from Bloomberg:
Schwarzenegger May Seek Emergency Session as Deficit Mounts By Michael B. Marois
Oct. 7 (Bloomberg) -- California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger may order lawmakers into emergency session to address a mounting deficit, two weeks after a record-long impasse ended with the Legislature over the budget.
Schwarzenegger is scheduled to meet with Assembly and Senate leadership in his capitol office in Sacramento tomorrow, where they will be presented with the fiscal projections for September.
``Revenue for the state is coming in lower than expected, so that is something that we may need to do,'' Schwarzenegger's press secretary Aaron Mclear said of the possibility of a special session.
Schwarzenegger signed a $143 billion budget Sept. 23, ending an 85-day stalemate with lawmakers over how to close a $15 billion deficit in the fiscal year that began July. 1. Tax revenue tied to income and capital gains is declining in the state as the U.S. economy falters and stock markets slide. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at a five-year low today.
The situation is complicated by frozen credit markets that may impede the state's ability to borrow as much as $7 billion of short-term notes next week. Without the loan, the state could run out of cash by month's end.
Schwarzenegger last week wrote to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson saying he may ask the federal government for an emergency loan if the state can't find investors willing to lend the state money until tax receipts arrive.
The gap in the current year could grow to as much as $5 billion, said Senate President Pro-Tem Don Perata, an Oakland Democrat. ........(more)
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http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aKQv32lYg14s&refer=home