Posts Tagged Budget

Budget Hotels in Florida and California

Budget hotels are hotels that offer discounts, freebies and packages for their guests. Florida and California have many budget hotels.

There are various budget hotels, Luxury Inns, and beach resorts in Florida as well as in California. Some of these resorts are St. Augustine Beachfront resort, Avalon Waterfalls front Inn, and the Continental Hotel. The resorts, hotels, or what so ever in the areas mentioned above has different tourist packages. The Florida Hotel and Beach resort even offers a free trip package around the Universal Studios and Disney World.

Florida Area

Listed below are some budget hotels in Florida.

• Pensacola Best Value Suites and Inn

This inn has many freebies once you have checked-in. The freebies include unlimited local calls, breakfast every morning, drinks plus a snack. Pensacola is located at #7159 Boulevard Pensacola, Florida. It offers sixty charming guestrooms that have the following amenities:

- cable television
- radio
- hairdryers
- clock
- business services
- wake up call
- iron with ironing board
- refrigerator

Pensacola Best Value Suites and Inn charges a minimum of only 40 US dollars per night.

• Daytona Value Inn Beach Resort

This attractive, charming, and beautiful Inn is located at #1350 South Ridgewood Avenue Daytona, Florida. The resort offers free food, snack, drinks, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It has seventy guestrooms that have the following amenities:

- television
- clock
- microwave oven
- hairdryer
- refrigerator
- iron with ironing board
- radio
- wake up service
- 24 hour security

Thus, Daytona Value Inn beach Resort offers reasonably priced accommodations for the budget-conscious vacationers. It has an average price of 30 US dollars a night.

• Kissimmee Hotel

This hotel is just near Disney World. The exact location of this hotel is #193-highway boulevard, Florida. Many tourist attractions are just in close proximity with this hotel such as the Florida Theme Park, the Disney World, Universal Studios, EPCOT, Sea World and some major parks. It is a perfect site for the family, newly wed couples and for business trips.

Hotel amenities include:

- friendly room service
- clean accommodations
- cable television inside the guest rooms
- internet access
- coffeemaker
- bathtub
- air-conditioned rooms
- bath ensuites
- over-sized beds
- microwave oven
- Jacuzzi
- Spa services
- Disney ticket center
- Shuttle services to attractions
- Tours and activities
- hairdryer
- radio
- refrigerator

This hotel allows smoking and pets inside the rooms. Kissimmee Hotel has a discounted, low-cost package for vacationers. The hotel charges 87 US dollars a night.

California Area

Hotels in California are like the hotels in Florida for they also offer huge discounts and vacation packages. Low-priced services are charged by some hotels that are fit for the whole family as well as your colleagues if you are planning for a business trip and of course, for the tourists. Some of the attractions in California include Disney land, Lego land, Gas Lamp and other the wonderful beaches, them parks and historical structures.

Listed below are some of the most affordable hotels in California.

• Estancia La Jolla Hotel

This beautiful, attractive hotel’s address is 97600 North Torrey, California. This affordable hotel offers spa designed guest rooms. It also gives the guests free food, drinks as well as snacks throughout their reservation.

Hence, many enjoyable activities are offered by the hotel through their packages such as horse back riding, boat riding, swimming, and snorkeling.

The hotel amenities are the following:

- cable television
- refrigerator
- internet access
- microwave oven
- iron with ironing board
- business services
- coffeemaker
- parking
- of course, air-conditioned rooms
- hairdryers
- 24 hours front desk service
- room service

Thus, Estancia La Holla hotel allows smoking within their areas. The average cost of this hotel is 45 US dollars per night.

• Florence Hotel

This budget-friendly hotel is located at 29 Boulevard Avenue, California. It is perfect for wedding receptions, group vacations as well as family vacations. This hotel is also good for business trips and for the budget-conscious customers. The hotel serves complementary breakfast and dinner.

The hotel’s 64 guest rooms have the following:

- Radio
- Coffeemaker
- Air-conditioner
- Iron with ironing boards
- microwave
- Cable TV
- Internet connection

Florence Hotel does not forbid any pet inside the guest rooms. Parking, laundry, wake up calls and dry cleaning services are also provided with a fee. Rooms are available at a low price of 43 US dollars a night.

