What it does:

Changes California’s budget processes in hopes of eliminating structural deficits.

Why we oppose it:

Under the initiative, state government would lose its key checks and balances.

For vocal critics of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger-backed ballot initiatives, Proposition 76 is like Christmas in November: The measure has so many flaws, one must simply decide on which string to pull to unravel the whole package.

As Democrats have pointed out, passage of the measure — which aims to force California to “live within our means” — would threaten the state’s school-funding guarantee. While we would not be unhappy if the rigid formulas that determine state funding for schools disappeared, our biggest beefs lie elsewhere.

First, Proposition 76 would impose a rigid spending cap on the state budget, taking away the flexibility of lawmakers to make state spending reflect current needs and respond to unexpected emergencies. A similar cap in Colorado has proven so inflexible that voters are now considering softening it; it has proven so devastating to higher education that Colorado’s public universities are actually considering going private.

Most worrisome, though, are sections that would fundamentally change the balance of authority in state government, giving the governor broad clout that strips the Legislature of the power of holding the purse strings. In effect, the measure would allow governors to make unilateral budget cuts when state revenue drops significantly below projected levels; since governors are also the ones who make the projections in the first place, Proposition 76 would leave gubernatorial budgeting power largely unchecked.

As Sacramento Bee columnist Daniel Weintraub — a lukewarm Schwarzenegger ally — pointed out in July, the biggest institutional flaw in California is a requirement that mandates two-thirds of the Legislature to approve state spending plans; in most other states, a mere majority suffices. Proposition 76 does little to fix this, instead giving a tiny group of lawmakers even more power to stall and block the state’s entire budget.

For Schwarzenegger critics, the problems in Proposition 76 may certainly be an early Christmas present. But if it passes, California will get nothing more than lumps of coal.