One of the governor's more creative– and controversial– ideas for helping balance the state budget has been rejected by lawmakers in the Assembly. Governor Schwarzenegger's plan to shift the state's contribution to the California State Teachers Retirement System (STRS) to … Continue reading »

That might be what budget watchers are asking themselves after the state's tax amnesty program triggered a multi-billion dollar response from companies hedging their bets about what they really owe. Controller Steve Westly updated the numbers this morning, which aren't … Continue reading »

It's doubtful that the governor's "Kitchen Cabinet" event today with citizens in Santa Rosa will get much media attention, given the bomb he dropped at the Capitol this morning: he's abandoning pension reform for 2005, both in the Legislature and … Continue reading »

A Schwarzenegger appointee to the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) board was rejected today by Senate Democrats… as the battle over the governor's plan to privatize public employee pensions continues. The Senate Rules Committee rejected nominee Kathleen Smalley, who … Continue reading »

For those of you who think you could do a better job than the elected officials at mapping out the state's broad budget priorities, here's your chance. A new organization called Next Ten today unveils its "California Budget Challenge"… which … Continue reading »

The governor's budget advisers have decided to scrap plans for issuing a bond to settle a long-running lawsuit over flood damage. At issue is a tentative court agreement for the state to pay $464 million to settle claims stemming from … Continue reading »