Even as anti-poverty activists organized protests around the state, Gov. Jerry Brown released a spending plan Friday that would restore few recession-era spending cuts to social services. Brown instead called for restraint, including paying down long-term debt and increasing California’s budget reserves. Public schools stand to receive billions of new dollars under the state’s school funding guarantee. The budget plan’s release follows robust revenue growth in California in recent months, and Democratic lawmakers are expected to push Brown for more spending in upcoming negotiations at the Capitol.
