Local Transportation Funding Remains In Jeopardy
By Paul McIntosh, Executive Director
pmcintosh@counties.org
Unfortunately, more than $2 billion in county and city transportation revenue remains very much in play in the budget debate. A significant amount of this loss is from the local portion of the gas tax or Highway User Tax Account (HUTA). The HUTA proposal is not a loan or suspension, but an outright takeaway, which is contained in budget trailer bills SB 72 and AB 190 (identical bills).
The duration of the take is for two years, and is equal to nearly $1.7 billion shared equally between counties and cities. CSAC and the League of California Cities adamantly oppose this action that will result in significant job losses to both the public and private sector and will compromise our ability to meet critical public safety needs. No action has been taken on these bills yet.
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State Moves Closer to Issuance of IOUs
This week, State Controller John Chiang announced Wednesday that, starting July 2, his office would be issuing registered warrants, or IOUs, if immediate budget and cash solutions are not approved by the Legislature and the Governor. Controller Chiang reached this conclusion after the Legislature and Governor failed to meet the June 15th deadline for a budget resolution that would have enabled the Treasurer and Controller to seek much-needed short-term cash flow borrowing from Wall Street. The option to pursue Revenue Anticipation Warrants (RAWs) was eliminated when Governor Schwarzenegger rescinded the authority for the Controller to do so earlier this month.
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Administration of Justice
AB 985, by Assembly Member Hector De La Torre, has been significantly amended to address the issue of unlawful restrictions — based on race, color, religion, family status, and national origin, among others — contained in a property’s covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs).
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Agriculture and Natural Resources
AB 45, by Assembly Member Sam Blakeslee, intends to facilitate the implementation of consistent statewide standards for the siting of small wind energy systems.
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Employee Relations
This month, in Johnson v. Arvin-Edison Water Storage District (June 3, 2009), the California Court of Appeal held that most of the state’s wage and hour laws do not apply to public employers.
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Government Finance and Operations
ACA 9, by Assembly Member Jared Huffman, would put a measure before California voters that would reduce the voter approval requirement for local taxes and bonds to 55%.
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Health and Human Services
A U.S. District Court Judge issued an injunction yesterday on the wage reduction to In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) providers included in the February budget package.
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Housing, Land Use and Transportation
On Wednesday, June 24, the Senate and Assembly released budget trailer bills to amend the enacted Fiscal Year (FY) 2009-10 State Budget Act.
[FULL STORY]
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Indian Gaming
SB 357, by Senator Denise Ducheny, would extend the sunset date from January 1, 2010 to January 1, 2021, for Indian Gaming Special Distribution Fund (SDF) local mitigation grant program.
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