Share your thoughts: Raise California taxes or cut education?

[caption id="attachment_49848" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="John Chiang"][/caption]

California already has made major cuts to health care and the state prison system, and education would be next on the chopping block without higher taxes, State Controller John Chiang said at the annual Sonoma State University Economic Outlook Conference on Thursday.[poll id="6"]

Poll runs through March 6. NBBJ Pulse Poll sponsored this week by Empire College.

Mr. Chiang, the state’s chief fiscal officer, noted that a $26 billion structural debt in California dropped to $8 billion to $9 billion after cuts made through the administration of Gov. Jerry Brown.

Without the passing of Gov. Brown’s proposed budget, Mr. Chiang cautioned that there could be an additional $5.4 billion in cuts to the state’s already strained education systems, including $4.8 billion to education from kindergarten through 12th grade.

Do you support increasing taxes in California to bridge the funding gap for education and other services? If so, who should carry the burden of those increases?

Share your thoughts in the poll and in the comments section below.

Show Comment