Report Managing Water and Farmland Transitions in the San Joaquin Valley By Ellen Hanak, Andrew Ayres, Caitlin Peterson, Alvar Escriva-Bou ... Sep 18, 2023 How can the San Joaquin Valley adapt to a future with less water? We’ve been researching this issue for the past seven years, and our new report presents highlights from we’ve learned, including a robust list of policy suggestions to help the valley weather—and make the most of—the coming changes.
blog post How Might Small Farms Fare Under SGMA? By Spencer Cole, Ellen Hanak, Alvar Escriva-Bou Sep 13, 2023 Change is coming to the heavily agricultural San Joaquin Valley, as irrigation water declines due to climate change, new environmental regulations, and SGMA. But how will these changes affect farms of different sizes in the valley? We finally have answers.
blog post Retail Theft and Robbery Rates Have Risen across California By Magnus Lofstrom, Brandon Martin Sep 7, 2023 California has seen an overall increase in retail theft and robbery rates in recent years. Our analysis finds especially notable increases in the Bay Area and the Central Valley, with certain commercial crimes also increasing substantially in parts of southern California.
Policy Brief Policy Brief: Examining the Reach of Targeted School Funding By Julien Lafortune, Joseph Herrera, Niu Gao, Stephanie Barton Sep 6, 2023 The Local Control Funding Formula gives California districts additional funds for low-income and other high-need students as well as flexibility around how to spend this money. But this flexibility has raised concerns over whether districts are spending in ways that reach the high-need students and schools who generate the added funds.
Report Examining the Reach of Targeted School Funding By Julien Lafortune, Joseph Herrera, Niu Gao Sep 6, 2023 Under California’s ten-year-old funding formula, districts with higher shares of high-need students receive additional dollars on top of base funding. Districts have flexibility around spending these funds, but when money is not fully directed to the intended students and schools, the impact on achievement gaps is diluted.
Fact Sheet California Voter and Party Profiles By Mark Baldassare, Dean Bonner, Rachel Lawler, Deja Thomas Aug 28, 2023 About 47% of registered voters are Democrats, 24% are Republicans, and 23% are independents. Most independent likely voters lean toward a major party.
Report Improving College Access and Success through Dual Enrollment By Olga Rodriguez, Daniel Payares-Montoya, Iwunze Ugo, Niu Gao Aug 21, 2023 At one time, mainly high-achieving high school students took college courses through dual enrollment; but access has widened under the College and Career Access Pathways (CCAP) program. While CCAP students are benefiting from the program—they enroll in community college at high rates and reach key milestones—CCAP has room to improve.
blog post The Ocean Is More than a Pretty Place to Californians By Deja Thomas Jul 31, 2023 Two in three Californians—including solid majorities among both inland and coastal residents--believe the condition of oceans and beaches are very important to the state's economy and quality of life. Majorities say that plastics, marine debris, and declining marine life in the Pacific are major problems.
blog post Climate Resilience Expert Letitia Grenier to Lead the PPIC Water Policy Center By Ellen Hanak, Tani Cantil-Sakauye Jul 24, 2023 We are thrilled to announce that senior scientist and climate resilience expert Letitia Grenier will join PPIC as the next director of the Water Policy Center. Letitia is currently the Resilient Landscapes Program director at the San Francisco Estuary Institute. She will assume her new role on September 25, 2023.
blog post Video: Californians and the Environment By Stephanie Barton Jul 20, 2023 PPIC’s Dean Bonner and Mark Baldassare discuss our latest Statewide Survey, which examines Californians’ views on climate change and its effects, environmental policies, and other topics.
