Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday signed the $115.4 billion general fund budget that he and lawmakers agreed to last week, issuing only a handful of line-item vetoes.
The total amount of spending vetoed, $1.3 million, was the lowest for a California budget since 1982, when Brown was governor before and vetoed nothing.
This year, Brown’s signature was never in doubt. The Democratic governor and legislative leaders announced a budget deal last week, and rank-and-file lawmakers ratified it Friday. The spending plan increases funding for state-funded preschool and universities and will expand Medi-Cal coverage to undocumented children starting in May 2016.
The budget’s enactment comes a week before the July 1 start of the next fiscal year. But Brown and the Democratic-controlled Legislature have significant work to do outside the budget process. Brown called a special session last week to address funding shortfalls in health care, roads and infrastructure.
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