• Heritage House and Hotel

This hotel is ideal for business trips and honeymoons. It has a distinct relaxing ambience and breathtaking scenery. This charming hotel is located at 5300 North Highway, California. It has a 24-hour service, parking areas and gives free breakfast for its guests. The guest rooms are culturally designed.

Overall, the Heritage House and Hotel has 44 guest rooms and all of which have the following amenities inside the rooms:

- internet connection
- cable television
- refrigerator
- coffee maker
- alarm clock
- iron with ironing board
- air-conditioner
- hairdryer
- microwave oven

All rooms are discounted and are being offered at an affordable prize. The hotel charges 50 US dollars per night.

For more information on budget hotels please visit our website.

Schwarzenegger to cut Domestic Violence Budget?

Today, I have received several emails about Governor Schwarzenegger cutting the domestic violence budget form local coalitions and shelters. However, in reading his budget cuts on the Governors website, I did not see that he cut the dv budget. (See below)

If Governor Schwarzenegger does cut the dv budget, then while cutting the budget, he should audit specific coalitions on how they were spending the money and if the funds were spent on victims of domestic violence or was spent to change the month on domestic violence awareness.

I received an email from Stop Family Violence urging everyone to protest this cut.  But I still don’t see this in his plan. If you see it below, please respond. Did I miss something? Below is the link to the Governors site.  I understand that Tara Shabbaz of the California Partnership To End Domestic Violence spoke about what a travesty this would be. I didn’t see anything on their website. I personally don’t see a problem with it. I think this is a good thing and audits should commence to see where it all goes to.

They way this budget looks on the Governors website, it doesn’t show the veto part of the budget cuts. The Governor is misleading what is really going on. However, I understand that it’s true, he vetoed the programs all together.

Expenditure Reductions Total: $16.1 billion

Education: 1) Recapturing savings previously thought lost by missing June 30 deadline and recalculating Prop 98 accordingly (and therefore the overall size of our problem); this means the additional increase of $1.6 billion in the Prop. 98 guarantee for 2009-10 that we had anticipated does not happen; 2) Redevelopment Agency shift to schools; 3) additional cuts to UC and CSU funding (just under $2 billion total for 2008-09 and 2009-10) $9.3 billion Corrections: Leaders agreed upon a reduction level in corrections, specific program reforms will be determined upon the legislature’s return in August $785 million|ii| General Government: Suspension of COLAs; leveraging state assets (no current-year savings); consolidating and reorganizing boards and commissions, including elimination of the Integrated Waste Management Board; IT procurement reform $1.7 billion State Employee Compensation: Third furlough day adopted; eliminate rural health care; score health care savings $820 million Health and Human Services: Long-term CalWORKs reforms, including graduated sanctions and twice-yearly check-ins; Medi-Cal eligibility changes and improved care coordination; IHSS fraud initiative including fingerprinting; Healthy Families eligibility changes $3.0 billion Vetoes: $489 million

Fund Shifts Total: $1 billion

These include CalFIRE interagency agreement with the legislature and transportation spillover

Revenues Total: $3.5 billion

These include: Optional personal income tax withholding changes; tax enforcement; SCIF proposal; special fund transfers

Borrowing Total: $2.2 billion

These include: Proposition 1A suspension; loan from State Highway Account; various loans and fund shifts to keep state parks open

Other Total: $1.4 billion

June to July state payroll and health premiums delay

Total Solution: $24.2 billion

Reserve: $500 million

Reforms Total: $2.3 billion ($2 billion General Fund)

I founded Women’s Legal Resource in 2006 to help women who face the brutal challenges of the legal system. After going through my own experience in the Family Law Court without the financial resources to obtain proper counsel, I was faced having to represent myself. I attended Los Angeles Valley college in the paralegal studies program which helped in legal research and document preparation. All though I faced many legal hurdles, I felt the need to help other women, especially those who are Domestic Violence victims in document preparation and as a advocate.

The present laws as they are written is flawed and not honoring the safety of victims of violence in the United States. The manner in which police officials and the courts enforce protection orders, custody orders, child visitation and confidentiality escalates violence which leads to murder. Women’s Legal Resource is a nonpartisan organization to support the effort and petition congress for the revision of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault laws. Women and children are being murdered at the hand of their abuser?s, accountability; intervention and prevention are the crucial elements for change.

