Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego), along with Senate Budget Chair Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) and Senate Budget Subcommittee Chairs Anna M. Caballero (D-Salinas), María Elena Durazo (D-Los Angeles), Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton), John Laird (D-Santa Cruz), and Bob Wieckowski (D-Fremont), have announced the Senate’s budget proposal to build a post-pandemic economy that extends prosperity for Californians and invests resources to address the state’s most pressing needs in innovative and equitable ways.

“The Senate’s ‘Build Back Boldly’ budget gives us a once-in-a-generation chance to make transformational change in California,” Pro Tem Atkins said. “California has long led the nation on things like expanding health care for the middle class and undocumented immigrants, providing paid family leave and a higher minimum income, and establishing our own Earned Income Tax Credit. With the Build Back Boldly budget, the Senate continues to prioritize smart investments that take care of Californians and take California into the future.”

The Senate’s ‘Build Back Boldly’ proposal includes eight transformative proposals:

• Help small business and non-profits bounce back;

• Create a path to universal 0-3 child care and education;

• Make debt-free college a reality;

• Address homelessness, housing affordability and home ownership;

• Expand access and affordability of health care;

• Invest in wildfire prevention and resilience;

• Mitigate the impacts of drought;

• Improve state systems.

The proposal also includes key subcommittee packages to address K-12 and higher education, public libraries, greenhouse gas and pollution reduction, safety net and aging and public health, equitable recovery, workforce investments, access to legal service resources, and justice reform.

During a press conference, Senate Budget Chair Skinner said the Senate’s budget proposal would provide financial help for California’s businesses and families, including those most vulnerable.

“The California Senate’s Build Back Boldly budget captures this moment when millions of Californians are reeling from pandemic economic hardship at the same time the stock market has soared and given California unprecedented revenues,” Sen. Skinner said. “Our plan provides immediate economic relief to families and small businesses while taking bold steps to close the wealth inequity that undermines California’s prosperity for all.”

Senate Budget Subcommittee 3 (Health and Human Services) Chair Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton) said: “The Senate budget package strengthens our safety net, expands access to services for seniors, and prioritizes investments in a robust public health infrastructure. These investments are critical to seeing California through the latter stages of the pandemic, addressing inequality, and to help support a strong economic recovery.”