According to the San Jose Mercury News, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's ambitious and almost universal California health insurance plan will now move to the Senate, where it will face an extended hearing this week and the likelihood of a close vote in the Health Committee.

Schwarzenegger's plan has been surrounded by controversy since its debut. Small business owners have been protesting that the legislation would require employers to spend too much to fund the required percentage of their payrolls on health coverage for their workers.

Citizens who couldn't obtain California health insurance through jobs or a government program would be required to buy insurance on their own, which would be subsidized in part by fees on hospitals and an increase in cigarette taxes.

It's not clear whether or not the plan will pass. California is deep in debt, with a $14 billion dollar deficit predicted in the next 18 months. It's one thing to want universal California health insurance for all, but as one representative put it, "It's rather difficult for me to vote for a health care plan that's going to cost $14 billion at the same time I'm looking at cutting $14 billion."