SACRAMENTO — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called for another multibillion-dollar wave of borrowing Tuesday for new reservoirs, courthouses, classrooms and prison beds -- core public resources that, he said, are strained by California's growing population.
In his annual State of the State speech, the governor laid out a plan for $43.3 billion in bonds over the next three years to pay for a round of public construction that would surpass what voters approved in the November election.
If Schwarzenegger can persuade lawmakers to bring his proposal to the ballot -- no easy feat, given widespread worries about state finances -- voters would be asked to approve the new borrowing in the 2008 and 2010 elections.
The new construction would amount to a second installment in what Schwarzenegger says will be a continuing effort to prepare California for an anticipated 30% surge in population over the next two decades.
Worried that negotiations over how to spend the money might descend into a free-for-all, Schwarzenegger urged lawmakers to put California's broad interests first.
"Will the process turn into a pork-fest as it did in Washington with all the earmarks and the backroom deals?" Schwarzenegger said to a joint session of the Legislature gathered in the Assembly chamber. "Or, when we have allocated the spending, will the people say, 'They spent our money wisely'? "
Still recovering from a broken leg suffered in a Dec. 23 skiing accident, Schwarzenegger entered the front of the chamber on metal crutches. Looking thinner, he gingerly walked the length of the room as lawmakers applauded.
The state's new lieutenant governor, Democrat John Garamendi, introduced the governor, calling him "courageous." Reflecting the new political dynamics in the Capitol, Democrats applauded the remark as Republicans largely stayed silent.
Schwarzenegger has angered fellow Republicans with his turn to the left, evidenced most recently by his call for expanding healthcare coverage through levies on doctors, hospitals and businesses.
Early reaction to the governor's speech suggested deep Republican dismay.
To get his borrowing plan to the ballot, Schwarzenegger will need a two-thirds vote of the Legislature -- something that can be achieved only with Republican consent.
GOP Senate leader Dick Ackerman (R-Irvine), citing Schwarzenegger's contention that he is now a "centrist," said: "The governor deserves credit for identifying problems and trying to get resolution." But his idea of the political center "is different than our idea of center."
