Interactive website lets you choose budget priorities

by Brian Leubitz

We’ve had a link to the Next10 Budget Challenge on the right sidebar for a while now, and mentioned it once or twice. And while it has a few flaws, after all it is hard to pack a $100B budget into a easily understood little game, it does offer an interesting way to look at the budget. It helps even those who haven’t really had a chance to take more than the briefest of looks into the system. Check out the intro text:

While California is no longer experiencing an immediate budget crisis, important decisions will be made balancing this year’s budget that will impact our shared future.  How quickly should the state pay off $28 billion in budget debt?  What should California do to plan for long-term pension and retiree health care costs?  How much should be invested in programs cut during the recession?  How much should the state have in reserve, and where should those funds come from?

The budget is a months long process, and you aren’t going to get answers in 10 minutes. But, if you know a few folks who would be interested in learning more about the budget, send them over to the Next10 Budget Challenge. Also, give them a chocolate bar to help ease the depression that knowledge of the budget may bring on.