Last year, a California task force issued a seminal report urging reparations for Black residents that could add up to hundreds of billions of dollars.
But the state’s new $298 billion budget, signed Saturday after a woeful run for California finances, is offering a much more modest beginning: $12 million.
The budget does not call for immediate cash payments for Californians whose lives were shaped by injustices.
Instead, it promises some state money if lawmakers agree on proposals that supporters see as early steps to repair the consequences of California’s past.
Some lawmakers, though, have nevertheless welcomed the money as a start after the state scrambled to close a $47 billion shortfall.
Persons:
” Assemblywoman Lori D, Wilson, “, ”
Organizations:
Legislative Black Caucus
Locations:
California, Northern California