Effate wrote:
I have no reason to doubt the numbers presented in the chart you offered however, as you know, money is fungible and when given to states the statistics get blurred. For instance, although California (if sovereign being the 5th largest economy in the world ahead of England and India) represents 11% of the national population it spends 1/3 of the welfare. We have 1/4 of the illegal/undocumented immigrants in the country and 28% of the homeless population. If you looked at typical AFDC (aid for families with dependent children [welfare in California]) you would not see the actual welfare spending as we have many programs that assist those below the poverty line under different programs (to the tune of billions of dollars) such as Kin-GAP, foster care assistance and various guardianship programs, housing assistance, utilities assistance, Snap cards and now illegals qualify for Medical (Medicaid).
California has a projected 70 billion dollar deficit this year which doesn’t account for the 1.2 trillion (yes trillion) dollar unfunded liability from CalPers (state retirement system). We have one of the worst education systems, highest income taxes, highest gasoline tax, highest poverty (sorry Mississippi) and a high speed train than may someday speed you through grape and almond orchards (if we still have water) in the Central Valley which is already 100 billion dollars in the red.
California is coming to a state near you, Gavin Newsom, 2024!
I have no reason to doubt the numbers presented in... (
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