The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Natural Resources and Environmental Protection

Oct 16, 2025 - For more information about how this legislation —as well as Chapter  650 of 2025 (SB  158, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review), which makes some refinements to the CEQA-related changes —affect housing development, please see our post, The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Housing, Homelessness, and Local Government .
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5080

Overview of New Updates to the Cap-and-Invest Program

Dec 9, 2025 - These consist of the high ‑speed rail project, Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program, Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program, Low Carbon Transit Operations Program, and Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Program.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5097

Cap-and-Invest: November 2025 Auction Update and 2026-27 Budget Context

Dec 9, 2025 - Figure 2 Statutorily Required GGRF Appropriations Pursuant to SB 840 a Program Annual Amount Starting in 2026 ‑27 b Starting in 2026 ‑27, funding will be allocated first to the following programs: Manufacturing tax exemption State Responsibility Area fee backfill CalFire Then second, to the following programs: High ‑speed rail project Unspecified programs subject to appropriation Various Then
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5096

The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Other Provisions

Oct 16, 2025 - (Please see our post, The 2025-26 Spending Plan: Housing, Homelessness, and Local Government for more detail on the CEQA changes.) Final Year of Funding for California Education Learning Lab. The budget package includes a final year of funding totaling $5.5  million from the General Fund for the California Education Learning Lab, with the intention to eliminate the program beginning in 2026-27 (which will achieve $4  million in ongoing savings).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5081

The 2025-26 Budget: Cap-and-Trade Reauthorization and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund Proposals at May Revision

May 19, 2025 - Since the passage of AB  398 in 2017 (with a two-thirds vote of both houses of the Legislature), GGRF is considered akin to a tax. As such, it is a flexible funding source that can be used to help meet the state ’s most important activities (similar to the General Fund).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5049

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

Feb 24, 2025 - The State Constitution allows the Legislature to increase fees to cover the costs of specific state activities with a majority vote of each house of the Legislature. (This is in contrast to taxes, from which revenues can be used for a broader range of activities and which require a two ‑thirds vote of each house of the Legislature.)
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4980

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

May 7, 2025 - Accordingly, to the extent the Legislature would like the program to continue, providing explicit statutory authority passed with a two ‑thirds vote of both legislative houses would be important to increasing program certainty and flexibility.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5042

Frequently Asked Questions About Wildfires in California

Jan 28, 2025 - For instance, between 1990 and 2020, the number of housing units in California ’s WUI grew from 3.6  million to 5.1  million (a 42  percent increase). Besides placing more people and structures in locations with higher wildfire risk, increased development and activity in the WUI can also raise the chance of human-caused fire ignitions.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4952

The 2023-24 Budget: California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection’s Major Capital Outlay Proposals

Feb 21, 2023 - This, in turn, has reduced the population housed at conservation camps and available to serve on hand crews. Specifically, as of January 2023, 1,689 people were housed in conservation camps, compared to 3,980 people in January 2010.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4693

The 2021-22 Budget: Department of Toxic Substances Control

Mar 19, 2021 - The Legislature will want to consider how the proposed grants interact with other housing proposals in the Governor ’s budget —such as funding in HCD ’s budget for housing infrastructure, including environmental remediation —as well as any legislative housing initiatives.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4406