February 17, 2021 - This publication provides our analysis of the Governor’s 2021-22 January budget proposal related to a debt collector licensing and regulation program created by Chapter 163 of 2020 (SB 908,Wieckowski) within the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation.
October 7, 2020 - The 2020-21 Budget: California Spending Plan — Other Provisions.
February 14, 2017 - Voters legalized the use of medical cannabis in California in 1996, and the Legislature approved the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MCRSA) in 2015. In November of 2016, voters approved Proposition 64, which legalized and created a regulatory framework for the nonmedical use of cannabis. In the coming year, the Legislature will face key choices about whether it wants to make statutory changes to bring the regulatory frameworks of MCRSA and Proposition 64 into greater alignment. Additionally, the Legislature will need to determine the staff and other resources to provide to the various agencies charged with regulating and taxing the cannabis industry. We recommend the Legislature (1) work with the administration to enact legislation to align the regulation of medical and nonmedical cannabis to the maximum extent possible, (2) make its decisions on the extent to which it wants to align the regulatory structures for medical and nonmedical cannabis before making its decisions on the Governor’s requested funding and related positions, and (3) take a more incremental approach to budgeting for departments that are requesting resources in 2017-18.
May 4, 2017 - Presented to the following Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittees: Resources, Environmental Protection, Energy, and Transportation Health and Human Services State Administration and General Government
April 24, 2017 - Presented to: Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 4 on State Administration
October 2, 2024 - This post discusses features of the state's spending plan that were not covered elsewhere in the 2024-25 Spending Plan series.
February 17, 2017 - In this analysis, we discuss our findings and recommendations regarding three proposals for the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) included in the Governor's 2017-18 budget: (1) BreEZe Information Technology System, (2) DCA Organizational Change Management, and (3) Registered Nursing Military Education and Experience. We discuss our findings and recommendations regarding DCA's two cannabis-related proposals in our recent report, The 2017-18 Budget: The Governor's Cannabis Proposals.
May 12, 2009 - In this report, we identify a number of deficiencies in the Department of Real Estate’s Licensing and Education Program and their Enforcement and Recovery Program. Our recommendations would tighten existing educational requirements, increase licensee accountability for violations of the real estate law, improve department accountability for program outcomes, and expand consumer access to—as well as oversight of—the Recovery Account. (Short video summary.)
February 14, 2020 - The Governor’s 2020-21 budget includes various cannabis-related proposals, including both budget trailer legislation and budget change proposals from multiple departments. In this report, we (1) provide some background on cannabis regulation and taxation in California; (2) describe the Governor’s proposals; and (3) provide recommendations on these proposals for legislative consideration.
February 24, 2023 - In this post, we assess and make recommendations on the Governor’s budget proposal to permanently fund the operations of the Organizational Improvement Office (OIO) in the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA).
March 5, 2024 - In this post, we assess the Governor's proposal to increase the mill assessment—a tax levied on pesticides when first sold into or within the state—to address the structural deficit within the Department of Pesticide Regulation’s special fund and to support various programmatic expansions for the department.
February 25, 2016 - In this post, we provide recommendations on the following Department of Consumer Affairs budget proposals for 2016-17: (1) Acupuncture Board—Curriculum Review and Licensing and (2) Department of Justice Staffing.
March 19, 2021 - Discusses the Governor's proposal to implement fiscal and governance reforms for the Department of Toxic Substances Control, as well as the proposal to provide $300 million in one-time General Fund to clean up brownfields across the state.
May 23, 2017 - Presented to: Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee