Taxes
Blog
Spending Watch
California’s Expensive but Ineffective Income Support Spending
California’s Expensive but Ineffective Income Support Spending Wayne Winegarden August 2024 Including federal, state, and local funds, California’s per capita spending on income support programs is 81 percent higher than the average expenditures for all other states – per capita spending of $3,869 compared to $2,141. These expenditures include “cash ...
Blog
Spending Watch
Californians Have Little to Show for All That Government Spending
Californians Have Little to Show for All That Government Spending Wayne Winegarden July 2024 It should not shock anyone that the FY2024-25 budget was short on fiscal discipline and long on budget gimmicks and fund shifts. Now that this year’s budget process is coming to an end, it is ...
Crime
Watch the latest Free Cities Center video
WATCH: Are Crime and Homelessness Shifting San Francisco Right?
Do recent election results show a rightward shift in San Francisco? Join Free Cities Center’s Steven Greenhut as he visits the City by the Bay and talks with two experts about what’s really going on in the City. They discuss whether things are really as bad as some media outlets ...
Blog
Spending Watch
May Revise Preview: Sacramento Should Learn Lessons from the 2009 Budget Crisis
May Revise Preview: Sacramento Should Learn Lessons Wayne Winegarden May 2024 Governor Newsom is finalizing the May Revision for his 2024-25 budget plan this week. As he does, the parallels between California’s 2009 budget crisis and today’s budget difficulties are too compelling to ignore. Sacramento policymakers should heed the ...
Blog
Spending Watch
Single Payer Will Worsen California’s Healthcare System and Reduce Economic Growth
Single Payer Will Worsen California’s Healthcare System and Reduce Economic Growth Wayne Winegarden March 2024 With the introduction of AB 2200, advocates are, once again, proposing that California adopt a single payer healthcare system. Ostensibly, their proposed CalCare system would streamline payments, lower per-capita spending, guarantee “quality health care and ...
Blog
Spending Watch
Too Much Government Spending and Volatile Tax Revenues Drive State’s Budget Problem
Too Much Government Spending and Volatile Tax Revenues Drive State’s Budget Problem Wayne Winegarden March 2024 This analysis is the first publication of Spending Watch, a new initiative from the Pacific Research Institute. Spending Watch is a resource that evaluates the revenue, spending, and economic impacts of major budget and ...
Blog
Read about new local tax & bond measures
Local voters face 77 tax increases on California’s March ballot
According to its calculation, if all pass the combined hit would be $350 million in direct tax increases and $3.6 billion in bonded indebtedness. The group notes the new debt includes “36 school bonds, 16 transactions and use taxes, 19 parcel taxes, two general obligation bonds, one business license tax, ...
Blog
Spending Watch
Reparations: A Financially Unrealistic Proposal That Will Bankrupt California
Reparations: A Financially Unrealistic Proposal That Will Bankrupt California Wayne Winegarden February 2024 With the introduction of its first set of reparations bills, the California legislature is officially considering the recommendations of the California Reparations Report from the state Reparations Task Force.1 Given these introductions, it is imperative to understand ...
Blog
New Sac tax could impose huge burden on entrepreneurs
400 Percent Tax Increase on Entrepreneurs Won’t Generate the Millions Sacramento Seeks
California’s reputation as being one of the most difficult and expensive places to own and operate a business and create jobs has been long established. Year after year, California ranks at the bottom in Chief Executive magazine’s listing of the best and worst states for business. Even in a tough ...
Blog
Learn how homelessness is now hurting California pro teams
How Homelessness, Taxes Impacted Deal for Baseball’s Top Free Agent
In fact, San Francisco’s status these days as a not very desirable place to live, work, or play also played a major factor in the deal. Giants legend and future hall of famer Buster Posey, who is now a member of the team’s executive board and was involved in the ...
Spending Watch
California’s Expensive but Ineffective Income Support Spending
California’s Expensive but Ineffective Income Support Spending Wayne Winegarden August 2024 Including federal, state, and local funds, California’s per capita spending on income support programs is 81 percent higher than the average expenditures for all other states – per capita spending of $3,869 compared to $2,141. These expenditures include “cash ...
Spending Watch
Californians Have Little to Show for All That Government Spending
Californians Have Little to Show for All That Government Spending Wayne Winegarden July 2024 It should not shock anyone that the FY2024-25 budget was short on fiscal discipline and long on budget gimmicks and fund shifts. Now that this year’s budget process is coming to an end, it is ...
Watch the latest Free Cities Center video
WATCH: Are Crime and Homelessness Shifting San Francisco Right?
Do recent election results show a rightward shift in San Francisco? Join Free Cities Center’s Steven Greenhut as he visits the City by the Bay and talks with two experts about what’s really going on in the City. They discuss whether things are really as bad as some media outlets ...
Spending Watch
May Revise Preview: Sacramento Should Learn Lessons from the 2009 Budget Crisis
May Revise Preview: Sacramento Should Learn Lessons Wayne Winegarden May 2024 Governor Newsom is finalizing the May Revision for his 2024-25 budget plan this week. As he does, the parallels between California’s 2009 budget crisis and today’s budget difficulties are too compelling to ignore. Sacramento policymakers should heed the ...
Spending Watch
Single Payer Will Worsen California’s Healthcare System and Reduce Economic Growth
Single Payer Will Worsen California’s Healthcare System and Reduce Economic Growth Wayne Winegarden March 2024 With the introduction of AB 2200, advocates are, once again, proposing that California adopt a single payer healthcare system. Ostensibly, their proposed CalCare system would streamline payments, lower per-capita spending, guarantee “quality health care and ...
Spending Watch
Too Much Government Spending and Volatile Tax Revenues Drive State’s Budget Problem
Too Much Government Spending and Volatile Tax Revenues Drive State’s Budget Problem Wayne Winegarden March 2024 This analysis is the first publication of Spending Watch, a new initiative from the Pacific Research Institute. Spending Watch is a resource that evaluates the revenue, spending, and economic impacts of major budget and ...
Read about new local tax & bond measures
Local voters face 77 tax increases on California’s March ballot
According to its calculation, if all pass the combined hit would be $350 million in direct tax increases and $3.6 billion in bonded indebtedness. The group notes the new debt includes “36 school bonds, 16 transactions and use taxes, 19 parcel taxes, two general obligation bonds, one business license tax, ...
Spending Watch
Reparations: A Financially Unrealistic Proposal That Will Bankrupt California
Reparations: A Financially Unrealistic Proposal That Will Bankrupt California Wayne Winegarden February 2024 With the introduction of its first set of reparations bills, the California legislature is officially considering the recommendations of the California Reparations Report from the state Reparations Task Force.1 Given these introductions, it is imperative to understand ...
New Sac tax could impose huge burden on entrepreneurs
400 Percent Tax Increase on Entrepreneurs Won’t Generate the Millions Sacramento Seeks
California’s reputation as being one of the most difficult and expensive places to own and operate a business and create jobs has been long established. Year after year, California ranks at the bottom in Chief Executive magazine’s listing of the best and worst states for business. Even in a tough ...
Learn how homelessness is now hurting California pro teams
How Homelessness, Taxes Impacted Deal for Baseball’s Top Free Agent
In fact, San Francisco’s status these days as a not very desirable place to live, work, or play also played a major factor in the deal. Giants legend and future hall of famer Buster Posey, who is now a member of the team’s executive board and was involved in the ...
