Calpensions: A new comparison with four other large public pension funds found that CalPERS, while scoring average on service, had high pension administration costs — $213 per member a year, nearly twice the average of $108 per member.
Gov. Schwarzenegger unveils budget, 2009It’s a litany of good news in Gov. Jerry Brown’s election-year budget. Safety net programs are being shored up. Debt is being repaid. Revenues are rising.
Except for corporate taxes.
In fact, business tax receipts are falling at the same time hefty profits are being posted by major companies across the country. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
Gov. Jerry BrownOn his wish list for the next fiscal year, Gov. Jerry Brown has put higher education right near the top. California’s public colleges and universities, Brown said as he unveiled the state budget, “used to be four years and free. Now in many cases it’s six years and expensive.” (Photo: Samantha Gallegos/Capitol Weekly)
Providing up to 1.4 million driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants will cost $65 million for the Department of Motor Vehicles during the first six months after the law takes effect January 1, 2015, according to Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed budget plan. DMV plans five new temporary offices to handle the load.
A shift in power at the Orange County Transportation Authority board in part reflects a dispute over power in the largest town in OCTA’s jurisdiction – Anaheim. Major issues are at stake, as OCTA is a significant entity in O.C. ruled by a politically savvy, 17-member board.
From the PPIC survey on how Californians view their government: Most people without health insurance intend to get coverage via the new law, even though skepticism runs deep over the ACA itself. The state’s fiscal condition is a mixed bag — the recession is weakening, but the widening divergence between those with resources and those without is a major concern. Support for Gov. Brown is strong as next year’s elections loom, bust Congress and President Obama are getting poorer reviews.
Buoyed by a soaring stock market and rising home prices, personal income tax receipts are flowing into the state treasury at a rate exceeding all expectations. But one big question looms as lawmakers and the governor consider how to spend the government’s new found riches: what will happen when the music stops?
The rapidly growing cost of state worker retiree health care, a more generous benefit than received by active state workers, soon could be taking a bigger bite out of the state general fund than pensions. As if trading places, a new forecast expects the annual general fund payment for state worker retiree health care, now $500 million less than the payment for pensions, to be $500 million more than the pension payment in six years.
In 2013, the Legislature and the Governor agreed to a restrained state budget for 2013–14, and our forecast of state tax revenue collections has increased since last year. Accordingly, we now find that California’s state budget situation is even more promising than we projected one year ago.
Desert Hot Springs is considering bankruptcy for the second time in 12 years. On Tuesday, the city council unanimously approved a fiscal emergency. An emergency declaration is a preliminary step in filing for bankruptcy protection, although there was no indication from council members that a bankruptcy action was coming.