Health, labor join forces to battle for bucks in California budget standoff

By Judy Lin - jlin@sacbee.com Published 12:11 am PDT Sunday, July 27, 2008 Story appeared in MAIN NEWS section, Page A1 First of two parts on special interest influence on the budget. Karen Kroeter and Normajean Janssen, two classroom teachers, appear on TV screens and say it's time for state lawmakers to "invest in education" – especially in an economic downturn. An announcer reinforces the message: "We need a fiscally responsible budget plan that increases revenue to protect our schools." The statewide ad was released by the California Teachers Association, the state's largest teachers union, with 300,000 members. This summer, as lawmakers and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger weigh a plan to bridge the state's $15.2 billion deficit in a $101 billion general fund spending plan, a broad network of teachers unions, prison guards,... [read full story]