The Definition of Qualified Capital Outlay for the State Appropriations Limit

Feb 18, 2022 - There are also some properties that appear to meet the de finition, although perhaps less clearly, like information technology projects. Does the State Need to Own the Asset to Count It as an Exclusion?
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4547

The 2024-25 Budget: Initial Comments on the Governor’s May Revision

May 17, 2024 - Due to lower General Fund revenues, the amount of authorized school and community college spending exceeds the minimum requirements for 2022-23 and 2023-24. The May Revision aligns school and community college spending to the minimum required level in each year of the budget window.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4902

The 2026-27 Budget: How to Use One-Time Revenue Improvements

Feb 20, 2026 - For example, we recommend the Legislature: Do Not Suspend the $3  Billion True Up Into the Budget Stabilization Account (BSA). The Governor ’s budget proposes suspending a roughly $3  billion true-up deposit that otherwise would be required in 2025-26.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5133

California’s Strong Revenue Trends Mask Looming Budget Risk

Jan 23, 2026 - To do this, we add a stock market indicator to our forecast models alongside other the economic variables. The added risk variable weighs on the range of revenue outcomes that we view as most plausible.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5104

The 2023-24 Budget: Initial Comments on the Governor's May Revision

May 15, 2023 - In the se cases, as long as the administration ’s proposed increase is consistent with our estimate of underlying cost pressures, we do not consider the augmentation to be discretionary. For  example, the Governor proposes $443  million to provide 5  percent base General Fund increases for the universities, which we do not include in the forthcoming Appendix on discretionary spending.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4769

The 2024-25 Budget: California's Fiscal Outlook

Dec 7, 2023 - From an accounting perspective, Proposition  98 Reserve withdrawals also do not count as spending for the purpose of determining the minimum funding requirement in future years. This means using the Proposition  98 Reserve for 2022 ‑23 also would reduce the constitutional minimum requirements in 2023 ‑24 and 2024 ‑25.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4819

New Inflation Poses Not So New Budget Risk

Dec 15, 2022 - But inflation and the increased risk of recession now weigh on our revenue outlook and contribute to our estimate of a moderately sized $24  billion budget deficit in 2023-24. Our advice is that the Legislature identify solutions to the estimated budget problem that, for now, do not involve draining state budget reserves.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4653

The 2023-24 Budget: Overview of the Governor's Budget

Jan 13, 2023 - In contrast, we do not view these items as baseline spending because they were not approved in any budget ‑related legislation. Consequently, we do not consider withdrawing the inflation set ‑aside or shifting back to lease revenue bonds from cash to be budget solutions.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4662

The 2026-27 Budget: California's Fiscal Outlook

Nov 19, 2025 - The state solved a $27  billion deficit in 2023 ‑24, a $55  billion deficit in 2024 ‑25, and a $15  billion deficit in 2025 ‑26 (in addition to roughly $28  billion in proactive budget ‑balancing actions taken the year before).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5091

The 2023-24 Budget: California's Fiscal Outlook

Nov 16, 2022 - We do not make a similar adjustment because those costs do not reflect current law and policy. (If we had included these amounts in baseline spending, the budget problem would have been larger.) On the other hand, we do reflect spending on school facilities of $2  billion in 2023 ‑24 and $875  million in 2024 ‑25, and broadband
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4646