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March 18, 2014 - Presented to Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance
March 18, 2014 - Presented to Senate Committee on Agriculture
March 13, 2014 - Presented to Senate Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Resources,Environmental Protection, Energy and Transportation
March 13, 2014 - In this report, we provide an overview of local property tax administration and review the administration's proposed three-year pilot program to improve tax administration and generate state General Fund savings. In particular, we (1) describe how the current property tax system weakens the incentive counties have to fund property tax administration, (2) review and evaluate the administration's three-year pilot program to improve county incentives, and (3) provide recommendations regarding the pilot's design. In our view, the administration's pilot program merits the Legislature's serious consideration but could be improved by incorporating several modifications. These include: ensuring each county has the same fiscal incentive to participate, providing participating counties greater funding certainty, promoting representative and consistently measured results, and potentially increasing near-term state savings on school spending.
March 13, 2014 - This letter responds to a request concerning California corporate tax trends, as discussed in the January 23, 2014 meeting of the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review. In nominal terms, the state's corporation tax has tended to grow over time, but it is a volatile tax. Moreover, since the mid-1980s, various legislative actions have reduced revenues this tax produces for the state General Fund.
March 13, 2014 - Presented to Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee No. 1 on Education
March 11, 2014 - Presented to: Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee, Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 3 on Resources and Transportation
March 11, 2014 - In 1990, the Legislature authorized cities and counties to form infrastructure financing districts to fund local infrastructure projects. Over the last couple decades, cities and counties rarely have used infrastructure financing districts. Instead, they have opted to use alternative methods to fund infrastructure, including using redevelopment agency funds. The dissolution of redevelopment agencies in 2011 has prompted calls for a review of the financing tools available to local governments to fund infrastructure and local economic development. The Governor’s 2014-15 budget proposes several changes to infrastructure financing districts which are intended to provide local governments with enhanced options to fund infrastructure and local economic development, as well as various other types of initiatives, such as urban infill, transit oriented development, and affordable housing. This report (1) describes the Governor’s proposal, (2) comments on various aspects the proposal, and (3) offers recommendations for the Legislature to consider.
March 11, 2014 - Presented to Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 1 on Health and Human Services and Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance
March 11, 2014 - Presented to Senate Human Services Committee and Assembly Human Services Committee
March 10, 2014 - Presented to Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee and Assembly Business, Professions and Consumer Protection Committee
March 6, 2014 - The Governor’s budget provides a total of $16.7 billion from various fund sources—the General Fund, special funds, bond funds, federal funds, and reimbursements for various transportation departments and programs under the Transportation Agency in 2014-15. This is a decline of $560 million, or 3.2 percent, below estimated expenditures for the current year. In this report, we review the Governor’s 2014-15 budget proposals for various transportation departments and programs, including the California Department of Transportation, the California High-Speed Rail Authority, the California Highway Patrol, and the Department of Motor Vehicles. We identify concerns with several of the proposals and make recommendations for legislative consideration. For example, we find that the Governor's high-speed rail proposals raise several issues. Specifically, we find (1) using cap-and-trade auction revenues for high-speed rail may not maximize greenhouse gas reductions, (2) there currently is not a funding plan to complete the project’s Initial Operating Segment, (3) it is unclear how much cap-and-trade revenue will actually be available for high-speed rail in the future, and (4) that bond funds approved in Proposition 1A for high-speed rail currently face legal risks.
March 6, 2014 - Presented to Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee No. 2 on Education
March 5, 2014 - Presented to Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance
March 4, 2014 - Presented to: Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance