By Morgan Hall

By Morgan Hall

Just a few years ago the Inland Empire was booming. The issue of overcrowding in schools was ignited by the rise in population and increase in sales within the housing market.

The floods of people moving to California forced tax dollars to be poured into opening more schools and hiring more teachers.

Now it seems the tables have turned; a recent proposal presented by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in January suggests that the State of California “Slash education funding by $4.4 billion” according to the Press Enterprise.

This budget cut includes closing schools and letting teachers go in order to cut losses.

The school budget is being cut because enrollment in schools has decreased drastically and this makes total sense.

I was shocked to hear from the Press Enterprise that closing the doors to just two elementary schools in Temecula could save the state a whopping $1.6 million.

I am all for education and have no problem putting my hard earned tax dollars into promoting a better education and a brighter future for our youngins. At the same time if numbers are drastically decreasing the funding should as well.

Our public education system was designed to serve the needs of the community. But, if the community does not fill these schools there is no need for them to remain open.

This also means thousands of teachers will be let go from the closed schools. While this will be difficult for many people it has to be done to fit the plans of the budget.

It appears the public education system is not the only area being hit hard. Schwarzenegger’s budget plan includes a 10 percent cut that will affect all state programs including State Prisons and State Parks.

Prisons are releasing inmates in order to adhere to the budget plans. While this is a smart move I don’t sleep better at night knowing inmates are roaming around so the state can save a few bucks.

The State Parks are also having a hard time adjusting to the budget cuts.

Closure of Parks is supporting the budget plan which is a major bummer for people like me who enjoy the outdoors and experiencing the beauty of California.

A friend of mine is a Ranger for the San Jacinto State Park. He was recently voicing to me his concerns of losing his job and with the recent cuts from the parks and park closures this possibility for many current park employees doesn’t seem far off.

But why this budget cut? Well, the state of California is in the midst of a 14 billion dollar deficit and the Governor feels his budget proposal set for July will help to create stability.

The reason for the financial crisis California is in has to do with the stand still economy caused by the mortgage crisis, job losses and a severe drop in retail sales.

A few years ago the housing market was doing extremely well. It seemed to be a great time to buy with low interest rates and banks that would finance anyone; houses were being purchased left and right.

A majority of the people buying homes had “eyes bigger than their stomachs.” People saw the American Dream in the form of a suburban home and jumped on the opportunity not taking a second to understand it was possibly beyond their financial means.

Now people are losing their jobs and cannot afford their homes so the market is in severe distress.

I walk around my neighborhood and see numerous homes that have been foreclosed because jobless people obviously can’t make a house payment. Also these houses go up for sale and don’t sell for months because virtually no one can afford to buy a house at this time.

KTLA News aired a clip of Governor Schwarzenegger presenting his proposal and he made clear that the issue is that “There is something wrong with the system rather than the people.”

This plan is going to affect Californians but at the same time I think the Governator has our best intentions in mind. He sees a problem with the economy and has come up with a budget solution that in the long run can be beneficial to the states future. So instead of being upset and complaining about budget cuts; I think we should embrace a potentially positive change.