September 22, 2022 - This report provides background on the provision of indigent defense in California, discusses existing indigent defense service levels, and makes recommendations to improve the state's oversight of indigent defense.
February 28, 2022 - In this post, we analyze the Governor’s proposal to provide resources to the Department of Human Resources (CalHR) to implement specific proposals recommended by a taskforce established by the Governor aimed at finding ways to make the state a better employer. In addition, the proposal would seek to improve statewide data on the workforce to inform a statewide diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy. We recommend that the Legislature approve the proposal and encourage the Legislature to exercise legislative oversight of the process to ensure that the administration’s policies meet legislative objectives and priorities.
September 12, 2019 - We reviewed the proposed memorandum of understanding (MOU) for Bargaining Unit 2 (Attorneys and Hearing Officers). This review is pursuant to Section 19829.5 of the Government Code.
August 25, 2022 - We reviewed the proposed memorandum of understanding for Bargaining Unit 2 (Attorneys and Hearing Officers). Bargaining Unit 2 is represented by the California Attorneys, Administrative Law Judges, and Hearing Officers in State Government (CASE). This review is pursuant to Section 19829.5 of the Government Code.
February 4, 2021 - This publication discusses the Governor's 2021-22 January budget proposals for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, including $143 million for hand crews, $8 million for defensible space inspectors, and $54 million for various capital outlay projects.
May 24, 2023 - As part of the May Revision, the Governor proposed amending Section 19826 of the Government Code to establish a biennial compensation report for state employees. This post is our analysis of the Governor’s proposal.
March 23, 2023 - This post provides an overview of information security (IS) proposals in the Governor’s 2023-24 budget, including our assessment and recommendations across the proposals and specific to the California Cybersecurity Integration Center (Cal-CSIC).
March 20, 2020 - The Legislature likely will be asked to approve labor agreements for eight bargaining units in 2020—the employees represented by these bargaining units account for more than one-half of the state’s General Fund personnel costs. The purpose of this post is to highlight the importance of requiring the administration to justify compensation increases it agrees to in labor agreements submitted to the Legislature for approval.
October 22, 2020 - This post provides an overview of the major judiciary and criminal justice proposals approved as part of the 2020-21 budget package. The 2020 21 budget provides $15.9 billion from the General Fund for judicial and criminal justice programs, including support for program operations and capital outlay projects. This is a decrease of $207 million, or 1.3 percent, below the revised 2019 20 spending level.
February 16, 2022 - This brief analyzes the Governor’s proposed spending plan for a $300 million ongoing General Fund augmentation for the California Department of Public Health, describes merits of the proposed plan and identifies ways it could be strengthened, and offers issues for legislative consideration.
February 18, 2020 - The Governor’s 2020‑21 budget includes a total of $19.7 billion from all fund sources for the operation of judicial and criminal justice programs. This is a net increase of $341 million (2 percent) over the revised 2019‑20 level of spending. General Fund spending is proposed to be $16.2 billion in 2020‑21, which represents an increase of $213 million (1 percent) above the revised 2019‑20 level. In this report, we assess many of the Governor’s budget proposals in the judicial and criminal justice area and recommend various changes. Below, we summarize some of our major recommendations. We provide a complete listing of our recommendations at the end of the report.