I've been a state worker in California for a few years now, and while I certainly wasn't a fan of the furlough days, my hippy-commie-liberal self understood the concept of spreading the pain out. But with today's State Worker blog article about the proposed 4th furlough and no end in sight to these paycuts that are totally unsupported by the legislature (because they're arguably more sane that Schwarzzie), I'm totally fed up.
So, I'm pretty sure that later today I'll be creating a mail merge of every state legislator and sending them the letter below to voice my frustration. I would love any constructive feedback, as I haven't sent this out yet, and I think it's probably (well past) time to start doing this kind of thing in case anyone wants to jump on the letter-mailing train. Or maybe you already have and I'm just that late to the party.
Dear Senator [or Assemblyperson],
I am writing you today in response to Governor Schwarzenegger’s continuing abuse of his executive power. I work for the Department of Consumer Affairs, and chose employment with the state knowing that there are trade-offs: while I would likely command a larger salary in the private industry I liked the idea that my job was helping keep my state’s residents safe, and I felt that the relative security of state employment was more important to me than yearly bonuses.
My new husband is also a state worker, and if the Governor elects to add a fourth furlough day, our monthly income will be reduced by 40%. When the furloughing began, we were obviously not happy to receive a pay cut, but we understood the necessity of the situation and were glad to help absorb a cut across the board if it meant that, in general, our fellow public servants would be able to keep their jobs and make a living wage. In such difficult times, I think it’s important for everyone to give a little for the good of the larger community. With these cuts continuing solely based on the whim of Governor Schwarzenegger however, this is an untenable situation for a young, college-educated couple who are in the process of starting a life together, buying a home, and hoping to start a family soon. Not only will we be forced to actively look for positions outside state service, we are seriously considering leaving the state where we were both born. We love California, and have never felt inclined to live anywhere else, but the Governor’s single-handed attempts to turn our state government into a dictatorship are quickly changing our minds about that.
The furlough cuts that have been proposed and implemented by executive order have a very small impact on the state’s General Fund; many of the agencies affected by the cuts are specially funded, and any savings they may incur cannot be contributed to filling the budget gap. In addition, the closure of revenue-generating agencies reduces incoming revenue. Surely this is a bad time to be cutting back on anything that brings money into state coffers.
I realize that as a term-limited governor, there is not much point in constituents exerting political pressure over Mr. Schwarzenegger. My understanding is that he is no longer interested in running for another government office, so it really won’t matter to him if his approval rating plummets over his handling of the budget crisis. On the other hand, as we come into an election year, many state Senators and Assemblypersons like yourself will be campaigning for re-election or endorsing other candidates. If you are interested in maintaining the support and the votes of state workers and other reasonable Californians like myself who see that dictatorial politics and the crippling of the workforce that makes this state function are not the answer, I strongly recommend that you apply every kind of public, political pressure at your disposal to stop the Governor’s ridiculous behavior.
I realize that I am only one voice and can speak only for myself, but I can promise you that I will be an active participant in and contributor to any campaign that seeks to replace any state legislators who were comfortable with sitting on the sidelines and allowing Governor Schwarzenegger to make a mockery of democracy in California and to destroy the lives of hundreds of thousands of its citizens. You are tasked with being a check on the unilateral power of the governor, and unless I see strong, public action being taken to effect that blocking of power, I must assume that you and your colleagues are not fit to serve as representatives of the people. Again, I urge you to do what is right for our state and its citizens and insist that the governor stop this recklessness, before the tide of public opinion begins to turn against the legislature for allowing such childish and petulant behavior in the face of a real crisis.
Sincerely,
etc.