California faces record $68 billion budget deficit, nonpartisan legislative analyst says

By ADAM BEAM
Associated Press

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California is facing a $68 billion budget deficit. The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office said Thursday that most of the deficit comes from lower than expected tax revenues this year. California delayed its tax filing deadline to November this year because a series of damaging storms. That forced Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom to come up with a spending plan without knowing how much money the state would have. The Legislative Analyst’s Office says revenues for the 2022-2023 budget year ended up $26 billion below previous estimates. They say the state could cut spending on education and take money from the state’s savings account to help balance the budget.