The 2025-26 Budget: State Mandate—Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board

May 5, 2025 - Since 2016, the water boa rds have been trying to design permits in a way that minimizes creation of state-reimbursable mandates while also continuing to enforce state and federal water quality laws.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5039

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

May 7, 2025 - For more detail, please see our 2016 report, Cap‑and‑Trade Revenues: Strategies to Promote Legislative Priorities . In Some Limited Cases, GGRF Revenues Can Also Be Used to Reduce GHG Emissions. While adjusting the program design generally is the most impactful and cost ‑effective approach to reducing GHGs, the state could achieve some additional GHG reductions with the use of GGRF revenues.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5042

The 2025-26 Budget: May Revision Trailer Bill Proposals on the Delta Conveyance Project and Water Quality Control Plans

May 27, 2025 - Starting in about 2016, Governor Brown —and, subsequently, Governor Newsom —encouraged SWRCB to consider VAs as an alternative to the regulatory approach. However, VA parties did not submit an initial VA memorandum of understanding to SWRCB until March  2022, and they continue to refine the proposal ’s details to this day.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5053

What Can We Learn From How the State Responded to the Last Major Drought?

May 13, 2021 - Major Policy Changes In addition to increased funding, the state ’s response to the 2012 t o 2016 drought included both temporary and permanent policy changes. (For a detailed list of significant drought ‑related policy changes implemented through the beginning of 2016, please see the Appendix of our report, The 2016‑17 Budget: The State’s Drought Response .)
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4429

The 2025-26 Budget: Various California Air Resources Board Proposals

Feb 24, 2025 - In addition to helping regulate pollutants that affect air quality, CARB is the lead state agency responsible for directing the state ’s efforts to meet the GHG reduction targets established in the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Chapter  488 of 2006, [A B  32 , N ú ñez ]) and subsequent legislation (such as Chapter 249 of 2016 [SB 32, Pavley] and Chapter 337 of 2022 [AB 1279, Muratsuchi]).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4980

Frequently Asked Questions About Wildfires in California

Jan 28, 2025 - As shown in the Figure, CalFire ’s budget for resource management and fire prevention —which generally is intended to improve the state ’s resilience to wildfires by reducing the likelihood that wildfires will occur and lessening associated damage when they do —has increased from about $140  million in 2016-17 to an estimated roughly $440  million in 2024-25.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4952

Assessing Early Implementation of Urban Water Use Efficiency Requirements

Jan 4, 2024 - The state spent about 9 of the previous 11 years in drought (2012 ‑2016 and 2019 ‑2022). During the most recent drought, California experienced the driest three winter months on record (January through March  2022).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4823

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

Jan 7, 2025 - In 2016, Chapter  249 (S B  32 , Pavley) extended the limit to  40  percent below  1990 levels by  2030. Chapter  337 of 2022 (A B  1279 , Muratsuchi) further extended the limit, setting a goal of at least 85  percent below the 1990 level as well as achieving zero net carbon emissions by 2045.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4950

The 2022-23 Budget: Municipal Stormwater and Urban Runoff Discharges Mandate

Feb 28, 2022 - Since 2016, when the court decision found implementation decisions over federal stormwater laws can be state ‑reimbursable mandates, we understand that the water boards have been trying to design permits in a way that minimizes creation of future state ‑reimbursable mandates while also continuing to enforce state and federal water quality laws.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4565

Summary of Major 2022 Climate and Energy Legislation

Jan 6, 2023 - The state met the 2020 goal in 2016. Chapter  249 of 2016 (SB  32, Pavley) updated the limit to 40  percent below 1990 levels by 2030. Emissions will need to decline much faster than historical trends in order to meet this 2030 goal.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4660