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February 18, 2004 - We recommend the Legislature consolidate the ten remaining teacher-related programs into a teacher quality block grant. This would allow the state to retain its focus on teacher quality while simultaneously allowing school districts to pool their existing resources and use them more strategically. To ensure that the greater flexibility provided through a teacher quality block grant is balanced with greater accountability, we also recommend the Legislature develop a comprehensive teacher information system. Specifically, we recommend the Legislature: (1) develop clear teacher quality objectives and associated performance measures, (2) enhance data-collection efforts to ensure performance can be tracked, and (3) provide feedback and assistance to struggling school districts.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor proposes significant new restrictions and reductions for the Cal Grant program. We recommend the Legislature reject these proposals and link grant levels with fee levels. We also offer an alternative way to achieve comparable General Fund savings.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor proposes a variety of fee increases at all three public segments. While we believe most of these increases are reasonable, we recommend slightly smaller increases for several fees. We also recommend establishing a long-term fee policy that links student fees to a fixed percentage of educational costs.
February 18, 2004 - Although the Governor proposes no new funding for enrollment growth at UC and CSU, we find that both universities have unused enrollment funding in their base budgets that would permit them to enroll more students in 2004-05 than in the current year.
February 18, 2004 - Whereas the Governor proposes to eliminate General Fund support for outreach programs at the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU), we propose a new College Preparation Block Grant for K-12 schools to contract for outreach services.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor's budget offers a good starting point for addressing the 2004-05 budget problem. Given the structural budget situation the state faces, we believe the Governor's proposed suspension of the Proposition 98 minimum guarantee is appropriate. If suspension is approved, we recommend the Legislature balance K-14 funding priorities with other General Fund priorities without regard to the exact Proposition 98 funding level proposed in the Governor's budget.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor proposes to consolidate $2 billion in funding for 22 existing categorical programs into revenue limits to provide schools and districts with greater funding flexibility. We recommend the Legislature transfer 17 programs into revenue limits, including 14 proposed by the Governor, plus two class size reduction programs and deferred maintenance. We propose redirecting the remaining programs in the Governor’s proposal into a professional development block grant, or a restructured Economic Impact Aid program. We also propose a separate block grant for school safety programs.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor proposes sweeping reductions to the IHSS program in the form of eligibility restrictions, provider wage reductions, and limitations on services. The details of each aspect of the proposal are discussed below. In a subsequent discussion, we comment on the Governor's proposal and present alternatives for legislative consideration.
February 18, 2004 - In order to improve the program's cost effectiveness, we recommend enactment of legislation that (1) sets grant levels at an amount that recognizes the adoptive parents' financial responsibility for their adoptive children, (2) better ties benefit levels to the needs of adoptive children, and (3) narrows the definition of "special needs" so as to focus the program's financial assistance on those children who are likely to benefit the most from such aid. These changes will save approximately $2 million General Fund in 2004-05, growing to approximately $12 million in 2005-06.
February 18, 2004 - As of February 2004, Congress had not completed action on federal welfare reauthorization. We describe the major features of the currently pending House and Senate versions of welfare reform and update our fiscal estimates of these measures.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor's budget proposes a number of changes to the CalWORKs program, including stricter work requirements and greater sanctions. These program reforms would result in $167 million in grant savings, partially offset by $134 million in child care costs and $2.5 million in automation costs in 2004-05. We discuss welfare reform in California, summarize the Governor's reform proposals, present a framework for considering the proposals, and offer comments and recommendations.
February 18, 2004 - The cost to the state of operating regional centers (RCs) for persons with developmental disabilities has continued to escalate at a rapid pace, with General Fund spending more than doubling in the past five fiscal years despite efforts to obtain more federal funds to offset state support. We analyze recent caseload and program spending trends to determine what is driving this growth, review the major initiatives to date to address the situation, consider the Governor's proposal to address these issues, and offer additional approaches for containing RC program costs.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor's budget proposal to cap Healthy Families Program enrollment, while feasible and effective in addressing the state's fiscal problems, raises a number of issues. We recommend against this approach because other alternatives are available to the Legislature to hold down the cost of the Healthy Families Program.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor's budget plan assumes that the Health Plan of San Mateo (HPSM), which provides services to roughly 50,000 Medi-Cal beneficiaries, will not be in operation in 2004-05. The HPSM is one of the County Organized Health System (COHS)—a form of managed care—that contracts with Medi-Cal in eight counties. At least two of these plans reportedly face financial problems and others may in the future. The failure of HPSM or other COHS plans could prove costly to the state. Accordingly, we recommend that the Legislature initially reject the administration proposal to budget for the phase-out of HPSM and direct the Department of Health Services to explore alternatives that would permit it to remain in operation. The Legislature should also consider several options to address the COHS plan's financial problems in order to avoid an increase in General Fund costs and the other serious consequences of their loss for Medi-Cal beneficiaries.