CA’s estimated $10B deficit 'precisely' matches illegal immigrant health care cost

California legislators have been told to expect a deficit of $10 billion or more even if revenues do not fall due to higher than anticipated spending, reports Politico.

Critics note that the $10 billion figure matches estimated costs of the state’s expansion of eligibility for Medi-Cal, the state’s taxpayer-financed health care system, to all income-qualifying illegal immigrants.

“What a fiscal coincidence: precisely the estimated cost of Gavin Newsom’s plan to extend state Medi-Cal to illegal immigrants,” said Will Swaim, president of the conservative California Policy Center on X.

Earlier this week, the state-funded Legislative Analyst’s Office warned the state’s economy is “stagnant" and “fragile" and that the budget is reliant on an “unsustainable” stock market. Earlier Friday, the LAO urged lawmakers to consider the possible negative downturn that tends to but does not always accompany significant decreases in consumer sentiment.