May 14, 2013 By Katy Grimes SACRAMENTO -- Balancing the economic realities of the state budget with political influences surely is a challenging task. Unfortunately, in California it is a task which few administrations have managed in recent state history. Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown an...
Budget and FinanceGov. Brown’s May budget revision balances only by ignoring unfunded liabilitiesTuesday, May 14th, 2013Gov. Brown’s May budget revision still kicks the canTuesday, May 14th, 2013May 14, 2013 By John Seiler Gov. Jerry Brown's May Revision to his January budget certainly was a happier occasion than for any budget in a decade. Thanks to money pouring in from the tax increases, especially $7 billion from Proposition 30, he's projecting balanced budgets well into the futur... May Revise previewMonday, May 13th, 2013May 13, 2013 By John Seiler Tomorrow Gov. Jerry Brown will release the May Revise to his January budget proposal for fiscal year 2013-14, which begins on July 1. These are the base numbers the Legislature will work with as it hashes out a budget before (and maybe after) the June 15 constitutio... CA ‘Wall of Debt’ hits $1,126,200,000,000.00Wednesday, May 8th, 2013 May 8, 2013 By Ed Ring A new study by the California Public Policy Center, “Calculating California’s Total State and Local Government Debt,” estimates state and local government debt is somewhere between $848 billion and $1.126 trillion. This is the first attempt we’ve ever seen by a... As we predicted, pensions eating up Prop. 30 education fundsMonday, April 29th, 2013April 30, 2013 By John Seiler As Bill Clinton might put it, it's in the math. In the lead up to the November 6 election last fall, CalWatchdog.com ran several articles on Proposition 30 and pensions. We warned that the $7 billion tax increase would go not to schools, as advertised by Gov. ... Facts refute union objections to compensation analysisMonday, April 29th, 2013April 29, 2013 By Ed Ring “Jennifer Muir, a spokeswoman for the Orange County Employees’ Association, which represents more than 18,000 public employees in Orange County, said the California Public Policy Center’s study was a politically motivated attack on public employees and unions. As... Perks pose risk to all of usMonday, April 22nd, 2013April 22, 2013 By Steven Greenhut SACRAMENTO -- The horrific Boston bombings have led to irrational calls for more security cameras and more police officers, with some Democrats absurdly using this tragedy to argue for halting the slight sequester-mandated cuts in federal spending growth. N... Democrats resolved to gut Prop. 13 for businessesThursday, April 18th, 2013April 18, 2013 By Dave Roberts California Democrats are seeking to weaken the protection for business property in Proposition 13, the 1978 tax limitation measure passed by voters. If the Democrats are successful, it could result in an annual $10 billion business tax hike, and over five years ... Assembly GOP members break no-tax pledgeWednesday, April 17th, 2013April 17, 2013 By John Hrabe The Assembly Republican Caucus, though small in number, has retained limited power in Sacramento by maintaining a united caucus on one issue: taxes. Not anymore. A multi-billion-dollar tax extension quickly working its way through the California Legislature has ... State owes counties $22 million in taxes, refuses to payTuesday, April 16th, 2013 April 16, 2013 By Dave Roberts If you decide not to pay your taxes, you could face stiff penalties, seizure of your property and jail time. But when California’s government is the tax deadbeat, state officials thumb their noses at the tax man. The California Department of Fish and Wildlif... |