Yawwwwnnnn. Like a bear waking from hibernation WCLP is rubbing the sleep from our eyes and waking up to a new season. While most households in California are preparing for the holiday season, a smaller group of Californians are preparing for budget season. For many it feels like budget season never really ends so it is hard to call it a season. But each January we start a new budget season and evidence of its impending arrival is piling up. For example:

The Governor announced this week that he has appointed Ana Matasantos as the Director of Finance. This position is the chief advisor to the Governor on budget matters and is one of the most powerful jobs in state government. Ms. Matasantos has worked for the Governor in various capacities the past six years, climbing the administrative ladder until last year she became one of the Governor's chief negotiators.

Ms. Matasantos has deep knowledge of health and welfare programs from her days as a budget consultant for the Senate Budget Committee which has made her particularly valuable to the Governor. Ms. Matasantos was the principal neogtiator for the Governor last year on CalWORKs, IHSS and other social service programs which suffered major cuts. Though perhaps the youngest budget director in recent memory, Ms. Matasantos is known for being very intelligent and a hard worker and her bi-partisan background makes her credible on both sides of the aisle.

Becoming the California Director of Finance at the beginning of 2010 may, however, be the worst job in the world. Some would ask who would want such a job at a time when it seems the only possible outcome is causing pain for real families. The Legislative Analyst Office has reported that the state faces a $20 billion deficit between the current budget and the upcoming 2010-11 budget. In a recent meeting with health and human service advocates, Christian Griffith, chief consultant to the Assembly Budget Committee, said that the Administration is considering not just cuts but "amputations" of programs. Mr. Griffith explained that not only do we have a $20 billion deficit but we have few accounting tricks left and fewer places to cut from.

While federal stimulus funds helped reduce the severity of cuts this year some of the funds also have requirements that states not reduce state spending. For example, MediCal eligibility can not be reduced through next December and the K-12 school budget is also protected from cuts. This means that $20 billion must be cut from the remainder of the budget that includes CalWORKs, IHSS, SSI, DDS, higher education, the judiciary and corrections. To bridge the $20 billion gap would require almost complete elimination of all these programs. Do not be surprised if the January budget proposes to eliminate several cherished programs from the above list.

Advocates for the poor have been preparing for next year's battle over the past several months. WCLP, Health Access, the California Partnership and the California Immigrant Policy Collaborative have convened a new HHS budget group called (drum roll please) The Budget Network. The work of the group will have a lobbying contingent, a grassroots response team and a media strategy designed to reduce the need for cuts by increasing revenue. Look here for updates on the Budget Network and how you can become involved.

Now go have a great holiday season, get some rest, get some exercise and come back next year ready to fight like never before.