Late last month, a state panel voted in favor of raising the pay for Gov. Gavin Newsom, legislators, and other elected officials by four percent. The state Citizens Compensation Commission approved the increase in pay and justified it by citied the booming economy in the state and its big budget surplus. The pay for legislators […]

In late February, a nonpartisan report from the California Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) claimed that an account used to fund 95 percent of California’s Department of Motor Vehicles’ expenses will soon become insolvent. LAO predicts that the $3.9 billion Motor Vehicle Account will collapse in a few years, which will affect funds for the California […]

Last month, an online financial website called WalletHub released a study that looked at which of the 50 states gave taxpayers the biggest return on their investment (ROI). In the study, taxpayer dollars are seen as an investment into the state and it turns out that California is nowhere near the top of the list. […]

It took all of 24 hours and the “Democrats have already proposed tens of billions of dollars in new state spending.”   In the first day of the legislative session Monday, Democrats introduced more than 100 bills that contained more than $40 billion in proposed new spending.    The Sacramento Bee reports that, one of […]

By: Andrew Sarega It has been said that money is the mother’s milk of politics. This must be the case with California’s latest legal crop – cannabis. High Times magazine says: “Even in states with a robust medical marijuana market, lack of official oversight creates financial incentives that sometimes trump concern for public health and […]

U.S. News & World Report released a study ranking the best states in the nation and the rankings weren’t too kind to California, especially when it comes to the quality of life in the state. The Best States ranking is part of an annual study that scores all 50 states on the following eight categories: […]

The economy in the Bay Area is booming, yet for people under the age of 40 and for renters, there is a high chance that they don’t travel or go out to eat much, and they probably have to cut back on groceries. Where is most of their money going to? According to a five-county […]

Late last month, a proposed bill was introduced by state Sen. Robert Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys) to allow banks to open accounts for people involved in the cannabis industry. The bill, Senate Bill 930, would allow California chartered banks, credit unions and other financial institutions to open checking and savings accounts and issue checks for marijuana […]

In December, the median home price in Southern California surpassed the housing bubble-era highs, which is a milestone that took more than a decade to achieve. According to real estate data firm CoreLogic, the six-county region’s median price surged 8.2 percent from a year earlier to $507,500, which is once again raising concerns that housing […]

In 2014, voters passed an initiative that forced lawmakers to save money in flush years. It turns out that California’s budget reserves are approaching a point to where the state, by law, can’t save any more money. The state is on pace to fill the reserves with $13.5 billion by July 1, 2019, but some […]