Governor Signs California Budget

Sacramento, Calif. (KCBS/AP)  -- Governor Schwarzenegger has signed a $131 billion state budget after vetoing $112 million for programs ranging from court translators to air pollution cleanups.

It means that for the first time in six years California will start a new fiscal year Saturday with a state budget in place.

2006-07 California State Budget

The governor took the unusual step of holding Friday's bill signing ceremony in the Capitol rotunda, where tourists looked on from the wings and a second-floor gallery.

Lawmakers approved the budget Tuesday night, avoiding a repeat of the partisan deadlocks that have held up spending plans in most recent years.

When signing the bill, the governor said it's a day for celebration "We put politics aside here and were driven by one overwhelming desire to do what is best for the people of California. Because of that, for the first time in six years, California has a budget in place before the start of the new fiscal year."

Democratic Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata said the budget's not just on time but fiscally responsible. "We worked this thing through in a manner and in a method that I believe Californians can have a sense of confidence that the legislature's doing its job. Partisanship really did not enter into it," said Perata.

The $131 billion package uses a tax windfall to fund one of the largest increases ever for California schools and also sets aside billions to pay down debt and build up reserves.

The bill passed the Senate earlier this week 30-to-10 after five Republicans joined Democrats in supporting the spending plan. The Assembly followed by voting 54-to-22 in favor of the bill.

But missing from the spending plan is $26 million, which was money that would have paid for health care for uninsured, undocumented immigrant children, which the Republicans adamantly opposed.

Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez said that money can be restored later. He calls the budget fiscally and morally responsible. "Not everybody gets everything that they wanted but at the same time, it does address the priorities," Nunez said.