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4,627 Publications Found
February 9, 2015 - This report examines the budget of the Department of State Hospitals (DSH), which provides inpatient mental health services to patients in DSH’s eight facilities. It provides an overview of the various components of the department’s budget, and details how the department develops its annual budget requests. The report finds several shortcomings with the current budgeting process. To address these, the report provides recommendations for the Legislature to consider.
February 2, 2015 - This report updates our 2012 progress report on transfer reform. We found that since 2012, both CCC and CSU have made substantial progress in meeting the legislation’s goals. Although some community colleges and CSU campuses are lagging in meeting specific statutory targets, both segments are making a good faith effort to comply with the legislation. Moving forward, we recommend the Legislature set specific reporting and data requirements to ensure the segments stay on track toward achieving the goals of transfer reform.
January 22, 2015 - In 2012, the Legislature authorized the development and pilot implementation of a universal assessment tool (UAT) to streamline eligibility and level-of-need determinations for three home- and community-based services (HCBS) programs that provide care to seniors and people with disabilities. Our analysis finds that the benefits of a UAT likely outweigh the costs associated with its development. To ensure the UAT achieves the benefits of creating a more effective and efficient approach to HCBS assessment, we recommend: (1) legislation specifying intent to eventually use the UAT on a statewide basis, (2) development of an automated UAT customized to fit within California’s programmatic and policy environment, (3) piloting of county welfare departments and managed care plans as administrators of the UAT, and (4) a formal evaluation of the UAT pilot.
January 21, 2015 - Presented to: Senate Education Committee
January 21, 2015 - Last year the state adopted legislation to (1) cap school district reserves following deposits in the state school reserve recently established by Proposition 2 and (2) require districts to disclose additional information about their reserves each year. This report analyzes how district reserve levels have changed over time and describes some of the key factors that cause reserve levels to vary from district to district. After assessing recent changes, this report recommends the Legislature repeal the reserve caps and modify the disclosure provision.
January 20, 2015 - This report examines Local Control Accountability Plans (LCAPs) for 50 school districts to evaluate whether they reflect thoughtful strategic planning and meet statutory requirements. We find that fulfilling all of the statutory LCAP requirements is a challenging undertaking for districts. Requiring districts to cover every area required in statute—regardless of local conditions—reduces the time and energy districts can spend on areas in need of greatest attention. We recommend the Legislature allow districts to focus their plans on their highest priority areas rather than require them to address all eight state-specified priority areas. We also find that the information in districts’ LCAPs related to the services they will provide to EL/LI students is often unclear and difficult to understand. We recommend several changes that would improve the quality of this information. We also recommend the Legislature clarify the metrics districts can include in their plans. Additionally, we recommend the state disseminate model LCAPs to help districts improve their plans moving forward.
January 16, 2015 - An additional resource to our November 2014 report Restructuring the Court-Ordered Debt Collection Process.
January 16, 2015 - Chapter 425, Statutes of 2010 (AB 2382, Blumenfield), authorizes the California State University (CSU) to award independent doctor of physical therapy (DPT) degrees. The legislation followed a 2009 decision by the sole accrediting organization recognized by the federal government to accredit physical therapy programs to no longer accredit programs at the master’s level. The legislation requires CSU, the Department of Finance, and the Legislative Analyst’s Office to conduct a joint evaluation of CSU DPT programs by January 2015. The joint team found that CSU DPT programs comply with the provisions of Chapter 425. In addition, the review raised a number of broader issues regarding state tuition policy, expansion of academic programs, year-round programs, and additional CSU doctoral programs.
January 15, 2015 - The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Delta) is a biodiverse ecosystem that covers about 1,150 square miles and supports over 700 species of fish and wildlife. The Delta is an important source of water for the state and is used to convey water from Northern California to Southern California. The Delta faces several significant problems, including: (1) a decline in key native fish species, (2) reductions in the amount of Delta water available for use elsewhere, (3) water pollutants that cause harm to species and increase treatment costs, and (4) levees at significant risk of failure. The state has engaged in numerous efforts to address these problems and achieve its "coequal goals" for the Delta: water supply reliability and ecosystem restoration. There are many opportunities for the Legislature to improve the success of these efforts. We identified several issues for its consideration, including (1) demands for Delta water, (2) uncertain funding sources and slow implementation of some key activities, (3) limits on the effectiveness of governance in the Delta, and (4) challenges to restoring the Delta ecosystem. By addressing some of these issues, the Legislature can improve the likelihood that its goals and objectives for the Delta will be realized.
January 13, 2015 - Provides information about schools’ Internet speeds, service providers, and the number of devices per student.
January 13, 2015 - In the Governor's 2015-16 budget proposal, the administration raises its revenue estimates, and this results in a multibillion-dollar influx of new funds for schools and community colleges under the Proposition 98 minimum funding guarantee. The Governor's plan identifies cost pressures and budget risks in health and human services programs, and new program commitments outside of Proposition 98 are limited. The Governor's proposal to pay off the state's retiree health liabilities over the next few decades would, if funded, address the last of state government's large unaddressed liabilities. We conclude the state likely will collect more tax revenue in 2014-15 than the administration now estimates. Barring a sustained stock market drop, an additional 2014-15 revenue gain of $1 billion to $2 billion seems likely in addition to the Governor's budget projection. Even bigger gains of a few billion dollars more are possible in 2014-15. These additional 2014-15 revenues will go largely or entirely to schools and community colleges and could result in a few billion dollars of higher ongoing state payments to schools. Whether tax revenues grow further, stagnate, or, in the worst case, decline in 2015-16 will depend in large part on trends in volatile capital gains and business income.
January 7, 2015 - Describes key aspects of schools’ Internet connections, including physical infrastructure, connection speeds, Internet service providers, devices used to display Internet content, and networking equipment.
December 18, 2014 - In June 2014, the Legislature directed the LAO to prepare a report analyzing the costs, benefits, and trade-offs of various options for a state earned income tax credit (EITC) that would supplement the federal credit. This report discusses considerations for adopting a state EITC and provides three options for the Legislature's consideration.
December 15, 2014 - Presented to California School Boards Association, Annual Education Conference