State Budget
Blog
California’s flawed budgeting causes routine deficits
For years analysts have warned that California’s overreliance on a roller-coaster stock market destabilizes California’s budget. During bull markets, revenues surge and Sacramento politicians commit to an unaffordable level of spending that only becomes evident when revenues inevitably crash. Rather than admitting that the spending was never affordable, the political ...
Blog
Learn about the latest Newsom plan on homelessness
Fixing Years Of Missteps On Homelessness
“There’s nothing compassionate about letting people die on the streets,” Newson said announcing the model ordinance. The plan would make it unlawful to set up camps “for the purpose of sleeping, lying, or sheltering one or more persons for more than three consecutive days or nights in the same location.” ...
Blog
Spending Watch
An Irresponsible FY2025-26 Budget All but Ensures Future Fiscal Crises
An Irresponsible FY2025-26 Budget All but Ensures Future Fiscal Crises Wayne Winegarden July 2025 Another fiscal year, another lost opportunity. In a June 2025 Spending Watch analysis, I lamented that Newsom was relying on gimmicks to close the current $12 billion budget deficit. The final budget the governor and legislative ...
Blog
Slowing Consumption Poses an Additional Fiscal Threat to California
The California New Car Dealers Associationnotes that total new vehicle registrations in the state stagnated in 2024 and are expected to decline slightly in 2025. The California Chamber of Commerce reports that tourism, which generated over $12 billion in tax revenue from both international and domestic visitors in 2024, is ...
Blog
Spending Watch
Budget Gimmicks Will Not Solve The State’s Fiscal Crisis
Budget Gimmicks Will Not Solve The State’s Fiscal Crisis Wayne Winegarden June 2025 It’s budget crunch time for Gov. Newsom and legislative leaders. The immediate problem is closing the estimated $12 billion budget shortfall for the FY2025-26 budget. Despite this serious fiscal challenge, the Governor’s budget proposal demonstrates an unseriousness ...
Blog
Read the latest on California's growing budget problem
Deficits as Far as the Eye Can See
In its Multiyear Budget Outlook, the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) summed up the dire state of California’s fiscal state. According to the LAO, Both our office and the Department of Finance (DOF) project operating deficits ranging from $10 billion to $20 billion over the multiyear period. These shortfalls represent future ...
Blog
Spending Watch
Covering Undocumented Immigrants Will Worsen The State’s Fiscal Crisis
Covering Undocumented Immigrants Will Worsen The State’s Fiscal Crisis Wayne Winegarden May 2025 A previous Spending Watch analysis estimated the fiscal and economic impact of funding Medi-Cal benefits to undocumented immigrants. The analysis estimated that the expansion will require an additional $11.6 billion in expenditures, which will impose large economic ...
Blog
How does California’s employment growth compare with the rest of the US?
Gov. Gavin Newsom and California’s progressives point to the Trump Administration’s imposition of tariffs as a reason for its economic slowdown, and the LAO acknowledges that unpredictable policymaking at the federal level puts California’s ‘fragile economy at risk.’ But while California’s ports have seen a decline in economic activity over ...
California
Wayne Winegarden – Analyzing the 2025 May Revise
PRI senior fellow in business and economics Dr. Wayne Winegarden joins us with his initial analysis of Gov. Newsom’s May Revise budget proposal. Wayne shares his thoughts on Gov. Newsom’s plan to close the state’s $12 billion budget deficit, including controversial plans to expand Medi-Cal eligibility to the undocumented and ...
Blog
Why California Needs Its Own DOGE
Why California Needs Its Own DOGE Originally published in Fresno Bee By Kerry Jackson READ MORE If any government were in desperate need of a DOGE effort, it’s California. The bloated budget, wasteful public works projects and inefficient government programs are all screaming for attention. The federal Department of Government Efficiency ...
California’s flawed budgeting causes routine deficits
For years analysts have warned that California’s overreliance on a roller-coaster stock market destabilizes California’s budget. During bull markets, revenues surge and Sacramento politicians commit to an unaffordable level of spending that only becomes evident when revenues inevitably crash. Rather than admitting that the spending was never affordable, the political ...
Learn about the latest Newsom plan on homelessness
Fixing Years Of Missteps On Homelessness
“There’s nothing compassionate about letting people die on the streets,” Newson said announcing the model ordinance. The plan would make it unlawful to set up camps “for the purpose of sleeping, lying, or sheltering one or more persons for more than three consecutive days or nights in the same location.” ...
Spending Watch
An Irresponsible FY2025-26 Budget All but Ensures Future Fiscal Crises
An Irresponsible FY2025-26 Budget All but Ensures Future Fiscal Crises Wayne Winegarden July 2025 Another fiscal year, another lost opportunity. In a June 2025 Spending Watch analysis, I lamented that Newsom was relying on gimmicks to close the current $12 billion budget deficit. The final budget the governor and legislative ...
Slowing Consumption Poses an Additional Fiscal Threat to California
The California New Car Dealers Associationnotes that total new vehicle registrations in the state stagnated in 2024 and are expected to decline slightly in 2025. The California Chamber of Commerce reports that tourism, which generated over $12 billion in tax revenue from both international and domestic visitors in 2024, is ...
Spending Watch
Budget Gimmicks Will Not Solve The State’s Fiscal Crisis
Budget Gimmicks Will Not Solve The State’s Fiscal Crisis Wayne Winegarden June 2025 It’s budget crunch time for Gov. Newsom and legislative leaders. The immediate problem is closing the estimated $12 billion budget shortfall for the FY2025-26 budget. Despite this serious fiscal challenge, the Governor’s budget proposal demonstrates an unseriousness ...
Read the latest on California's growing budget problem
Deficits as Far as the Eye Can See
In its Multiyear Budget Outlook, the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) summed up the dire state of California’s fiscal state. According to the LAO, Both our office and the Department of Finance (DOF) project operating deficits ranging from $10 billion to $20 billion over the multiyear period. These shortfalls represent future ...
Spending Watch
Covering Undocumented Immigrants Will Worsen The State’s Fiscal Crisis
Covering Undocumented Immigrants Will Worsen The State’s Fiscal Crisis Wayne Winegarden May 2025 A previous Spending Watch analysis estimated the fiscal and economic impact of funding Medi-Cal benefits to undocumented immigrants. The analysis estimated that the expansion will require an additional $11.6 billion in expenditures, which will impose large economic ...
How does California’s employment growth compare with the rest of the US?
Gov. Gavin Newsom and California’s progressives point to the Trump Administration’s imposition of tariffs as a reason for its economic slowdown, and the LAO acknowledges that unpredictable policymaking at the federal level puts California’s ‘fragile economy at risk.’ But while California’s ports have seen a decline in economic activity over ...
Wayne Winegarden – Analyzing the 2025 May Revise
PRI senior fellow in business and economics Dr. Wayne Winegarden joins us with his initial analysis of Gov. Newsom’s May Revise budget proposal. Wayne shares his thoughts on Gov. Newsom’s plan to close the state’s $12 billion budget deficit, including controversial plans to expand Medi-Cal eligibility to the undocumented and ...
Why California Needs Its Own DOGE
Why California Needs Its Own DOGE Originally published in Fresno Bee By Kerry Jackson READ MORE If any government were in desperate need of a DOGE effort, it’s California. The bloated budget, wasteful public works projects and inefficient government programs are all screaming for attention. The federal Department of Government Efficiency ...
