Commentary Catching up to my warnings on bad budget times ahead, despite the expected $45.7 billion surplus Gov. Gavin Newsom imagines, a recent report by the state Legislative Analyst’s Office cautions the state faces tough budget times ahead. This is in preparation for the budget wrangling that will begin in the Legislature in May. As I have been warning, the Federal Reserve Board is on a course to keep increasing interest rates until it gets inflation under control. Currently, reported Newsweek, “U.S. inflation surges 10 percent, but latest report doesn’t include gas.” And that report was for February, not March, when gas surged even higher. Then there’s the Ukraine War that’s scrambling global supply chains possibly more than the Covid pandemic did. The United Kingdom just reported it’s suffering the biggest drop in its standard of living since records started being kept in 1956. Adjusted for inflation, it’s a 2.2 percent …