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4,934 Publications Found
January 31, 2000 - The growth of the Internet raises many tax policy issues. These include: How can we ensure that the tax system is fair without interfering with the Internet's evolution? How will the Internet's growth affect government tax bases? We examine these and other Internet-related tax issues in detail, and recommend that California approach them by pursuing multistate tax agreements and consider undertaking a comprehensive review of telecommunication related levies.
January 27, 2000 - In 1999, the Legislature and Governor changed the state’s child support enforcement program which significantly increased state authority over the program. We review the governing legislation and recommend steps designed to maximize collections while minimizing federal penalties and automation problems.
January 14, 2000 - Recent economic and revenue trends have continued to far surpass expectations. These positive trends are likely to result in revenues exceeding the Governor's budget forecast by $3 billion in the current year and budget year combined. We believe that approximately half of these additional revenues should be devoted to one-time purposes, while the remainder could be available for ongoing commitments, whether for new spending or tax relief.
January 7, 2000 - We conclude that the performance of High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes is mixed. We recommend various measures to ensure that the freeway capacity utilized by HOV lanes is managed efficiently. These include creation of more High Occupancy Toll lanes and, where appropriate, conversion of underutilized HOV lanes.
January 4, 2000 - We project a shortfall for the Public Transportation Account (PTA). As a result of this shortfall, no PTA funds will be available for new transit capital improvement projects through at least 2005-06. We discuss various alternatives for addressing this shortfall, including a constitutional amendment to permit expenditure of gas tax revenues for transit rolling stock.
January 1, 2000 - We recommend various modifications to the method and level of funding for K-12 special education facilities. These include establishing a uniform facility grant for all pupils, establishing a separate facility grant for county offices of education in recognition of the special education pupils served at county facilities, and requiring county offices of education to provide local matching funds except in financial hardship cases.
December 15, 1999 - Nationally, over 40 percent of married couples currently incur the marriage penalty, which averages about $1,400 per couple. However, even more couples--over 50 percent--receive federal marriage bonuses, totaling several billion dollars more than the marriage penalties. While the likelihood of Californians facing federal marriage penalties is less than nationally, Californians pay a disproportionately large share of such penalties.
December 6, 1999 - We estimate that the employee compensation package approved by the Legislature in September will cost $286 million in the current year, increasing to almost $1.3 billion in 2001-02. Enhanced retirement benefits will cost over $400 million per year beginning in 2001-02.
November 17, 1999 - California's fiscal fortunes have again significantly exceeded expectations, due largely to its robust economic performance and the accompanying increases in General Fund revenues. We project that continued revenue growth will trigger all of the vehicle license fee (VLF) reductions previously agreed to, enable full funding of all current-law programs, and produce significant budgetary reserves in the next several years.
October 27, 1999 - We outline our concerns with the staff supplemental analysis prepared for the Commission on State Mandates (COSM) October 28, 1999 meeting. This letter is a follow-up to our 10/13/99 analysis in which we reviewed legislative intent related to the special education funding system.
October 23, 1999 - (1) Although the growth in the prison population has slowed in recent years, the second- and third-strike population continues to grow substantially. This growth will have implications for the costs, operation, and security needs of the prison system. (2) Strong current revenue trends suggest that revenues in 1999-00 will exceed the budget estimate, potentially by a substantial margin.. (Cal Update)