More Porridge for the Golden Bear

Great news for California State revenue in Hanuary.  $5 above expectations erasing the $1.8 billion accumulated shortfall this fiscal year to date.  Almost as good news, previous budget constraints suggest that most of this will go to restoring school funding that had been shortchanged in the budget.  That means there won't be the usual money grab in Sacramento that ends up usually spending more that the windfall brings in.

Here's a decent LATimes link.

The analyst's office floated three possible causes for the surge in tax revenue. The most positive theory is also the simplest -- the economy has improved and there's more income to tax.

The others are less optimistic. It's possible that wealthy residents, fearful that federal budget negotiations would increase their taxes, decided to cash out investments early. If so, that means the state could see less tax revenue in the next fiscal year.

It could also be an issue of timing -- this year, residents may end up paying more of their taxes in January and less in April.

As expected not a peep about using the money to backfill all the unacknowledged debt.