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California may comprise only 12% of the U.S. population but it has almost a third of the nation's welfare recipients. Not only that, 15.3 percent of all Californians live in poverty....   >>>

California may comprise only 12% of the U.S. population but it has almost a third of the nation's welfare recipients. Not only that, 15.3 percent of all Californians live in poverty.



The state budget gap for 2009-2010 was $45.5 billion, or 53 percent of total state spending. It is the largest in any state's history.



Unfunded pension liabilities for California's state and public employees may be as much as $500 billion -- roughly 17 percent of the nation's total $3 trillion at the state and local level.



Moreover, California has approached bankruptcy, with New York and Illinois not far behind. According to the Wall Street Journal (Nov 8, 2010), California has $70 billion of general obligation debt -- and that does not include the $500 billion unfunded pension liability.



California is a state where public employees have three times the pension benefits of private employees and 20% higher pay, in addition to secure jobs. This becomes quite evident when one looks at the salaries paid to California's university administrators, where deans can make over $300,000 per year, according to the LA Times. Keep in mind also that the California education system is super-heavy with deans, provosts, and other administrators.