To browse all LAO publications, visit our Publications page.
February 23, 2006 - The Governor’s Budget includes $242 million under the Commission on State Mandates’ budget item to: pay noneducation mandate claims in 2006-07, begin to retire the backlog of unpaid mandate claims, and provide a $50 million “set aside” to transform two mental health mandates into a categorical program. We find that the administration’s proposal does not provide sufficient resources to carry out its plan for 2006-07 and that the state likely will face a current-year mandate deficiency of about $140 million. We also review the way mandate information was provided in the administration's 2006-07 budget documents and make recommendations for improvement.
February 22, 2006 - State costs for reimbursing counties for two state-mandated programs to provide mental health services for school children have grown significantly in recent years. Moreover, serious weaknesses are evident in the system for delivering these services for children in special education programs. To help guide legislative policy-making in this area, we provide background information on these two mandates, assess the Governor’s budget and policy proposals relating to them, and outline the Legislature’s options for addressing these issues.
January 25, 2006 - We review infrastructure issues related to housing. Presented to Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee.
November 18, 2005 - Presented to the Senate Local Government Committee, Senate Transportation & Housing Committee, Assembly Housing & Community Development Committee, Assembly Local Government Committee, and Assembly Judiciary Committee
February 24, 2005 - The implementation of the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) represents a significant opportunity for the Legislature to upgrade the state’s election systems and improve the administration of election laws. At a statewide level, the most pressing HAVA deadline is the requirement to have a federally compliant voter registration database operational by January 1, 2006. We offer a number of key considerations to assist the Legislature in implementing HAVA.
June 10, 2004 - Presented to Joint Legislative Budget Committee on June 9, 2004.
May 24, 2004 - The administration's local government proposal would make far-reaching changes to state-local finance. Our review of the proposal indicates that it would greatly increase the stability of local finance and increase accountability in the mandate process. We also find, however, that the proposal locks in place the current flawed state-local fiscal structure, imposes added fiscal stress on many local governments, and is not structured in a fashion that addresses long-term state fiscal goals. For the Legislature's consideration, we provide various recommendations to bring the proposal into greater alignment with legislative goals and state fiscal objectives.
May 10, 2004 - Presented to Assembly Special Committee on State Mandates on May 10, 2004.
May 10, 2004 - Presented to Assembly Special Committee on State Mandates on May 10, 2004.
April 26, 2004 - Key Elements of Mandate Reform, presented to the Assembly Special Committee on State Mandates on April 21, 2004.
February 18, 2004 - The Williamson Act allows cities and counties to enter into contracts with landowners to restrict certain property to open space and agricultural uses. In return for these restrictions, the property owners pay reduced property taxes because the land is assessed at a lower-than-maximum level. We recommend that the Legislature provide for the gradual elimination of payments to local governments for the local revenue losses associated with Williamson Act contracts.
February 18, 2004 - The prior administration’s action to increase the VLF and the current administration’s subsequent action to reverse that increase have resulted in a number of issues of concern to the Legislature, including (1) the amount of VLF backfill that local governments did not receive during the current year “gap” period, (2) the amount of the backfill loan to the state from local governments, and (3) the amount of backfill to be provided to local governments experiencing hardship. We review the status of these issues and recommend that the State Controller provide information to the Legislature regarding the status of VLF backfill payments and gap period revenues. Accordingly, we withhold recommendation on the administration’s proposal to provide $51 million in local government hardship funding. We also recommend that the Legislature adopt the administration’s proposal to retain the current vehicle depreciation schedule adopted in conjunction with the 1991 program realignment.
February 18, 2004 - As part of its general plan, every city and county is required to prepare a "housing element" which assesses the conditions of its housing stock and outlines a five-year plan for housing development. This mandate costs much more than the Legislature expected and does not ensure the construction of affordable housing. We recommend that the Legislature eliminate the mandate.
February 18, 2004 - Booking fees are charges imposed on cities, special districts, school districts, colleges, and universities to recover the costs associated with booking persons into the county jail. County authority to impose booking fees gives local agencies incentives to use county booking and detention services wisely and efficiently. Eliminating this incentive likely would result in significant increases to county costs, without any identifiable gain to public safety. We recommend the Legislature maintain county authority to impose booking fees.
February 18, 2004 - The administration's budget summary outlines ideas for changing the mandate system. While these ideas have merit, they do not go far enough to correct the structural problems inherent in the existing system. We identify six areas of concern that merit legislative consideration in any reform proposal.