The Bay-Delta Plan and Voluntary Agreements: Ensuring Effective Legislative Oversight

Mar 18, 2026 - The protracted time line reflects the complexity of balancing multiple — often competing —goals , ongoing and potential legal challenges, and the board ’s willingness to allow time for development of a VA proposal.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5163

The 2026-27 Budget: Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation Proposals

Mar 19, 2026 - Moreover, our review found that LCI ’s proposed total of 20 IT staff positions is not out of line with the size of IT units at other comparable state departments. Existing Positions Supported by Limited-Term Funding.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5167

The 2026-27 Budget: Cap-and-Invest Expenditure Plan

Feb 10, 2026 - Additionally, CARB still is considering linking California’s cap‑and‑invest program with the program in Washington state. Such a linkage could affect allowance prices in both states as they come into alignment.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5114

The 2026-27 Budget: Permitting Support at the State Water Resources Control Board

Mar 2, 2026 - (SWRCB estimates t hat exempting state-only permits from having to meet CEQA requirements would shorten their preparation time lines by at least a year.) Aligning Public Notification Requirements With Federal Processes.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5144

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

Jan 13, 2025 - On a net basis, these items slightly improve the budget’s bottom line. Neither our November estimates nor the administration ’s estimates included any costs associated with the devastating wildfires in Southern California, as both were developed before those wildfires began.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4951

The 2026-27 Budget: Framework for Approaching the Natural Resources, Environmental Protection, and Agriculture Budget

Feb 10, 2026 - In light of the budget condition, we suggest the Legislature carefully weigh the implications of any further reducti ons to the firefighter duty week before approving agreements from upcoming MOU negotiations, especially if it does not have specific estimates of the fiscal effects and time line to implement a 56 ‑hour  workweek.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5116

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

May 19, 2025 - Absent complete information, the Legislature faces difficulty in determining how best to proceed with the project, including how much funding to provide and the specific project scope and time line that additional funding might support.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5049

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

May 27, 2025 - Exempting DWR ’s water rights permits for the SWP from construction and beneficial use time lines and preventing revocation of these permits (which essentially would make the permits permanent) (Section 7) .
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5053

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

Dec 9, 2025 - Closely monitoring this and other future rulemaking efforts—and providing input on them, as appropriate—can help ensure the board’s decisions are in line with the Legislature’s vision. Ensuring State Funding Achieves Goals Effectively Will Be Important.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5097

The 2025-26 Budget: State Mandates—Regional Water Quality Control Boards

May 30, 2025 - While not directly linked to these mandates, CSM has significant pending workload related to other stormwater permits issued by the state water boards dating back to 2007. This includes 32 pending test claims and 4 additional claims for which CSM has already identified state-reimbursable mandated activities but has not yet developed cost estimates.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5054