The 2026-27 Budget: California Competes Extension

Mar 18, 2026 - One study used detailed administrative data on applicants and awards to show that tax credit-supported project s are associated with positive employment effects in surrounding areas, consistent with net job creation rather than displacing other existing economic activity.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5162

The 2023-24 Budget: California's Film Tax Credit

Feb 28, 2023 - Dozens of studies over the last two decades have examined the economic effects of film tax credits in California and other states. These studies have used a variety of methods and reached varying conclusions.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4713

Fixing Unemployment Insurance

Dec 2, 2024 - During the phase ‑in period, the state also entered the dot ‑com recession. These two cost pressures absorbed the remaining flexibility in the state ’s UI tax system. As  shown in Figure  4 , the state began this period in Schedule C but quickly moved to Schedule F+, the highest tax schedule, where it has remained since.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4943

Overview of Diversity Efforts in the Film Tax Credit Program

May 1, 2025 - Although below ‑the ‑line positions make up the large majority of workers in the motion picture industry, some studies have documented a relationship between the gender/race/ethnicity of executive positions (such as director/producer) and the downstream diversity of cast and crew for that production.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5036

Evaluating State Economic Stimulus Proposals

Feb 1, 2021 - …But Studies Still Can Provide Useful Information. Even if economic studies face significant challenges in quantifying economic benefits, these studies often provide other useful information. For example, studies often describe the intended policy outcomes and qualitatively discuss the potential economic effects of proposals.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4331

The 2025-26 Budget: Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development

Mar 18, 2025 - Because the grant program is relatively new, these studies did not include grants in their analysis and we cannot be certain the results will translate directly to the grant. However, the grant program has the same evaluation structure as the credit, which suggests it could be similarly effective at identifying the best applicati ons.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5018

California’s Low-Wage Workers and Minimum Wage

Mar 11, 2024 - We choose the 10 th percentile because: Nationwide estimates at the 10 th percentile from other studies are available, providing convenient comparisons for our estimates. Estimates of lower percentiles could be less accurate.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4878/3

The 2023-24 Budget: Considering Inflation's Effects on State Programs

Nov 16, 2022 - This brief takes a case study approach to examine how elevated inflation has already impacted—and could continue to impact—state spending programs. Consequently, while this analysis covers a large share of the budget, it is not comprehensive.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4647

California’s Low-Wage Workers and Minimum Wage

Mar 11, 2024 - Bollinger et al. (2019) study response patterns to earnings questions in the CPS ’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement by linking the survey data to administrative data. They find that methods based on the assumption that earnings responses are conditionally missing at random —such as the conventional weighting approach described above —produce particularly inaccurate
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4878/4

The 2022-23 Budget: Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development Proposals

Feb 11, 2022 - The administration did not study the Innovation Hub programs before providing new funding for Inclusive Innovation Hubs last year. Some Innovation Hubs continued operating without state funds, while others became inactive.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4529