Pretrial release and bail. [Ballot]

Sep 4, 2019 - New State Pretrial Release Process State Adopted New Process in 2018. The Legislature passed and the Governor signed Chapter  244 of 2018 (SB  10, Hertzberg), which establishes a new state pretrial process.
https://lao.ca.gov/BallotAnalysis/Initiative/2019-006

Building Permits Update: July 2019 [EconTax Blog]

Sep 3, 2019 - Since 1990, only two other times periods —the first half of 1990s and the Great Recession —have had permitting declines as significant as the state has experienced over the past year. Data source: CIRB (Construction Industry Research Board), a service provided by the California Homebuilding Foundation   http://www.mychf.org/cirb.html .   
https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/Article/Detail/397

Managing California’s Cash

Sep 3, 2019 - Over the next few decades, funds that pay pension costs accrue benefits through lower employer contributions costs relative to what they would be otherwise. Finally, funds that accrue these benefits are to repay the loan to the PMIA with interest.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4092

Managing California’s Cash [Publication Details]

Sep 3, 2019 - Given that the state's cash position will inevitably change in the future, we suggest the Legislature be cautious about approving additional proposals to make loans from the state's cash resources. Assessing a proposed loan using the criteria in this report may help determine whether its benefits exceed its costs.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/4092

Evaluating Tax Expenditures [EconTax Blog]

Aug 29, 2019 - The Legislature clearly states the intent of some tax expenditures in the enacting legislation. For example, the stated intent of the California Competes tax credit is to “attract and retain high-value employers in the state. ” In other cases, the intended goal may be less clear.
https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/Article/Detail/396

The Quiet Transformation in California’s Cash Management

Aug 29, 2019 - The way it works is the state borrows the funds necessary to pay for its operations early in the fiscal year, when its net cash flows are negative. Later in May or June, after the bulk of state personal income tax payments are remitted in April and net cash flows turn positive, the state repays the loan.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4091

MOU Fiscal Analysis: Bargaining Unit 13 (Stationary Engineers)

Aug 26, 2019 - Pension Increases Employee Contributions to Pension Benefits. The agreement would require employees to contribute an additional 0.5  percent of pay towards their pension benefits beginning in 2022 ‑23.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4090

MOU Fiscal Analysis: Bargaining Unit 5 (Highway Patrol)

Aug 26, 2019 - Chapter  33 of 2019 (SB  90, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review) appropriated $265  million from the General Fund in 2020 ‑21 as a supplemental pension payment to state pension plans. The law specified that the money would be apportioned among the state employee pension plans in proportion to each plan ’s
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4089

Cannabis Tax Revenue Update [EconTax Blog]

Aug 22, 2019 - The state levies two excise taxes on cannabis: a retail excise tax and a cultivation tax. Fourth Quarter of 2018-19: $97 Million. The administration currently estimates that retail excise tax revenue was $74 million and cultivation tax revenue was $23 million in the fourth quarter of 2018-19 (April through June).
https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/Article/Detail/395

Property tax assessment. [Ballot]

Aug 22, 2019 - Specifically, effective July 1, 2021, the measure: Allows Moves Anywhere in the State.   Eligible homeowners could transfer the taxable value of their existing home to another home anywhere in the state.
https://lao.ca.gov/BallotAnalysis/Initiative/2019-003