February 25, 2021

CSAC and RCRC are teaming up to bring you a two-part Redistricting Webinar Series. The series will break down all you need to know about redistricting for your county.

January 21, 2021

January 7, 2021

December 10, 2020

This week, Legislators began introducing bills for the 2021-22 session and they included a handful of elections-related bills. As county officials are aware, a number of changes were made to California election procedures this year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Legislature is looking to extend those provisions beyond the confines of the current emergency.

December 10, 2020

As the Governor pointed out last week in a letter to counties, cities, and school districts, December 31 marks the deadline for spending federal dollars allocated through the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF), passed as part of the CARES Act. Fifteen counties received direct CRF allocations from the federal government and all counties received a sub-allocation from the state. The funds must be spent on costs associated with responding to the COVID-19 pandemic incurred by December 31, 2020. Unspent funds must be returned to the US government.

December 3, 2020

November 20, 2020

With the news this week of a multi-billion dollar one-time windfall in 2020-21, interest groups and legislators immediately began positioning their preferred programs for a share of the money, estimated to be between $12 billion and $40 billion. Less attention has been given to the other major projection of the LAO’s Fiscal Forecast, that the state is structurally out of balance, leading to sizeable and growing deficits over the next four fiscal years.

November 20, 2020

October 29, 2020

October 15, 2020

Counties will recall that the state budget passed this summer relied on further federal aid to avoid significant cuts and deferrals. Today, October 15, is the deadline for receiving those federal funds and with negotiations in Washington D.C. still stalled, the $11.14 billion of cuts and deferrals now go into effect.

October 8, 2020

At their November meeting, the CalPERS Board will consider adopting rule changes for retired annuitants who return to work. Retirees collecting a pension may return to work, so long as the meet specific requirements, which include limits on the amount of pay they may receive and the number of hours an annuitant may work in a 12-month period.

September 24, 2020

September 17, 2020

Last week, the California Supreme Court declined to review a state appellate court decision that allows local government special taxes to be increased by a simple majority, rather than two-thirds, if the tax increase is placed on the ballot by initiative petitions and not the governments themselves. This comes as a victory for those in favor of making tax increases easier to pass, as well as groups who might not seek taxes to benefit their causes via local initiative.

September 3, 2020

CSAC’s Government, Finance and Administration policy committee tracked a number of bills this legislative cycle. Here is a summary of the outcomes for a number of notable bills.

AB 107 (Budget): General Government: Assessment Appeals Deadlines

August 27, 2020

August 27, 2020

A new budget trailer bill, SB 815, would give county assessment appeals boards additional time to work through their backlogs and clarify that they are allowed to hold hearings remotely.

August 13, 2020

August 6, 2020

This week, Governor Newsom signed Executive Order N-72-20 – his 44th COVID-related executive action – which extends until January 31, 2021 the deadline to hear property tax assessment appeals filed on or before March 4, 2020.

July 30, 2020

In a case closely watched by public agencies, their unions, and pension hawks, the California Supreme Court this morning unanimously upheld the “California Rule” that prevents most reductions to pensions for existing employees. However, the decision itself found in favor of the pension systems and against the union plaintiffs, by finding that the changes in question served “the constitutionally permissible purpose of closing loopholes and preventing abuse of the pension system.”

July 16, 2020

This week, the California State Library announced the launch of the California Grants Portal. The Portal allows users to browse nearly all grants and loans hosted by state agencies and departments, as well as to subscribe to email updates for new opportunities. The new Portal can be found at grants.ca.gov. 

July 9, 2020

The Governor’s Task Force on Business and Jobs Recovery has announced a new website and campaign, Calling All Californians: #ShopSafeShopLocal, which provides resources to small business on how to make modifications to protect against the spread of COVID-19. The website also encourages Californians to support small businesses in their communities.

June 25, 2020

The Government, Finance and Administration Policy Committee is requesting feedback on the following bills. Please send comments to Geoff Neill or Ada Waelder.

AB 398 (Chu) – Local Government and School Recovery and Relief Act

June 25, 2020

May 28, 2020

County costs for hearings to designate someone a sexually violent predator (SVP) are once again reimbursable after a hard-fought, long-awaited decision from the semi-obscure, quasi-judicial Commission on State Mandates. This represents a big win for counties in an area that is often a cause for frustration.