SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) _ Democrat Karen Bass takes over as Assembly speaker on Tuesday, just in time to deal with what could turn out to be the state budget deadlock to end all budget deadlocks.

The former community activist will become the first black woman to hold the Assembly’s top leadership post, succeeding fellow Los Angeles Democrat Fabian Nunez, who will be termed out of office in December.

Bass will find out just how tough her first few months as speaker are likely to be on Wednesday, when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will release his revised state budget proposal and deficit projections.

The difference between anticipated revenue and projected spending is expected to be large, although possibly not as big as the governor indicated last month.

At an event in Garden Grove, Schwarzenegger said the budget was “$20 billion out of whack,” but H.D. Palmer, a spokesman for the state Department of Finance, said that figure was a “worst-case projection.” Schwarzenegger announced it before his budget advisers provided him with updated revenue and cost figures.

“He certainly did not want to lowball the potential for how great a problem it may be,” Palmer said.

Even a somewhat smaller deficit could lead to an extended deadlock between Democrats and Republicans over how to close the gap. Republicans have refused to consider raising taxes or eliminating any tax breaks to generate more revenue, and Democrats say they won’t support a cuts-only budget.

It would take at least two Republican votes in the Senate and six in the Assembly to put together the two-thirds majorities needed to approve a budget, assuming all Democrats vote for it.

Lawmakers are supposed to approve a new budget each year by June 15, a little more than two weeks before the start of a new fiscal year on July 1. That’s a deadline that has been met only four times in the last 30 years.

The record for the longest-delayed budget was set in 2002, according to records kept by the Department of Finance. Lawmakers didn’t approve a new spending plan until Aug. 31 that year. Last year, the budget passed on Aug. 21.

Another lengthy budget stalemate could force the state to resort to a more costly form of borrowing, issuing what are called revenue anticipation warrants, to ease cash-flow problems in September, Palmer said.

Those warrants carry higher interest rates and can result in lower credit ratings for the state. Use of the warrants in 2002 and 2003 resulted in the state’s credit rating being downgraded, forcing it to pay significantly higher interest rates when it sold bonds to pay for various infrastructure projects, Palmer said.

Bass, 54, said she’s ready for the challenge. Her “first, second and third priority” will be reaching a budget agreement, she said.

“I think the state is in a crisis, and I have always been interested and willing to step up when I feel the most needed,” she said.

She hopes to get a deal by the end of August, at the latest.

“I can’t imagine a cuts-only budget, because over the last few years we have cut back severely,” she said. “I’m not sure how much more meat there is on the bone.”

Here are some of the other issues on lawmakers’ agendas this week:

PORN TAX ‚Äî It would cost more to buy an X-rated video and potentially to attend a strip club if Assemblyman Charles Calderon has his way. The Whittier Democrat has introduced legislation that would slap a 25 percent tax on sales of adult material, including pay-per-view movies, and on the income of an “adult entertainment venue.” The extra revenue could be used to deal with what Calderon calls the “numerous negative secondary effects” of adult entertainment, including crime and health care costs. The bill is scheduled to be considered Monday by the Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee, which Calderon chairs.

THIRSTY PLANTS ‚Äî Sen. Alan Lowenthal, D-Long Beach, wants to give homeowners, gardeners and landscapers a hand in saving water. He has a bill that would require that plants sold in containers of five gallons or less come with labels spelling out if they need a little or a lot of water to survive. It’s on the Senate Appropriations Committee agenda on Monday.

SOLAR CONDOMINIUMS ‚Äî Condominium projects and other so-called common interest developments could not prohibit their residents from installing solar energy systems under legislation by Assemblyman Cameron Smyth, R-Santa Clarita. It’s scheduled to be considered Tuesday by the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee.

CLEAN ENERGY ‚Äî Sen. Elaine Alquist, D-Santa Clara, wants to scrap tax breaks for oil production and instead offer a tax credit for investments in so-called clean energy projects. Her bill is on the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee’s agenda on Wednesday.

TRADE-IN BONUS — New car buyers would save on sales taxes if they traded in an older vehicle under a bill by Sen. Dennis Hollingsworth, R-Temecula, that also is scheduled to be considered Wednesday by the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee. The measure would allow buyers to subtract the value of the traded-in vehicle from the new vehicle when computing sales taxes on the new vehicle. Hollingsworth says the measure would help get older, more heavily polluting autos off the road.

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Associated Press Writer Samantha Young contributed to this rep