Assembly Speaker Karen Bass announced Tuesday that her house would vote late this afternoon on a $19 billion package of cuts and new taxes to chip away at the nearly $40 billion deficit California faces over the next year and a half.
But, amid no solid indication the $19 billion package has the GOP support needed for passage, Bass said she was prepared to lock the doors of the lower house to force her Republican counterparts to the table.
"I'm certainly hoping we that won't need to lock the doors and lock people in," the Los Angeles Democrat said. "But I will tell you that I'm so concerned about the situation that we're facing today, if I'm worried some of the members might run away off the floor, it just might have to get to that."
State Treasurer Bill Lockyer has said he will stop funding infrastructure projects in the state beginning as early as Wednesday to conserve cash. The state faces potential insolvency in February if no new revenues or spending cuts are adopted, fiscal officials say.
Read the full story at sacbee.com.