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4,813 Publications Found
January 22, 2008 - We analyzed certain fiscal issues related to the health care reform (HCR) plan currently under consideration by the Legislature. We estimated the fiscal impact of HCR using two different assumptions of premiums: $250 per month per person and $300 per month per person. Under the $250 premium scenario there are sufficient revenues to support the program in the first year of operation (2010-11). However, by the fifth year of the program, annual costs exceed revenues by $300 million. Despite annual costs exceeding revenues in the fifth year, the program still has a positive cumulative fund balance because the collection of tobacco tax and employer fees start before program costs are incurred. Under the $300 premium assumption, costs exceed revenues by $122 million in the first year of operation and this shortfall increases to $1.5 billion by the fifth year of the program. In addition, the fund balance shows a deficit of almost $4 billion by the end of that period, even with the early collection of the tobacco tax and employer fees. In addition to the premium level, we have identified a number of other fiscal risks and uncertainties which could negatively affect the fiscal solvency of the plan by more than an additional $1.5 billion annually.
January 22, 2008 - Presented to Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 On Education Finance
January 17, 2008 - Existing state and federal laws will limit the ability of California to use the state’s new longitudinal student data system once it is completed in 2010. To ensure the full benefits of the new system can be achieved, we recommend the state adopt a new data access policy, expanding the capacity of instructors and policy makers to use student data to improve instruction while preserving student privacy protections.
January 16, 2008 - Presented to Legislative staff and education community.
January 14, 2008 - Elizabeth Hill's Initial Assessment of the 2008-09 Governor's Budget.
January 14, 2008 - The Governor has put forward an aggressive agenda for the special session and the 2008–09 budget. The Legislature should focus first on those areas where time is of the essence—where early decisions will allow state programs to achieve desired savings in the current year. The special session should also be used to lay the groundwork for achieving budget–year savings—for instance, by developing any program restructurings and taking any necessary actions on the current–year Proposition 98 minimum guarantee. In contrast to the Governor’s approach of across–the–board reductions, in our view the Legislature should (1) eliminate or further reduce low–priority programs in order to minimize the impact on higher priority programs and (2) examine additional revenue options as part of a more balanced approach. Making tough choices now will allow the state to move closer to bringing its long–term spending and revenues into alignment.
January 3, 2008 - With the recent Southern California wildfires, there has been significant interest in the programs that are available to help disaster victims. The purpose of this memorandum is to provide information on the programs and funds available to deal with state disasters. We provide links to more specific information, such as program eligibility and rules.
December 13, 2007 - Presented to: Assembly Education Committee
December 13, 2007 - Presented to: Assembly Education Committee
December 3, 2007 - Presented to the Senate Budget Subcommittee No. 4 on Transportation Hon. Mike Machado, Chair
November 29, 2007 - Presented to Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Water Hon. Darrell Steinberg, Chair Senate Committee on Governmental Organization Hon. Dean Florez, Chair
November 27, 2007 - Presented by Elizabeth Hill to the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, November 27, 2007.
November 20, 2007 - Assembly Committee on Natural Resources Hon. Loni Hancock, Chair
November 16, 2007 - Tax expenditure programs (TEPs) are features of the tax code—including credits, deductions, exclusions, and exemptions—that enable a targeted set of taxpayers to reduce their taxes relative to what they would pay under a “basic” tax-law structure. The state’s TEPs number in the hundreds and are valued in the tens of billions of dollars annually, and are used mostly to encourage certain types of behavior or provide financial assistance to taxpayers. This report provides information on newly enacted TEPs and reviews selected existing TEPs as to their effectiveness and efficiency. One of these is the mortgage interest deduction, valued at about $5 billion yearly. This program is found to be an inefficient means of promoting home ownership, and options are offered for improving it, including capping the deduction amount or replacing it with a targeted tax credit.
November 15, 2007 - Presented to Legislative staff and education community.