Green Party Platform:
Government Spending
We need a thorough analysis of the California State Budget from a Green perspective. We should know how money is raised and from whom, and how and where it is being spent.
California, like other states and the federal government, struggle to avoid budget deficits. The great bulk of expenditures in this state are for education (40%) and welfare (24%). While the Greens advocate adequate funding for these areas, we question whether this is being accomplished effectively. We must raise the question of from where and whom the money should come. We must also examine the cost-effectiveness of the centralized bureaucracies that manage our welfare and education systems.
Increasing expenditures for prisons are also a concern. While only 1% of state spending went to prisons in the 1992-93 fiscal year, the "corrections" budget has been increasing at a rate of 15% per year for the last decade. This rate is double that of any other expenditure category. We must question the effectiveness of the expanding prison industry.
The Green Party calls for effective government spending:
- Conduct cost-effectiveness studies of the major departments in state and local government.
- Make strategic social investments to avoid much greater future costs. For example, investing in quality education and social programs will avoid future spending on prisons and welfare. Providing effective family planning services will avoid later costs associated with neglected children.
- Allow citizen organizations to have input into the formation of county, state and, ideally, federal budgets. Preliminary budget drafts should be made widely available to allow discussion and feedback.
- Review the salary structures of public employees. Currently the average state employee salary is $40,000. We must examine whether this average represent a fair distribution of income between the lower and higher paid employees. We must also determine if there is an efficient proportion between the number of management positions and functional lower-level positions.
- Grant tax expenditures (exemptions, deductions, etc.) only to achieve socially desirable purposes, such as environmental protection or job creation. Expenditures should have periodic review to determine of they are meeting their goals.
- Stop the enormous expansion of the prison industry, which will result in this being the largest item in the state budget in the near future. Not only is this an ineffective crime deterrent, it is more expensive than putting money into preventative programs such as education, training and job creation.