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October 21, 2022 - The 2022-23 spending plan provides over $25 billion from the General Fund for human services programs. This is an increase of over $4 billion, or 19 percent, compared to the revised, prior-year spending level.
September 29, 2022 - Each year, our office publishes California Spending Plan, a series of publications that summarize the annual state budget. The Overview of the California Spending Plan is presented here along with short online posts that focus on major areas and features of the 2022-23 budget package. As more of these posts become available, we will add them below.
August 2, 2022 - Presented to: Senate Committee on Health Assembly Committee on Health
April 6, 2022 - Presented to: Assembly Committee on Communications and Conveyance
April 5, 2022 - This report focuses on how a changing climate is affecting the health of Californians and key issues the Legislature faces in responding to those impacts. This is one of a series of reports summarizing how climate change will impact different sectors across California.
April 5, 2022 - This report contains four primary sections: (1) a description of the five key climate hazards affecting California, (2) the major ways those hazards impact sectors across the state, (3) significant existing state‑level efforts underway to address climate change impacts, and (4) key issues for the Legislature to consider in response to these impacts. This is one of a series of reports summarizing how climate change will impact different sectors across California.
March 29, 2022 - In this post, we provide an overview of the proposed 2022-23 Department of Developmental Services (DDS) budget and assess the three main new discretionary proposals. We then raise oversight issues for legislative consideration.
March 17, 2022 - This letter responds to the Assembly Rules Committee request for the LAO to analyze financing and other considerations related to AB 1400 (Kalra), which would create a single-payer health care delivery system known as “CalCare,” and ACA 11 (Kalra), which includes tax provisions related to the financing of CalCare.
March 10, 2022 - This post analyzes the Governor’s proposed Care Economy Workforce Development Package. We provide an assessment and recommendations for both the package as a whole and for two specific components of the package.
March 9, 2022 - Presented to: Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 1 On Health and Human Services
March 3, 2022 - This brief analyzes the Governor’s three major behavioral health budget proposals. We include analyses of the Governor’s proposals to (1) provide funding for behavioral health bridge housing, (2) provide funding to implement certain solutions developed by the felony incompetent to stand trial solutions workgroup, and (3) add mobile crisis intervention services as a new Medi-Cal benefit.
February 28, 2022 - In this post, we analyze the Governor’s proposal to provide resources to the Department of Human Resources (CalHR) to implement specific proposals recommended by a taskforce established by the Governor aimed at finding ways to make the state a better employer. In addition, the proposal would seek to improve statewide data on the workforce to inform a statewide diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy. We recommend that the Legislature approve the proposal and encourage the Legislature to exercise legislative oversight of the process to ensure that the administration’s policies meet legislative objectives and priorities.
February 23, 2022 - This brief focuses on access to health insurance coverage and the affordability of health care costs. We (1) assess various Governor’s proposals intended to improve health care access and/or affordability—including expanding Medi-Cal eligibility to undocumented residents between ages 26, reducing Medi-Cal premiums to zero cost, establishing the Office of Health Care Affordability, and reducing the cost of insulin through a state partnership; (2) discuss options to improve affordability of health plans purchased through Covered California; and (3) highlight some key access and affordability challenges that remain to address.
Correction (2/24/22): Figure 2 - Number of undocumented residents has been corrected.
February 22, 2022 - California’s children and family programs include an array of services to protect children from abuse and neglect and to keep families safely together when possible. This analysis: (1) provides program background; (2) outlines the Governor’s proposed 2022-23 budget for children and family programs, including child welfare services and foster care programs; (3) provides implementation updates on a number of programs that were funded in 2021-22; and (4) raises questions and issues for the Legislature to consider as it evaluates the budget proposal.
February 22, 2022 - This post provides background on the California Department of Technology's cost recovery model and rate development process for IT services, evaluates related Governor's budget proposals and available information on a proposed rate re-evaluation process, and offers our recommendations to the Legislature.