The 2026-27 Budget: In-Home Supportive Services

Mar 18, 2026 - However, as seen in Figure  5 , when we consider IHSS hourly wages separately, we see that the average growth rate of hourly wages has been 5.6  percent annually since  2014. This growth in IHSS hourly wages is in part due to increases to the state minimum wage —from $8  per hour on January 1, 2014 to $16.90 per hour on January  1,  2026.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5166

How Have Past Stock Market Downturns Affected Income Tax Revenue? [EconTax Blog]

Mar 9, 2026 - By most measures, the global financial crisis was more severe than the dot-com crash. The state 's unemployment rate, for example, peaked at 7 percent following the dot-com crash but reached nearly double that during the financial crisis and remained elevated for much longer.
https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/Article/Detail/852

How Have Past Stock Market Downturns Affected Income Tax Revenue? [EconTax Blog]

Mar 9, 2026 - By most measures, the global financial crisis was more severe than the dot-com crash. The state 's unemployment rate, for example, peaked at 7 percent following the dot-com crash but reached nearly double that during the financial crisis and remained elevated for much longer.
https://lao.ca.gov/LAOEconTax/article/Detail/852

The 2026-27 Budget: California Community Colleges

Mar 5, 2026 - As we discuss in The 2026‑27 Budget: Proposition 98 Guarantee and K‑12 Spending Plan , the Governor’s budget appropriates $5.6 billion less for schools and community colleges in 2025‑26 than the estimated minimum guarantee in that year.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5150

The 2026-27 Budget: University of California

Feb 26, 2026 - Over the past decade, UC spending on faculty salaries increased by an annual average of 4.4  percent, while spending on nonrepresented staff salaries increased 5.6  percent. As a group, represented employees (including various other staff positions and union ‑represented academic employees) saw their salaries increase by 6.7  percent each year over the last ten years.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5143

The 2026-27 Budget: CDTFA’s Cannabis and Tobacco Programs

Feb 23, 2026 - The Governor proposes a $5.6  million augmentation from the Cannabis Tax Fund in 2026 ‑27 and ongoing to address compliance and enforcement in the Cannabis Tax Program. This would bring the total Cannabis Tax Fund appropriation for this program to $17.9  million.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5132

Addressing Chronic Vacancies in Prison Mental Health Care

Feb 23, 2026 - Addressing Chronic Vacancies in Prison Mental Health Care 5.6 a Average of all mental health vacancies between January 2025 and August 2025. Receiver Examining Pay Increases as Part of Action Plan. Given the importance of non ‑compensation factors in determining vacancy rates, it is unclear what level of pay increase would be needed to meaningfully improve recruitment and retention for mental health positions.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5134

The 2026-27 Budget: Proposition 98 Guarantee and K-12 Spending Plan [Publication Details]

Feb 4, 2026 - This brief examines the estimates of the Proposition 98 guarantee in the Governor’s budget and assesses the overall structure of the Governor’s school spending plan. It also examines a few of the larger spending proposals and the proposal to delay a $5.6 billion settle-up payment.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/5110

The 2026-27 Budget: Proposition 98 Guarantee and K-12 Spending Plan

Feb 4, 2026 - Moreover, these estimates exclude the future cost of providing the $5.6   billion payment. Making that payment in next year ’s budget, for example, would increase the deficit to about $32   billion (holding other factors constant).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5110

California’s Strong Revenue Trends Mask Looming Budget Risk

Jan 23, 2026 - After the dot-com bust and the Great Recession, it took four and five years, respectively, for revenues to recover. Incorporating revenue risk into the budget now, therefore, reflects prudence, not pessimism.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5104