Budget and Finance

Assembly subcommittee flunks UC budget

Tuition hikes marched to the head of the class at a recent hearing of California Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Education Finance. Assembly members balked at a 28 percent tuition hike advanced by UC President Janet Napolitano and approved by the University of

Leg Analyst: Fix CA lost-and-found program

John February 24, 2015

California needs to find ways to improve its lost-and-found program. That’s the conclusion of a new report by Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor. He reviewed the state program for returning unclaimed property to its rightful owners. At the end of 2014, the state

Appellate court pulls plug on utility charge

Wayne Lusvardi February 20, 2015

Taxes are taxes – even when collected by a city on a municipal service. That’s the recent ruling by California’s 3rd District Court of Appeal enforcing two tax-limitation initiatives, Propositions 13 and 26. The action threatens a source of revenue for

Entrepreneurs fret over CA business climate

Dave Roberts February 17, 2015

Although California’s economy is finally picking up after seven years of recessionary blues, many small business owners continue to feel government is hurting more than helping them. That was one of the messages from entrepreneurs at a Feb. 11 hearing

CA jobs growth continues — with caution signal

John Seiler February 4, 2015

California continues to enjoy fairly strong jobs growth — but new data released today (not yet online) by the A. Gary Anderson Center for Economic Research at Chapman University suggest caution may be warranted moving forward. The report’s headline: “California unemployment

CA tech juggernaut jumps above rest of state

John Seiler February 2, 2015

Apple Inc. continues to lead California’s high-tech economy — with no end in sight for now. The earnings it rang up for the last quarter of 2014, a record for any company, were based on selling 74.5 million iPhones worldwide. That’s a

CA jobless down, but state faces competition

John Seiler January 30, 2015

California took pride this week in the staggering news of Apple Inc.’s record quarterly earnings. And the state unemployment rate dropped in December to 7 percent, down from 7.2 percent in November — a vast improvement over the 12 percent of 2010 and 2012.

CA lawmakers deal pair of online poker bills

John January 30, 2015

State lawmakers have dealt out a pair of bills to legalize Internet poker in California. Assemblymen Mike Gatto, D-Glendale, and Reggies Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles, have introduced separate proposals to allow online poker in the largest potential gaming market in the country. As many

Fresno beats SF, San Jose in economic growth

Wayne Lusvardi January 28, 2015

The gleaming high-tech companies of San Francisco and Silicon Valley now are California’s face to the world — even more than Hollywood. But — surprise! — an updated Brookings Institution study found the inland metropolitan areas of California beat out the

Comparing CalPERS and CalSTRS with AT&T retirement

Wayne Lusvardi January 27, 2015

Following yesterday’s CalWatchdog.com story, “State pensions improve, but members living longer,” it would be useful to compare California’s two large state retirement funds with a roughly equivalent private one, AT&T. Most private companies have switched to “defined contribution” pension plans, in