August 14, 2014 

Bond Bill Passes Out of Senate Appropriations Committee

The bond bill, AB 2235 (Buchanan/Hagman), has been passed by the Senate Appropriations Committee, with a 5:0 vote.  The bill as passed now specifies a $4.3 billion bond, and the amendments also included programmatic changes, however we are still awaiting detail on the substance of those changes.  We will provide additional information once it becomes available; at this time we do not know what programs or educational systems are included in the bond.

The bill will now head to the Senate floor, and, if passed, it will then head to the Assembly for concurrence on the amendments taken in the Senate.  Time is growing short to meet Secretary of State deadlines, and at this point the school bond would have to be placed on the supplemental ballot.

Last night, the Legislature passed and the Governor signed a measure placing a new $7.5 billion water bond on the November 2014 ballot.  The Legislature was able to waive Secretary of State deadlines and replace the previous $11.1 billion water bond with the new one, therefore the water bond will go on the regular, not a supplemental, ballot. 

~Rebekah Cearley

November 19, 2014

Annually in November, the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) updates their estimates of State revenues and expenditures. The LAO is estimating significant increases in State revenues for 2014-15 (the current fiscal year) of greater than $2 billion (my estimate is that it will actually be $3 billion), all of which will go to Proposition 98 for K-14 expenditures. I expect that this money (one-time funds) will go for making the final payment for deferrals (more cash, but really just a cash flow issue for most school districts) and about $1.5 billion for other one-time purposes such as mandate debts and paying the remaining Emergency Repair Program obligations. The LAO is even more optimistic about the budget year, estimating that there will be about $6.4 billion in new on-going funds (compared to 2014-15 without the new estimated $2.3 billion) created because of finishing debt payments and new revenues.

This good news must be tempered with the fact that this is an estimate, not actual money in the bank, and that the Governor's Budget that will be presented in January probably will not be as optimistic. For now however, the feel good estimate should give a cautiously optimistic outlook for after the holidays.  

Click here for the complete report from the LAO.

As a follow up to the LAO State Revenue Estimate update, please use the link below to see a breakdown of California's 2015-16 Fiscal Outlook, as provided by the LAO.

California's Fiscal Outlook - Infographic