blog post Testimony: California’s K–12 Digital Divide Has Narrowed, but Access Gaps Persist By Niu Gao Feb 21, 2024 At an Assembly Education Committee hearing on addressing students’ post-pandemic needs, PPIC senior fellow Niu Gao discussed the role that federal, state, and local efforts have played in increasing digital connectivity and outlined key challenges that remain.
Report Policies for Creating and Keeping Jobs in California By David Neumark, Emma Wohl Dec 13, 2023 State efforts to spur job creation include 21 programs ranging from tax credits to worker training. Three policies offer strong evidence indicating they create jobs or increase employment in California. New programs—and programs with weak evidence—need to have built-in features that allow deeper evaluation.
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 Mapping Farms by Size in the San Joaquin Valley By Andrew Ayres, Zaira Joaquín Morales, Ellen Hanak Aug 30, 2023 The San Joaquin Valley will have to adapt to a future with less water for irrigation under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. Some have raised concerns that this could put smaller farms at a disadvantage—but is this true? To gain insight on this issue, we decided to take a closer look, exploring where San Joaquin Valley farms of different sizes are located—and what they grow.
Report The Impact of Health Insurance on Poverty in California By Caroline Danielson, Patricia Malagon, Shannon McConville Mar 27, 2023 The Affordable Care Act has helped millions of Californians gain health insurance over the past decade. In addition to improving access to care, the ACA has increased financial well-being. This analysis focuses on the significant contribution of publicly funded health coverage—particularly Medi-Cal—to family resources across the state.
blog post Testimony: Assessing the Pandemic’s Effects on Student Learning, Absenteeism, and Graduation By Iwunze Ugo Mar 15, 2023 At an Assembly budget subcommittee hearing, PPIC’s Iwunze Ugo discusses how K–12 students are faring as California emerges from the pandemic. His testimony focuses in part on test scores from 2022, the first full administration of state standards tests in nearly three years.
blog post Homeless Populations Are Rising around California By Jennifer Paluch, Joseph Herrera Feb 21, 2023 Between 2020 and 2022, California’s homeless population increased by 6%. While this growth was largely concentrated in urban areas, the number of people experiencing homelessness declined in San Francisco and Orange County.
