Looming Budget Cuts Fuel California Fury

K-12 faces $360 million hit as educators warn of impact from state ‘fiscal emergency.’

As Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger faces one of California’s toughest economic periods since he first was elected in 2003—leading him to declare a “fiscal emergency” likely to produce deep budget cuts—he isn’t getting much sympathy from the state’s education community.

Reminding the Republican governor that he promised to focus on improving the education system this year, school leaders and advocacy groups are venting their frustrations over proposed midyear education funding cuts, as well as cuts in core education programs of close to 10 percent in fiscal 2009.

Parents and Students for Great Schools, a coalition of groups representing many poor and minority families, calls the governor’s...