California’s Low-Wage Workers and Minimum Wage

Mar 11, 2024 - Over the last decade, California ’s nominal minimum wage has doubled from $8 per hour to $16 per hour. The state ’s minimum wage is now more than double the federal minimum wage, which has been $7.25 per hour since 2009.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4878/3

California’s Low-Wage Workers and Minimum Wage

Mar 11, 2024 - We apply this method to monthly CPS data from January 2022 through December 2023 to construct the estimates that appear in Figures 3 through 7 in the post Is California’s Minimum Wage High, Low, or Somewhere in Between?
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4878/4

California’s Low-Wage Workers and Minimum Wage

Mar 11, 2024 - Over the last decade, two statutes —Chapter  351 of 2013 (AB  10, Alejo) and Chapter  4 of 2016 (SB  3, Leno) —gradually have increased California ’s statewide minimum wage from $8 per hour to $16 per hour.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4878

California’s Low-Wage Workers and Minimum Wage

Mar 11, 2024 - Figure  3 shows that most low-wage workers live in households without any children under 18. Roughly 20  percent live with one child, 15  percent with two children, and fewer than 10  percent with three or more children.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4878/1

California’s Low-Wage Workers and Minimum Wage

Mar 11, 2024 - As shown in Figure  3, our estimates suggest that the share of workers in low-wage jobs declines by more than one-third between the ages of 25 and 32. This decline suggests that a substantial share of workers spend just a handful of years in low-wage jobs before moving on to mid-to-high-wage jobs.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4878/2

The 2026-27 Budget: California Competes Extension

Mar 18, 2026 - All three of these changes could have contributed to the trend shown in Figure  2 if (1)  The 25  percent rule was favoring smaller businesses above better-qualified applicants from larger firms, (2)  larger businesses provide better evidence on how the credit affects their decision-making, and (3)  larger firms are more likely to have, or participate in, job training programs.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5162

The 2024-25 Budget: Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development

Feb 20, 2024 - For example, in such an environment it could make sense to limit new funding to proven ways of (1) addressing critical health and safety issues or (2) preventing serious deterioration of core state responsibilities.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4846

Fixing Unemployment Insurance

Dec 2, 2024 - Our recommended approach, as summarized in Figure  11 , has four parts: (1)  increase the taxable wage base, (2)  redesign employer tax rates, (3)  rethink employer experience rating, and (4)  refinance the federal loan.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4943

The 2026-27 Budget: State Mandate—Disclosure Requirements and Deferral of Property Taxation

Feb 19, 2026 - In particular, state law directs our office to report on the annual state costs for new mandates and make recommendations to the Legislature as to whether the new mandates should be (1)  repealed (permanently eliminating it or making it optional), (2)  suspended (rendering it inoperative for one year), (3)  modified, or (4)  funded.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5130

The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Other Provisions

Oct 16, 2025 - This amount includes $10  million for Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup security costs, $10  million for Family Justice Centers, and $8  million to the City of Los Angeles for fire engine purchases.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5081