Fact Sheet Voter Participation in California By Mark Baldassare, Lunna Lopes, Dean Bonner, David Kordus Sep 9, 2015
blog post The Special Election and the Top-Two Primary By Eric McGhee Mar 19, 2015 The "top-two” primary rules have changed the contest for a Bay Area state senate seat.
Report Implementing California’s School Funding Formula: Will High-Need Students Benefit? By Laura Hill, Iwunze Ugo Mar 12, 2015 The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) reformed California’s K–12 school finance system. It replaced a patchwork of formulas and specific (or "categorical”) programs with a focus on local control, funding equity, and additional support for the large share of students (63%) who are "high needs"—that is, low-income, English Learner, and/or foster care youth. However, there are still concerns about whether the new funding will reach high-need students. Because districts have spending flexibility, and because some of the extra funding for high-need students is based on their districtwide enrollment levels, it is possible that high-need schools in districts with relatively low overall shares of high-need students will not get the funding they need. Our research indicates that county offices of education—which are charged with assisting districts in developing and achieving accountability plans—may have extra work to do in parts of Southern California, the Bay Area, and Sacramento to ensure that extra state funding improves outcomes of high-need students who are not evenly distributed across district schools.
blog post Three Lessons About California’s Election Reforms By Eric McGhee, Daniel Krimm Nov 5, 2014 California got its second taste of two important reforms yesterday: legislative and congressional districts drawn by an independent redistricting commission and a "top-two” primary system. How did they do this time around?
blog post PPIC’s Role in a Changing State By Mark Baldassare Oct 10, 2014 At PPIC we are focused on monitoring and analyzing the impact of big changes underway in California and examining other steps the state can take to meet its critical challenges.
press release Strong Support for Global Warming Law Tempered by Concerns About Gas, Electricity Prices Jul 23, 2014
blog post Six Takeaways from the June Primary By Mark Baldassare Jul 14, 2014 For those of us involved in polling and election analysis at PPIC, the just-released California Secretary of State’s (SOS) Statement of the Vote offers a treasure trove of data about how our democracy is working.
blog post Is the Top-Two Primary to Blame for Low Turnout? By Eric McGhee Jun 9, 2014 Should we blame California’s new "top-two” primary for the abysmal voter turnout in the June election?
event Voter Turnout in Primary Elections Jun 6, 2014 About the Program With voter turnout on the decline in California’s primary elections, the state has pursued reforms aimed at expanding the electorate. What have we learned from the new top-two primary system and other efforts? PPIC research fellow Eric McGhee will provide an overview, and a panel of leaders will discuss how to motivate more Californians to exercise their right to vote. This project is supported with funding from the S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation.
