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November 1, 2012 - Presented to: Local Agency Investment Fund Annual Conference
October 11, 2012 - Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund Program Chapter 942, Statutes of 1995 (SB 537, Hughes)
September 25, 2012 - Presented to: Assembly Insurance Committee Hon. Henry T. Perea, Chair and Senate Insurance Committee Hon. Ron Calderon, Chair
May 24, 2012 - Presented to the Assembly Special Committee on the Governor's Reorganization Plan No. 2, Hon. Joan Buchanan, Chair.
April 20, 2012 - We reviewed the proposed Memorandum of Understanding for Bargaining Units 12 (Craft and Maintenance), 16 (Physicians, Dentists, and Podiatrists), 18 (Psychiatric Technicians), and 19 (Health and Social Services/Professionals). If adopted, the MOUs would result in modest increases in state costs for employee compensation.
April 13, 2012 - Presented to Joint Conference Committee on Public Employee Pensions, Hon. Warren T. furutani, Chair, and Hon. Gloria negrete McLeod, Chair
March 20, 2012 - Presented to Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee and Assembly Elections and Redistricting Committee
March 7, 2012 - Presented to Joint Oversight Hearing on Land Use and Community Development, Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee and Assembly Local Government Committee
February 22, 2012 - Presented to: Senate Transportation and Housing Committee and Senate Governance and Finance Committee, Hons. Mark DeSaulnier and Lois Wolk, Chairs
January 27, 2012 - As part of legislation authorizing seven local governments to participate in a pilot program regarding electronic filing of Statements of Economic Interests forms, the Legislature requested our office to evaluate the pilot program. This report presents our findings.
November 8, 2011 - The Governor’s 12-point pension and retiree health plan would result in bold changes for California’s public employee retirement programs. His proposals would shift more of the financial risk for pensions—now borne largely by public employers—to employees and retirees and would, in so doing, substantially ameliorate a key area of long-term financial risk for California governments. Despite the proposal’s strengths, it leaves many questions unanswered, such as how his hybrid plan and retirement age proposals would work and how the state should cope with large unfunded liabilities already affecting the California State Teachers’ Retirement System, the University of California Retirement Plan, and the health benefit program for state and California State University retirees. The Governor’s proposal to increase many current public employees’ pension contributions also raises significant legal and practical issues.
October 24, 2011 - Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund Program
October 13, 2011 - Since 2008, the cost of providing unemployment insurance (UI) benefits in many states has exceeded available resources. As a result, by 2010 the UI funds in 32 states were insolvent, forcing those states to obtain loans from the federal government to continue payment of UI benefits. In this report, we conduct a comparative analysis of the UI programs in all 50 states and Washington D.C. to provide context for the Legislature in considering potential solutions to California's UI insolvency. Our analysis finds that California’s UI program pays comparatively lower weekly benefits, but pays these weekly benefits for a longer duration and to a relatively larger caseload. As a result, California has comparatively higher total program costs. To the extent the Legislature desires, California’s comparatively high cost structure could be mitigated by changing its UI eligibility and benefits duration policies. However, regardless of UI policies, California’s UI program is likely to have a higher UI cost structure than the average U.S. state as a result of its comparatively worse labor market.
August 31, 2011 - This webcast and accompanying handout summarize the major provisions of the collective bargaining agreements that the Legislature ratified in 2010-11. During the first 12 months of these agreements, most employees receive lower total compensation and the state experiences net employee compensation savings. In future years, employees will receive higher total compensation and the state will experience increased costs. UPDATE 9/1/11 -- Handout updated to include reference to a 2009 state law eliminating two state holidays.
August 19, 2011 - As part of the 2011-12 budget plan, the Legislature enacted a major shift—or “realignment”—of state program responsibilities and revenues to local governments. In total, the realignment plan provides $6.3 billion to local governments to fund various criminal justice, mental health, and social services programs in 2011-12, and ongoing funds for these programs annually thereafter. We recommend the Legislature address a few pressing implementation issues before this legislative session ends. We also identify a series of more extensive issues that we recommend the Legislature address in early 2012, such as developing local funding formulas with an eye towards the long term, promoting local accountability, and simplifying the plan’s extensive network of accounts and subaccounts.