When Newsom gives his State of the State, he should be candid about California’s economy
Gov. Gavin Newsom postponed his annual State of the State address while awaiting the fate of his mental health ballot measure in this month’s election. Whenever Newsom gets around to giving his appraisal of the state’s condition, he should curb his braggadocious tendencies and acknowledge that it faces what could be prolonged – even semi-permanent – economic sluggishness. While Newsom was sweating out the vote count on Proposition 1, which prevailed by fewer than 30,000 votes, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics was reporting that in February, California recorded the nation’s highest unemployment rate, with 5.3% of its labor force being jobless. That unhappy statistic reflected a growing consensus that while the rest of the nation is enjoying a fairly vigorous recovery from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, California is lagging behind. It’s a major factor in the state’s having an immense budget deficit, one that could last for years. Newsom’s budget planners and the Legislature’s budget analyst, Gabe Petek, both see annual deficits in the $30 billion range for the remainder of Newsom’s governorship. “California entered a revenue and economic downturn last fiscal