• We enter the final two weeks of the Legislature’s month-long summer recess, and when they return, there will be more for them to deal with than just the remaining bills of the session, according to Politico California.

— “A bond bonanza has swept over Sacramento as Newsom, lawmakers and various interest groups look to borrow billions for critical infrastructure. But pricey dreams are colliding with fiscal and political reality: California can only take on so much debt, and voters will only approve so many bonds — particularly in an era of budget deficits and economic malaise.

— “Newsom is poised to play gatekeeper for all of it. He’s estimated California’s borrowing ceiling at around $26 billion, which will compel some tough choices. Lawmakers face an October deadline to put anything on the March ballot. That means bond negotiations and votes could dominate the end of session after everyone returns from recess.”

• “Preliminary General Fund agency cash receipts for the entire 2022-23 fiscal year were $954 million above the 2023-24 Budget Act forecast of $167.627 billion and were $1.156 billion above forecast in June …

— “Corporation tax cash receipts for the entire 2022-23 fiscal year were $975 million above the forecast of $29.019 billion and were $1.128 billion above forecast in June due to PTE payments.

— “Sales and use tax cash receipts for the entire 2022-23 fiscal year were $61 million above the forecast of $34.688 billion and were $122 million above forecast in June

— Personal income tax cash receipts for the entire 2022-23 fiscal year were $801 million below the forecast of $95.828 billion and were $430 million below forecast in June.”

• “A couple of weeks after he signed the budget, however, Newsom’s Department of Finance quietly released a multi-year budget forecast that projects stagnant tax revenues for the remainder of the governor’s second term and a string of operating deficits even with no growth in spending.

— “ … The Legislature’s budget analyst, Gabe Petek, believes that revenues in this fiscal year alone will fall short of the Newsom administration’s estimates by $11 billion, meaning the red ink would continue to flow even with the so-called solutions adopted by legislators and the governor.

— “ … Given the administration’s forecast and Petek’s gloomier income and outgo projections, the 2023-24 budget’s politically expedient decision to avoid deep spending cuts could turn out to be a fiscal disaster.”

• On his personal website, NFIB California State Director John Kabateck sounds the alarm on a Senate bill very much alive. “What’s under attack here is the very heart and soul of American free enterprise that allows people to turn their dreams into a reality that has made our nation the greatest job-generator on earth, jobs that infuse communities with life and inspire employees to someday give business ownership their own try. SCA 7 is an assault on that heart and soul.”

• The Main Street Tax Certainty Act, which would make the 20% Small Business Deduction permanent, now has 100 cosponsors in the U.S. House of Representatives. For more information about the deduction, view here.

— We urge NFIB members to take action and tell lawmakers to co-sponsor the Main Street Tax Certainty Act.

• On July 27, NFIB released Episode 14 of the “Small Business Rundown” podcast, featuring NFIB member Laura Lucia and NFIB Research Center Executive Director Holly Wade discussing a toolkit of essential tips for owners looking to expand their small businesses.

• This week, on August 2, NFIB will host a webinar titled, “Don’t Leave Money on the Table: Commonly Missed Tax Opportunities.” Register here.