ABSTRACT
The Golden State has lost a little of its luster. Rebounding from recession, political turmoil, an energy crisis, and crippling deficits, California finds itself at a crossroads. This raises the prospects for government to draw upon its resources to find solutions to current problems and to fend off the next wave of crises. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger came into office as a reform-minded activist, riding a wave of voter discontent with the state’s fiscal problems and partisan bickering in Sacramento, but he failed to deliver the change he promised. Unable to solve the state’s financial
problems by working with the legislature, Schwarzenegger hoped the voters would approve five initiatives to help balance the state budget in 2009. They didn’t.
