The private ceremony in front of a few dozen budget staffers struck a mixed chord. There was celebration and relief at the rare on-time budget. Yet no one was claiming victory - least of all Governor Brown. He lamented the cuts to education, public safety and health care programs. And while he took credit for a budget that he calls balanced, he said the state's budget woes aren't over.
Brown: "We've got tough decisions, and before we get finished, I bet we're gonna have to go back to the people and get their vote on how we're going to do things going forward, and that may well include some more revenue."
The governor also issued $270 million in line-item vetoes - most outside the state's hard-hit general fund. Among them: the elimination of the state's teacher evaluation system.
