The impasse is growing more costly to California as its financial situation grows more precarious. Earlier this week, Moody’s downgraded the state’s credit rating to three notches above junk status, following a similar move by Fitch Rating, which put it two notches above. “If the governor and legislature dump us on that [junk] pile, they will end indefinitely the state’s financial ability to build schools, highways, levees — all the critical public works we need to rebuild California,” he said. “If we’re denied the ability to sell bonds, financing for infrastructure projects will cease. It won’t slow. It will stop. Many thousands of California workers will lose their jobs. Thousands of businesses will lose billions of dollars in revenue.”

Pennsylvania is one of three states that have yet to pass budgets for fiscal 2010, which began July 1. The other two — Connecticut and North Carolina — are operating under temporary spending measures. Still two others, Illinois and Ohio approved their 2010 budgets this week.