State Wildfire Response Costs Estimated to Be Higher Than Budgeted

Oct 19, 2020 - To the extent that the state is in a poor fiscal condition in 2021 ‑22, these increased General Fund costs will mean that the Legislature and Governor have to find budget solutions elsewhere, such as through more budget reductions, tax increases, or special fund borrowing.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4285

The 2019-20 Budget: California Spending Plan—Resources and Environmental Protection

Oct 17, 2019 - Similar to 2018 ‑19, some of these allocations —specifically backfilling the State Responsibility Area (SRA) fee suspension ($76  million) and the expanded manufacturing sales tax exemption ($64  million) —are “taken off the top ” before determining continuous appropriations.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4103

Options for Creating a Forestry Management Training Center

Jan 4, 2022 - (Apportionments come from a combination of state General Fund [Proposition  98], local property taxes, and enrollment fee revenue.) Also, if students were to perform work for nonstate entities while at the center, a reimbursement model could be considered to help fund the center ’s ongoing operations.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4487

Preparing for Rising Seas: How the State Can Help Support Local Coastal Adaptation Efforts

Dec 10, 2019 - To the degree local property tax revenues drop, this also could affect the state budget because the California Constitution requires that losses in certain local property tax revenues used to support local schools be backfilled by the state ’s General Fund.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4121

An Initial Review of the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program

Dec 13, 2021 - Although local governments invest in some preventative forest health activities, such as developing forest fuel reduction priorities in Community Wildfire Protection Plans, local spending on forest management programs can be significantly limited in many rural areas with wildfire prone landscapes due to small tax bases and in many cases, economically disadvantaged residents.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4482

Reducing the Destructiveness of Wildfires: Promoting Defensible Space in California

Sep 30, 2021 - Other funding sources reported by local agencies include citations and fees, special taxes, and federal grants. For example, in 2020, voters in Marin County passed a special parcel tax to fund the creation of a joint powers authority focused on ï¬re protection and prevention, including defensible  space.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4457

Assessing California’s Climate Policies—Electricity Generation

Jan 6, 2020 - The federal government offers tax credits for wind and solar that likely were factors contributing to the increase in renewables. For example, in 2006, the federal government implemented a solar investment tax credit offering a tax deduction of up to 30  p ercent of the cost of the solar system.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4131

Assessing Vulnerability of State Assets to Climate Change

Jan 9, 2020 - To what extent could there be broader financial or economic impacts from major climate-caused disasters, such as impacts on regional economies and tax revenues? Beyond Assessment —Development and Implementation of Adaptation Plans.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4133

The 2020-21 Spending Plan: Resources and Environmental Protection

Oct 5, 2020 - Consistent with existing state law, the budget allocates (1) $79  million to backfill state revenue losses from  expanding a manufacturing sales tax exemption and (2)  $42  million to backfill revenue losses from suspending a fire prevention fee that was previously imposed on landowners in State Responsibility Areas (known as the SRA fee).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4275

Allocating Utility Wildfire Costs: Options and Issues for Consideration

Jun 21, 2019 - The fund could be structured in a way that other parties would contribute, such as the state (through direct cash contributions or providing tax exempt status to the fund), and/or a surcharge on property insurance policies.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4079