in California's population. In fact, the article states the following in a later paragraph: If ...