Lowering the Budget Bar

More Californians than before believe it would be a good idea to lower the state’s current requirement that a two-thirds vote in each house of the Legislature is needed to pass a state budget, according to a recent poll.

Of those surveyed by the Public Policy Institute of California, 49% said it would be a good idea to lower the threshold to 55%, and 37% said it would be a bad idea. When the same question was asked a year ago, 46% thought such a change would be a bad idea, and 44% a good idea.

Voters rejected a ballot measure to do that in 2004.

The PPIC survey was conducted from Sept. 9 to Sept. 16, before lawmakers ended a standoff that left the state without a budget for 12 weeks.

Of those surveyed, 62% said it would be a good idea to strictly limit the amount of state spending increases allowed each year, and 31% said it would be a bad idea.

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