Assemblymember Olsen Responds to Supreme Court Ruling on Redevelopment Agencies Sacramento

Assemblymember Kristin Olsen, R-Modesto, issued the following statement regarding the ruling by the California Supreme Court on Redevelopment Agencies: "I am extremely disappointed by the Court's decision to allow the state to raid local dollars in order to pay its bills. It is a clear violation of the spirit of Proposition 22, which passed overwhelmingly by California voters just one year ago." "Redevelopment agencies are one of California's only economic development tools," Olsen continued.  "It is shortsighted and foolish to eliminate these agencies that help create jobs and remove blight, especially during a recession." Olsen concluded, "It is unlikely that $1.7 billion will even materialize, as most of the money is already allocated to pay existing redevelopment agency bond debt.  We should be cutting state bureaucracy and programs to close our budget deficit, not using local funds as a bailout."