Schwarzenegger to California Taxpayers: IOU Way back in 2008, when banks like IndyMac and Washington Mutual were going under, Californians panicked, fearing that they'd never be able to recover the money they'd entrusted to these financial institutions.
Well it turns out that fear was misdirected. The FDIC bailed out the banks, but now Californians face another money hoarder that's far less likely to pay up...
The State of California...
State officials on Tuesday braced for the possibility of delaying tax refunds to millions of Californians, along with student grants and payments to vendors, as the latest round of budget negotiations between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic legislators collapsed...
State Controller John Chiang has said that as early as Feb. 1, his office may begin issuing promissory notes if lawmakers have not resolved the budget crisis. The state has done this only once before since the Great Depression -- in 1992.
So when Californians check the mail around early June, expecting big shiny tax refunds, they'll instead be faced with headshots of Schwarzenegger, along with an IOU for either their money or a DVD of End of Days-- whichever one he can come up with first. (Hint: One of these things is in much greater supply than the other.)
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