It’s generally a bad idea to base your budget on hypothetical money that may or may not end up in your pocket. It’s a much worse idea if you’re the state of California, and that money is wacky Facebook cash.
The Wall Street Journal reports California is facing a $US600 million hole in its spending after Facebook’s stock bombed. California Governor Jerry Brown expected to make some nice juicy money from taxing sales of the stock, which arrived at $US38 per share and now hovers around $US30. A lower share price means lower taxes, which means the state won’t have as much money to spend, which means Governor Brown probably won’t count on money from notoriously dicey tech IPOs in the future. We hope. Thanks for taking textbooks off the desks of public school students, Zuck. [WSJ via Venturebeat]