It's not partisan differences or the system holding things back, California has a Democrat majority with the votes (24 out of 40) to push things through. Voter

It's not partisan differences or the system holding things back, California has a Democrat majority with the votes (24 out of 40) to push things through. Voters there are polling at a 1/3 approval rating for raising taxes. The majority just doesn't want to be the ones responsible for cutting programs or raising taxes. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_State_Senate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_State_Senate In addition, their bond ratings are pretty low, they have the lowest rating of any state. The net result of that is that borrowing money becomes much more expensive and the cycle escalates. http://articles.latimes.com/2009/feb/04/local/me-budget4 http://articles.latimes.com/2009/feb/04/local/me-budget4 You can't run programs with deficits forever, eventually you have to raise taxes or cut funding. Neither are popular positions to have but they are necessary.