MICHAEL COONS/Simi Acorn SUPER TUESDAY-Sophia Land, 2, keeps an eye on her mom, Rachel, who votes in Tuesday's election at Garden Grove Elementary School in Simi Valley. Voter turnout was heavy, officials say.

Voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly agreed with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s plan to balance the state budget by approving Propositions 57 and 58.

Despite claims from critics that the new bond measures would plunge the state deeper into the red, 63 percent of the electorate approved Prop. 57, which allows the state to sell $15 billion in bonds to refinance existing debt. The bonds will be paid off by using a quarter-cent of the sales tax (or about $1.2 billion a year) and could take as long as 14 years to repay.

"I’m happy as a lark," said Simi Valley Mayor Bill Davis.

"I think it’s a good thing for the state of California and good for the cities, too, because if they hadn’t passed, it would mean more cutbacks," the mayor said.

For Prop. 57 to go into effect, Prop. 58 also had to be approved. And voters complied.

Prop. 58 won 71 percent of the vote. It requires the legislature to pass a balanced budget each year. If the state lapses into deficit spending during the year, the legislature must take immediate action to correct the problem.

Voters narrowly approved Prop. 55, which provides $12.3 billion to repair aging public schools and colleges. Just 51percent voted yes. Taking more than 30 years to pay off, the bonds, including interest, are estimated to cost $24.7 billion, or about $823 million a year at current interest rates.

In order to use the bonds, the local school districts must provide matching funds, unless they qualify for special assistance.

Voters in Ventura County were against Prop. 55 with only 46 percent approving.

Voters also decided they don’t want to make it easier for the state legislature to raise taxes.

Nearly 66 percent of voters rejected Prop. 56, the measure that would have lowered the threshold to pass the state budget and budget-related tax increases from 66 percent to 55 percent. Prop. 56 also would have required legislators to stay in session until a budget is passed, or else lose their pay.

Estimates placed voter turnout in Tuesday’s election at 43 percent.