California governor signs new state budget, eligible Californians to get stimulus payments
Thursday, July 15, 2021
Image: Office of the Governor.
On Monday night, governor of the U.S. state of California Gavin Newsom signed a new US$262.6 billion budget bill for the state into law, with US$8.1 billion reserved for US$600 direct stimulus payments to Californians to aid in California's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill for the budget, SB 129, and the bill for the stimulus payments, SB 139, both passed both houses of the California Legislature for this fiscial year.
The payments, dubbed the Golden State Stimulus II, are set to be paid out to eligible California taxpaying residents beginning in September. To be eligible, residents must have filed a state tax return for last year, not be someone's dependent, and must have earned no more than US$75 thousand in wages last year.
Eligible Californians would get a one-time payment of US$600, and households with dependents would receive an additional US$500. Around two-thirds of Californians are expected to get a stimulus payment, according to the governor's office. Newsom initially proposed the payments in May to aid the state's economic recovery, as part of his "California Comeback Plan".
Californians who already received a stimulus payment earlier in the year are not eligible for this second payment. An additional payment of US$500 is still available for those who claimed dependents on their returns.
The budget also provides for US$5.2 billion in renters' aid for low-income residents and landlords, which would pay for all rent left unpaid during the COVID-19 crisis, and cover rent for several coming months. Overdue water and utility payments would also be covered by US$2 billion in funding.
An additional US$1.5 billion was for grant money intended for small businesses, with US$120 million in tax credits for businesses willing to relocate to California.
California had a budget surplus of nearly US$76 billion during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In signing SB 129, Newsom line-item vetoed Section 19.55 of the bill concerning US$2.58 billion in appropriations to various funds "on a technical basis", citing in an explanation appropriations covered under the section were superseded by the budget. In California, a governor may approve a bill passed by the Legislature with specific items related to the budget rejected. The Legislature can override this line-item veto with a two-thirds vote of both the Assembly and the Senate.
Sources
- "SB-129 Budget Act of 2021" — California State Legislature, July 14, 2021 (date of access)
- "SB-139 Golden State Stimulus II: Golden State Stimulus" — California State Legislature, July 14, 2021 (date of access)
- "Golden State Stimulus II" — California Franchise Tax Board, July 14, 2021 (date of access)
- Erica Yee, Frida Qi, and Jackie Botts. "Look up your Golden State Stimulus amount" — Cal Matters, July 13, 2021
- Phoenix Tso. "Governor Newsom Signs New State Budget With Over $100 Billion In Pandemic Relief" — LAist, July 13, 2021
- Georgina Tzanetos. "California to Issue More Stimulus Checks as Newsom Signs $100-Billion Recovery Plan" — Yahoo! Finance, July 13, 2021
- Kim Bojórquez. "California to send $600 stimulus payments to millions. When to expect your check" — Sacramento Bee, July 12, 2021
- "California Roars Back: Governor Newsom Signs $100 Billion California Comeback Plan to Accelerate State’s Recovery and Tackle Persistent Challenges" — Office of the Governor of California, July 12, 2021
- Gavin Newsom. "I object to the following appropriations contained in Senate Bill 129" — Office of the Governor of California, July 12, 2021 (PDF)
External links
- "California Constitution — Article IV Legislative" — California Legislature, July 15, 2021 (date of access)
