It's a no-brainer for us and probably every other California taxpayer. Legislation costing the state $44 billion in new bond financing should not be approved. Not when voters already served up plenty of bond measures.

Nor should a sheaf of other bills creating new programs and the monitoring bureaucracies that go along with them become law.

Prudence was the word out of Sacramento last week as the Legislature put bond sales and costly proposals on hold.

Assembly Appropriations Committee members were the first to put the lid on new spending, holding about twice as many proposals as the 75 measures the Senate shelved.

Among those put on the back burner was one by Senate President Pro Tem John Burton, D- San Francisco, to tie the minimum wage to inflation.

While unlikely to cost the state more in administration, the law would have had a chilling effect on an already cloudy business climate in the state. Likely more businesses would flee the state, taking their jobs and subsequent California income tax with them.

Perhaps the most expensive measure up for consideration would have established school readiness centers for 3- and 4- year-olds. It's no surprise that state teachers unions backed this bid to ensure thousands of new instructional positions (and increase union membership and clout).

We supported a bill requiring schools keep restrooms clean and stocked with soap and paper towels. Given the SARS scare, it seemed the right thing for schools to do. But the Legislature should really start with something even more basic, requiring schools to keep restrooms open during school hours.

Other education bills seemed redundant, from teaching about nutrition (What happened to the food pyramid?); the environment (Science studies should cover this.); financial management (only if Legislators can attend night classes); gardening (Plant a seed in a milk carton and watch it grow.) to California's labor history (This should be included in California history, as should the life and times of the great conservationist John Muir).

We applaud legislators for at last facing the deficit hole they dug. But they get no points for forgoing political suicide by jumping deeper into the abyss.

However, we appreciate their attempt to get the budget out on time (June 15) this session. Democrats pushed through a budget early in the week devoid of language dictating how money would be spent. Why? Moving the budget through the process will ensure it goes before a conference committee where the final spending will be hashed out.

Meanwhile we offer something legislators can take to the bank: Voters appreciate and reward fiscal restraint in fat years as well as lean.