The 2020-21 Budget: Overview of the Governor's Budget

Jan 13, 2020 - Recently, corporation tax collections have grown faster than anticipated while personal income tax collections have grown somewhat slower. The administration assumes that this pattern will continue. This is because they attribute the pattern to partnerships, which are taxed under the personal income tax, changing to corporations in response to 2017 federal tax changes.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4135

The 2020-21 Budget: Staffing to Address New Independent Contractor Test

Feb 11, 2020 - Based on supplementary information we requested from the administration, we know that the proposal includes funding for 20 tax auditor positions, most of whom would work additional payroll tax appeals related to AB  5.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4151

The 2019-20 Budget: Overview of the Governor's Budget

Jan 14, 2019 - Based on the recent federal approval of a similar tax in Michigan, federal approval of a reauthorized California MCO tax appears likely. Despite this development, the administration did not propose an extension of the MCO tax in 2019 ‑20, forgoing over $ 1  b illion in General Fund benefit.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/3916

The 2022-23 Budget: State Payments on the Federal Unemployment Insurance Loan [Publication Details]

Feb 15, 2022 - In this post, we provide a projection of state and employer costs to repay the federal Unemployment Insurance loan under two economic scenarios, assess the effects of the Governor's proposed $3 billion General Fund payment toward the outstanding loan, and present an alternative to the Governor's proposal that could provide more immediate tax relief.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/4543

The 2022-23 Budget: Analysis of the Care Economy Workforce Development Package

Mar 10, 2022 - Historically, a small statewide payroll tax provided funding for ETP grants but, in recent years, the state has supplemented this longstanding funding source with General Fund monies for targeted training grants.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4572

The 2022-23 Budget: Supply Chain and Port Infrastructure Proposals

Feb 15, 2022 - The Legislature would generally need to repurpose the associated funding for other SAL‑related purposes, such as tax reductions or an alternative excluded expenditure. Issues for Legislative Consideration The Legislature may want to modify the Governor ’s proposal so that it best address its priorities.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4540

The 2022-23 Budget: Assessing Proposals to Address Unemployment Insurance Fraud

Feb 15, 2022 - In light of this scrutiny, the Internal Revenue Service recently called off its planned adoption of ID.me for tax filing. (After the publication of this report, the IRS reinstated its use of ID.me, but with added safeguards.)
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4542

The 2020-21 Spending Plan: Labor and Employment Issues

Oct 5, 2020 - The department requested resources for AB  5 because its payroll tax auditors must determine if a worker is an independent contractor or an employee. Funds will be used to train auditors to apply the new test and hire auditors to prepare audits for additional employer appeals that are expected as a result of the law.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4274

The 2019-20 Budget: California Spending Plan—Other Provisions

Oct 17, 2019 - In addition to lengthening the duration of leave, the spending plan also reduces the reserve requirement for the Disability Fund, which co llects payroll taxes and pays disability and paid family leave benefits, from 45  percent of disbursements to 30  percent of disbursements.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4101

The 2020-21 Budget: Labor Agreements to Achieve Budgetary Savings

Sep 9, 2020 - The pay that employees receive in a typical pay period —salary plus EDWC —affects employee pension benefits and is subject to Medicare payroll taxes. (Employees in specialty classifications represented by Unit 8 —including foresters, forestry aids, and fire prevention specialists —are compensated more similarly to other state employees based on a 40-hour workweek.)
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4267