POLITICS Gov. gives State of the State...

POLITICS

Gov. gives State of the State and releases budget

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger gave his first major policy address

Tuesday, urging support for a $15-billion bond package on the March 2

ballot and vowing he won’t raise taxes to fill a funding gap

estimated at $22 billion in existing debt and a $14 billion deficit

in the 2004-05 budget.

On Friday, the Governor announced his $99.1 billion budget plan,

which proposed shifting $1.3 billion in property taxes from local

governments to state coffers. Local Republican legislators praised

Schwarzenegger’s budget proposal but expressed reservations about the

bond issue unless it is tied to spending limits.

* Orange County on Friday announced a streamlined plan for county

government that is expected to save more than $800,000. The plan

changes the duties of the county’s four assistant chief executives,

who become deputy CEOs and assume oversight of some departments that

now report to the CEO. It also eliminates eight vacant positions in

the county executive office. Supervisors will hear about the plan at

their meeting Tuesday.

-- Alicia Robinson