State Assemblymember Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, hosted a town hall meeting at UC Berkeley Tuesday night to discuss California’s budget challenges well as possible steps the state can take to alleviate financial problems facing higher education.
The event was held on the seventh floor of Eshleman Hall and was organized by Next 10, a nonprofit organization that seeks to “create tools and provide information that fosters a deeper understanding of the critical issues affecting all Californians,” according to its website.
Skinner kicked off her presentation by giving a brief history of the state budget, noting that the state’s funding of higher education has dropped drastically in the past decade. She underscored the lasting effects of former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cut of the vehicle license fee in 2003 — a loss which Skinner said led to a significant decrease in state revenue.
“Part of reason we’re in deficit is that the (loss of the) vehicle license fee was passed on to local cities and counties,” Skinner said. “The state just borrowed money until the recession hit and then all of a sudden, (it had) to pay the piper.”
Skinner, a UC Berkeley alumna and the first person to sit on Berkeley City Council while still a student, began her presentation by thanking students for their lobbying efforts and recent protests on behalf of higher education.
“Your presence in the Capitol is very important because it’s letting Californians as a whole know that higher education is important,” she told the largely student audience. “As they say, the squeaky wheel gets the grease.”
Skinner’s roughly half-hour presentation was followed by an interactive “Budget Challenge” led by members of Next 10. The challenge gave the audience a chance to decide what they would cut and spend in the state budget.
Audience members were given remote voting devices before the presentation to make their preferences known by voting on various revenue and spending options.
This budget town hall meeting was one of a larger series of town hall meetings scheduled through April across the state. Skinner will also be hosting one on Friday in Oakland.
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So I’m guessing all the Cal kiddies voted to increase taxes and cut nothing, did it take into account capital flight?
Of course not, and all I need to read after Skinner’s name is “(D-Berkeley)” to know that she doesn’t have a freaking clue how the real world works…
The Sacto Lib machine must feed its social justice and benefit programs for illegals. UC gets the leftovers.
Get a clue Cal Kiddies. This Lib infestation must be voted out of office.
please stop stealing my screen name. we all know you are a liberal mole
Click on the avatar for the first “libsrclowns” and you will see a post count of 1809 and 3313 thumbs-up. Click on yours and it’s goose eggs. Who’s the imposter again?
Silly child. You forget that not everyone here is as stupid as you are.