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4,627 Publications Found
February 18, 2004 - The 2003-04 Budget Act required the Department of Corrections to implement a number of parole reforms designed to reduce parolee recidivism, and save money. We find that the department is experiencing implementation delays which will reduce the savings from these reforms. To achieve greater savings, we recommend that the Legislature consider further expansion of programs designed to prevent returns to prison.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor's budget proposes a significant reduction in expenditures for the California Teleconnect Fund (CTF) program, which provides discounts on telephone service and other advanced telecommunication services that provide access to the Internet (such as digital subscriber line [commonly referred to as DSL] services) to schools, libraries, and qualifying hospitals and community-based organizations. While we have concerns regarding the operation of the current program, we find this underfunding to be contrary to legislative direction. To address this, we recommend the California Public Utilities Commission report at budget hearings on the projected funding requirements of the program in the budget year. Furthermore, if the CTF program requires additional funding in 2004-05, we identify options for the Legislature to consider to provide additional funding for the program.
February 18, 2004 - We find other park jurisdictions contract with the private sector for the delivery of types of services not contracted out by the Department of Parks and Recreation. We recommend a pilot program to further explore the pros and cons, as well as the costs and benefits, of expanding these public-private partnering activities in state parks.
February 18, 2004 - The Governor has deferred the submittal of most of his resources bond expenditure proposals to later in the spring, leaving major gaps in programs traditionally funded from bond funds. We provide a framework to assist the Legislature in evaluating the forthcoming bond proposals; this includes ensuring that the Governor’s proposals reflect legislative priorities for bond funding.
February 18, 2004 - The budget proposes eliminating the California Consumer Power and Conservation Financing Authority (CPA). Although CPA has been unable to fulfill its core mission to finance new power plants, this has largely been due to market conditions. Given significant uncertainties regarding the adequacy of the state’s energy supply to meet future demand, we think retaining some of CPA’s functions (either within or outside CPA) has merit
February 18, 2004 - The budget proposes to impose a new fee on timber owners to partially cover the costs incurred by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDFFP) in its review and enforcement of timber harvest plans (THPs) beginning in the current year. While this is a step in the right direction, we recommend the enactment of fee legislation that would go further by fully funding the costs of CDFFP and all other state agencies with THP review responsibilities.
February 18, 2004 - Development in and around floodplains has contributed to increased losses due to floods, but the state’s efforts to improve floodplain management have been reduced significantly in recent years. We recommend reducing the state’s share of funding for certain flood control projects to better reflect the local benefit from these projects. This would create future savings that could be used to make more strategic flood management investments and benefit the General Fund.
February 18, 2004 - The CALFED Bay-Delta Program—with a projected $6 billion funding gap—is at a funding crossroads. To date, the state has been the biggest funding contributor by far to the program, with federal and local governments and water users lagging in their support. We recommend a funding framework for CALFED that applies the beneficiary pays principle, including a fee on water users that take water from the Bay-Delta system.
February 18, 2004 - State transportation funding has not kept pace with increasing travel for various reasons, including the fund transfers noted above. Stabilizing transportation funding would increase the efficiency of transportation expenditures. We recommend the Legislature (1) ask voters to repeal Proposition 42, (2) replace the lost transportation revenue with an increase in the gas tax, and (3) index the gas tax to prevent future erosion of transportation revenues relative to travel demand.
February 18, 2004 - In both the mid-year cuts submitted in November 2003 and in the 2004-05 Governor's Budget, the administration has proposed to use a number of transportation funds to provide about $2 billion in one-time General Fund aid over the current and budget years. This includes suspending in 2004-05 the transfer of $1.1 billion derived from the sales tax on gasoline to the Transportation Investment Fund.
February 18, 2004 - The customer service, driver safety, and cost effectiveness of the DMV’s driver licensing process can be improved. We recommend the department report at budget hearings on the viability of making administrative changes to reduce the millions of in-person visits at field offices. We further recommend the enactment of legislation for various fees to encourage fewer in-person visits at field offices and offset costs related to the program.
February 18, 2004 - Every year over 30 million customers visit the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) field offices. Staff reductions in recent years have caused average customers wait times to grow significantly, from 35 minutes in 2001-02 to a projected 80 minutes in 2004-05. We recommend that the Legislature reexamine the levels of service to be provided by DMV. If the Legislature determines that current wait times and overall service levels are unacceptable, we recommend the Legislature restore selected field office positions
February 18, 2004 - Pavement maintenance protects the taxpayers’ investment in the highway system and can reduce long-term costs by postponing the need for more expensive roadway rehabilitation. Poorly maintained roadways increase costs to motorists for vehicle repair, costing drivers in Los Angeles or San Jose an average of more than $700 a year for instance. There is now a backlog of $587 million in pavement maintenance work. We recommend Caltrans refocus its maintenance efforts by developing an investment plan for highway maintenance. We also recommend Caltrans develop performance measures that link the state’s investment to the resulting quality of the highway system.
February 18, 2004 - In this piece, we present options for the Legislature's consideration. We have identified expenditures that may be considered of lower priority in tough budget times. It is not that these activities are without merit or not desirable. In better fiscal times we would not necessarily put such options on the table. However, we offer them in the context of a need to solve a massive budget shortfall. We have also identified selected revenue options for the Legislature's consideration. These options generally involve tax expenditure programs which are either inefficient at achieving their objectives or are not the most efficient means of doing so.
February 18, 2004 - The current level of abusive tax shelters (ATS) activity—and its potential for future expansion—raises significant administrative challenges for FTB and for the continued viability of the state's revenue system. The use of ATSs not only results in significant immediate term revenue losses to California—in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually—but can also result in declining compliance by an increasing number of taxpayers over the longer term. While the Legislature has taken important steps to curtail the use of ATSs, it may want to consider additional measures in this regard. This discussion provides an overview of the ATS phenomenon, addresses the impacts of such shelters on the state, and suggests measures the Legislature may want to consider to address the ATS problem.