Sen. Dodd Responds to Gov. Newsom’s 2021-22 Budget

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Friday, January 8, 2021

SACRAMENTO – Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, issued the following statement today after the release of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed 2021-22 budget, which supports essential services such as public schools and wildfire protection while funding Covid-19 pandemic assistance to help California rebuild its economy.

“Despite the tough year we just had, responsible budgeting has left us in a good position to invest in what’s most important to Californians,” said Sen. Dodd. “Right now, that means supporting a robust public health system faced with an unprecedented challenge and help for small businesses struggling to hang on. We need to improve wildfire protection and this budget does that.  Overall, I think Gov. Newsom presents a thoughtful foundation that I look forward to building upon with my legislative colleagues.”

Gov. Newsom’s $227 billion budget makes a substantial investment in Covid-19 response and recovery while supporting essential services including schools, wildfire safety, housing and homelessness mitigation.

Highlights include:

  • $85.8 billion investment in schools with a focus on the safe reopening of in-person instruction.
  • $4.4 billion in emergency response to the coronavirus pandemic. Included is $372 million for vaccines, $2 billion for testing and $473 million for contact tracing.
  • $4.5 billion economic recovery package and $2.4 billion in economic stimulus. The proposal includes $575 million in small business grants and $71 million in fee waivers.
  • Individual stimulus checks of $600 to more than four million Californians.
  • $1 billion in wildfire prevention, response and recovery with $323 million for fire resiliency programs. Includes more firefighting crews and aircraft. Remote monitoring and systems for prepositioning of resources.
  • $1 billion for new and low-income housing construction.
  • $1.1 billion for homelessness
  • The proposal maintains a healthy $34 billion in combined reserves and surplus.

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Senator Bill Dodd represents the 3rd Senate District, which includes all or portions of Napa, Solano, Yolo, Sonoma, Contra Costa, and Sacramento counties. You can learn more about the district and Senator Dodd at www.sen.ca.gov/dodd.