Economic Tale of Two Regions: Los Angeles vs. Bay Area
A new study “Economic Tale of Two Regions: Los Angeles vs. Bay Area” uses data compiled by the Center for Jobs & the Economy to show that jobs created in the past 24 years have been at opposite ends of the wage spectrum—either low-wage or high-wage—leading to a diminishing middle class and the creation of a two-tier […]
Budget Rules Will Drive Where Much Of The Extra Money Goes—But Not How It Will Be Spent
Editor’s Note: Part 3 of the ‘Boom, Bust, Repeat?’ Series, which explores how the state can smartly manage recent revenue gains to strengthen public programs for the long-term. After more than a decade of revenue booms and busts, it feels like déjà vu all over again—with tax receipts coming in as much as $4 […]
Education Spending and Student Academic Achievement Results
Much attention is placed on California’s relative rank with respect to our education spending, and unfortunately, much of it based on old and incomplete data. Proponents of changing Proposition 13 often site old National Education Association (NEA) statistics that ranked California 46th in the nation on education spending. Even if one is willing to accept […]
Isn’t It About Another Time for Another Useless Tax Commission?
Yes, climate change is messing with the California weather. But the California budget climate, and its cycles, never really changes. Now that people outside government are talking about taxes – tax cuts and tax hikes and tax reforms – it won’t be long before the state’s leaders respond with a tried-and-true dodge. They’ll appoint a […]
Grow CA Manufacturing, Grow CA Wages
Dan Walters wrote in the Bee that, “a third of California’s employed workers are ‘low-wage’ and their ranks are growing according to a new study from the Center for Labor Research and Education at University of California’s Berkeley campus.” Walters also discussed the legislature’s passion for a minimum wage hike as a means to fix this problem. […]