The 2025-26 Budget: Natural Resources and Agriculture Discretionary Spending Proposals

Feb 18, 2025 - As a result, every dollar of new spending essentially requires making offsetting reductions elsewhere in the 2025 ‑26 budget or foregoing the opportunity to leave money in state reserves to prepare for future budget challenges.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4967

Lessons From Other States to Address California’s Redemption Center Closures

Apr 10, 2017 - Since surveys only occur every couple of years, handling fees cannot always reflect current costs. For example, California ’s minimum wage increased in January 2017 and is scheduled to increase again in January 2018.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/3649

The Bay-Delta Plan and Voluntary Agreements: Ensuring Effective Legislative Oversight

Mar 18, 2026 - Federal law mandates that SWRCB review these plans at least once every three years, while state law requires them to be “periodically reviewed. ” Updating a plan typically involves several steps, including preparation of a staff report, which serves as a Substitute Environmental Document under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5163

The 2023-24 Budget: Improving Legislative Oversight of CalFire’s Emergency Fire Protection Budget

May 1, 2023 - This is a significant departure from the oversight role the Legislature typically plays in considering whether to approve the costs associated with new firefighting positions through the traditional budget process.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4765

Assessing California’s Climate Policies—Residential Electricity Rates in California

Jan 7, 2025 - However, when taken together, the state’s policies likely have played an important role in achieving the observed reductions. Ratepayers Pay Additional Costs Associated With Transitioning to Cleaner Sources of Electricity.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4950

The 2024-25 Budget: Salton Sea Management Program

Feb 26, 2024 - Every year, SWRCB holds a public meeting by March 31 to hear a progress report on the previous year, including updates on completed projects and the amount of acreage completed, as well as plans for the coming year and funding availability.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4859

Assessing California’s Climate Policies—Cap-and-Trade Reauthorization

May 7, 2025 - Revenues From Allowances Can Play Key Role in Helping Preserve Affordability. The value of allowances —both those that are given away for free and those that are sold to generate GGRF revenue —can play an important role in mitigating the program ’s impacts on affordability.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5042

The 2026-27 Budget: Framework for Approaching the Natural Resources, Environmental Protection, and Agriculture Budget

Feb 10, 2026 - (This is true even under the Governor ’s higher revenue projections, as the administration ’s proposal includes actions to free up capacity for new spending proposals, including creating a settle ‑up obligation for schools and community colleges and suspending a transfer to the state ’s rainy day fund.)
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5116

Frequently Asked Questions About Wildfires in California

Jan 28, 2025 - Regardless of the authorized federal reimbursement rate, the state and local governments often do not receive every dollar they request as some costs are deemed ineligible. Like the FMAG program, funding for the PA program comes primarily from the federal DRF.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4952

The 2026-27 Budget: Proposed Zero-Emission Vehicle Incentive

Feb 24, 2026 - While ZEV ‑specific programs can play a role in augmenting the state ’s broader programs —such as by making ZEVs more accessible to low ‑income households and helping to encourage the market to produce a greater number and variety of vehicles —they are less critical than they otherwise would be without the “backstop ” of those broader GHG ‑reducing programs.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5140