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

May 5, 2025 - City of Salinas ) —which found that the city did not have sufficient fee authority to levy a stormwater fee due to the voter approval requirement —was wrongly decided. Senate Bill  231, which took effect in 2018, makes increasing stormwater-related fees more straightforward for local governments because they can use the majority protest provision rather than having to seek voter approval.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5039

Frequently Asked Questions About Wildfires in California

Jan 28, 2025 - Response to Wildfires Can Vary Depending on Where They Start. In the case of wildfires, the disaster response approach can vary based on where the fire starts and which entity has wildfire response jurisdiction.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4952

The 2025-26 Budget: Proposition 4 Spending Plan

Feb 12, 2025 - Waits to Make Funding Decisions in Cases Where More Information Is Needed. In certain cases, the administration appropriately defers funding decisions until essential information becomes available. For example, for some programs the administration indicates that it will seek clarification on the Legislature ’s intent and wait to propose a spending plan until these discussions have taken place.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4958

The 2025-26 Budget: Natural Resources and Agriculture Discretionary Spending Proposals

Feb 18, 2025 - This is a distinction that is particularly important in a budget environment with limited General Fund resources where the state may find it challenging to address its own areas of responsibility —such as infrastructure it owns and operates.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4967

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

Jan 7, 2025 - Accordingly, customers in the portions of Culver City that are served by LADWP pay significantly less for electricity than those who live in the portions of the city served by  SCE. Electricity Rates Have Increased Notably in Recent Years.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4950

The 2025-26 Budget: Overview of the Governor's Budget

Jan 13, 2025 - Moreover, specific budgetary conditions occurring this year —including legislative action taken last year to withdraw more in reserves this year —make interpretation of the budget position more complex.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4951

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

Feb 24, 2025 - For example, on January 20, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order stating that it is the policy of the United States to eliminate the “electric vehicle mandate” and to terminate, “where appropriate, state emissions waivers that function to limit sales of gasoline‑powered automobiles.”
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4980

The 2025-26 Budget: Cap-and-Trade Expenditure Plan

Feb 12, 2025 - Revisiting Spending Plan Also Could Make Sense if Budget Condition Worsens. As of January 2025, both our office and DOF projected that the state ’s General Fund will be roughly balanced in 2025 ‑26 under the Governor ’s budget proposal.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4960