Report California’s Future: Water and a Changing Climate By Ellen Hanak, Caitrin Chappelle, Lori Pottinger, Jeffrey Mount Jan 15, 2021 The pandemic and its economic fallout are affecting many aspects of water management, while climate change has major implications. And a much-needed national conversation about racism has illuminated water equity issues—such as how we address climate change, safe drinking water, and water scarcity.
Report Business Location Decisions and Employment Dynamics in California By David Neumark, Jed Kolko Nov 5, 2007 Much recent debate about the state’s economy has focused on the narrow issue of whether California businesses are moving to other states—taking jobs with them. In this report, PPIC researchers Jed Kolko and David Neumark examine the broader patterns of employment dynamics—the ways in which jobs and businesses move into, around, and out of the state— to provide a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of the California economy.
Report Municipal Elections in California: Turnout, Timing, and Competition By Paul Lewis, Zoltan L. Hajnal, Hugh Louch Mar 1, 2002 Low voter turnout for municipal elections in California has raised concerns about declining civic participation and its potential consequences. This study documents voter turnout in California’s municipal elections and investigates the causes of turnout differences. To assess the political vibrancy of municipal elections, it also examines the degree of competition for and turnover in municipal offices. Using data from a questionnaire completed by 350 city clerks in California, the authors calculate that less than half of all registered voters living in cities cast ballots in the most recent municipal elections. However, they also note that overall turnout in city elections could be increased substantially by rescheduling more of them to coincide with state and national contests.
Report Factors Determining California’s Share of Federal Formula Grants, Second Edition By Tim Ransdell Feb 25, 2004 This introductory report in the Federal Formula Grants and California series describes the major factors used by federal formula grant programs to allocate funds to states and describes how California’s share of programs varies by the factors employed. A companion document, published in conjunction with the first edition of this report in December 2002, illustrates California’s historical shares of various federal grant programs from 1991 through 2001. The companion report has not been updated because the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has discontinued publication of the annual source for most of the data underlying the report.
Statewide Survey PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Information Technology By Mark Baldassare, Jennifer Paluch, Dean Bonner, Sonja Petek Jun 25, 2008 Some findings of the current survey: Less than half of California Latinos (48%) have home computers compared to about eight in 10 or more for whites (86%), Asians (84%), and blacks (79%). Just four in 10 Latinos (40%) have Internet access and a third (34%) a broadband connection at home. Among households with incomes under $40,000, half have home computers, but only four in 10 (40%) have home Internet access and just a third (33%) have broadband. Twenty-nine percent of Californians have DSL, 19 percent have cable modems, 5 percent have wireless, and 2 percent have fiber optic or T-1 connections. Just 7 percent have dial-up connections. This is the 87th PPIC Statewide Survey and the first in the Californians and Information Technology survey series, whose intent is to inform state policymakers, encourage discussion, and raise public awareness about a variety of information technology issues. This survey includes the responses of 2,503 Californians in multiple languages, on both landline and cell phones, and was conducted in collaboration with the California Emerging Technology Fund.
Report Rethinking the State-Local Relationship: An Overview By Dean Misczynski Apr 29, 2011 Governor Jerry Brown’s January 2011 budget proposal sparked renewed interest in "realignment”—that is, in changing how the state and localities divide responsibility for programs and services. This report identifies basic principles for realignment, outlines legal and other constraints, and examines critical funding issues. This report is part of a PPIC series on rethinking the state-local relationship. The series includes: Child Welfare Services Corrections K-12 Education Local Economic Development This work is supported by funding from the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund and by contributions of unrestricted support to PPIC’s Donor Circle.
Report Funding California Schools: The Revenue Limit System By Margaret Weston Mar 1, 2010 California’s 978 school districts receive the majority of their funding through a formula known as "revenue limits.” While it is commonly believed that this funding is equitably distributed across districts, this is not the case. In 2005-2006, this funding differed across districts by as much as $3,871 per student. This report examines the components of the formula determining revenue limits, discusses the variations in funding, and considers potential reforms in school finance. This report was supported with funding from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
Report Making Room for the Future: Rebuilding California’s Infrastructure By David E. Dowall, Jan Whittington Mar 12, 2003 This report identifies the state’s most pressing infrastructure problems and shows how policymakers can address them more effectively. In particular, it analyzes the issues and opportunities confronting three of the state’s major infrastructure responsibilities-education, water, and transportation-and identifies a range of policy tools that can be used to improve infrastructure service delivery. After surveying the key institutions in each sector, the authors offer a list of recommendations for addressing the state’s infrastructure challenges. They also suggest a three-step approach to implementing these recommendations: immediate measures to relieve costly congestion and infrastructure impaction; near-term efforts to address infrastructure service shortfalls; and a long-term overhaul to remove structural and institutional impediments to infrastructure provision.