California’s Budget Mess

Why is it that when people spend public funds they often seem to lose touch with reality? How many times have we seen individuals we consider to be upright, responsible citizens, who normally personally live within their means, suddenly become spendthrifts with a public purse? What is there about holding elective office that somehow makes it acceptable for politicians to spend more money than we can afford or to run up bills for things they would never think of doing in their personal lives?

The reflexive answer to a budget shortfall always seems to be to raise taxes. Look for something to tax, anything, but whatever you do, don’t cut back appears to be the politicians’ motto. In the words of Ronald Reagan, “The government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.”

The credo of most politicians appears to be: Raise taxes and expand the budget when the economy is healthy and generating more money than government needs, then raise them again to cover the shortfall when revenues decline. But, never curtail spending and never give anything back to the taxpayers if it can possibly be avoided.

Witness the annual fiscal charade that invariably takes place in California. Even with the state facing a massive budget shortfall, the state’s legislators continue to receive raises. The Sacramento Bee observed (December 3, 2007), “California pays legislators at least $30,000 more than any other state, but numerous city or county managers, auditors or school superintendents receive far higher paychecks.”

Writing in Forbes.com (9/1/03), Rich Karlgaard noted, “California took in 44% of its revenue from fewer than 10,000 capital gains tax payers in 2000. The state’s legislators insisted on basing the budget on what was clearly understood to be a temporary spike in tax revenues. When the easy money flew off, so did the tax receipts.”

Bill Leonard, a member of California’s State Board of Equalization, observed: “When California raises taxes on people the liberals define as ‘wealthy,’ the actual collections do not meet expectations. Back in 1991, Governor Wilson bought into the liberal logic for a moment and raised taxes on the upper-income brackets. The following two years, revenues were $1 billion short of forecast each year. Currently, the top one percent of taxpayers in California contributes 40 percent of the state income tax, and the top 10 percent pay 70 percent of the tax… Our tax system has gotten so hyper-progressive that a single taxpayer can affect revenue estimates. Last year a wealthy taxpayer settled his tax liability for $200 million…what is clear is the state’s spending level is already overly dependent on a few wealthy individuals gaining financial windfalls, and then paying taxes on them. We are fast running out of Californians who can do this.” (The Leonard Letter, May 5, 2008).

Furthermore, “…state spending has soared under Schwarzenegger even faster than it did under his predecessor…” His budget “spends 34% more than when he took office just four years ago. His spending plan was based on the fallacy that revenues would continue to pour into the state’s coffers.” (ibdeditorials.com, December 17, 2007).

Columnist Dan Walters noted, “The good news is that California politicians, who have sidestepped the state’s shameful and ever-worsening budget mess for six years, may finally face the music. The bad news is that they really don’t have a clue how to close the chronic deficit, given its three-dimensional nature.” (Sacramento Bee, December 16, 2007)

“The widely followed UCLA California forecast took the state to task in its 2008 outlook for a budget ‘based on a combination of overly optimistic projections of revenue, wildly optimistic assumptions that spending would decrease on its own and a handful of accounting gimmicks to make up the difference’…Anyone with half a brain knew that soaring tax revenues were about to reverse, based on the housing crash, which has hit California harder than the rest of the U.S.” (ibdeditorials.com, December 17, 2007)

Too many politicians seem to think their job requires them to spend more money – and never to save anything. No project seems to be too insignificant for them to fund. Whatever the cause, they invariably believe it’s worth the cost.

If Californians do not insist on controlling their government’s budgets, we can look for our politicians to borrow more money and/or raise taxes again to cover the shortfall. If that happens, more taxpayers will leave the state, especially businesses and “the rich,” while those who pay little or no taxes will continue to move in – a disastrous combination. It’s a serious mess!

© 2008 Harris R. Sherline, All Rights Reserved

NOTE: Read more of Harris Sherline’s commentaries on his blog at “opinionfest.com.”

Harris Sherline is a retired Certified Public Accountant and executive. His diverse business background includes experience as a partner in a public accounting firm, as a principal in a number of business ventures and as CEO of a hospital. His conservative commentaries appear weekly in two Santa Barbara newspapers. In addition, his op-ed articles currently appear regularly on three widely read web sites and his own weblog,

Opinionfest.com.