Finance
Managing public finance has become a demanding aspect of state and local government, especially as economic health fluctuates and outside forces create revenue instability. Articles on taxes, budgets, pensions and bonds help to bring insight to finance management at the state and local level.
Are vehicles like private equity, crypto and real estate a good fit for 401(k)-style public retirement plans — or too risky for savers? Marketers will soon be pitching these “alternative investments” to public employers. Prudence dictates caution.
The Fair Political Practices Commission reported a record $1.9 million in penalties last year, one of which amounted to $1.35 million with the L.A. County Board of Supervisors over improper use of public funds.
The county received $47 million in CARES Act funding and nearly lost the last $5 million due to expired time. But with Congress’s extension, the county has until the end of the year to allocate the funds.
The payoff for states and localities from federal infrastructure legislation is likely to be many times more than COVID stimulus aid. Governors and local leaders need to play their cards wisely.
As Gov. Newsom enacted statewide stay-at-home orders that closed and restricted businesses for months, some business owners had to sidestep the rules to make ends meet while risking costly fines and contracting COVID.
With ridership at just 8 percent of its pre-pandemic levels, Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority has been paying some of its workers massive overtime. The MBTA is projecting a budget gap of up to $79 million this fiscal year.
New York counties face spending cuts totalling $163 million from school districts, libraries, nonprofits and human services for low-income families if the multibillion federal aid that Gov. Cuomo is expecting doesn’t happen.
In November, officials estimated a budget shortfall of $86 million, but it turns out the actual numbers are much worse. Now the city must find areas to cut spending to adjust for the 10 percent gap.
States and localities tried for years to figure out ways to tax online sales, without success. The Supreme Court gave them a green light in 2018, which has proven key to surviving the pandemic financially.
The stimulus package would include funding for production and distribution of COVID vaccines, $1,400 checks for Americans and expanded unemployment benefits. Many are eager for the relief, despite the large price tag.
The state’s progressive tax structure is reaping billions from the wealthiest to fund the state’s safety net. But it also reveals how the pandemic has widened the economic gulf for millions of Californians — more than the rest of the country.
While the first round of stimulus checks encouraged spending as workers were adjusting to life at home, many expect the second round of payments will mostly go towards bill payments and savings.
An analysis of the most recent Annual Survey of School Systems Finances data reveals where public elementary-secondary school systems get their funding from and where they spend it.
Working together to create their own alternative to Bitcoin and its copycats could be a way to generate value, at no initial cost, for struggling pension funds. Madisons, anyone?
To install the detectors and screening equipment necessary for a firearms ban, the state would need to spend $1.5 million, which is more than the Capitol Commission’s annual maintenance budget.
The left loves it, and it has proponents nationally and in state legislatures around the country. But soaking the rich is a way to drive the wealthy out and curb entrepreneurship.
With Democrats in control of the Senate and the rest of Washington, further stimulus is a near-certainty. State and local aid, which has been held up by the GOP, will be part of the mix.
The state’s Special Transportation Fund will drop to just over $100 million by the end of this fiscal year, which is not enough to fund the multimillion-dollar transportation projects Gov. Lamont hopes to achieve.
Vaccines, a new presidency, a reshuffled Congress and a pandemic-shifted economy will transfigure the state and local fiscal landscape.
Still with a few weeks to go, the campaigning for Georgia’s congressional Senate runoffs has already exceeded $370 million. Overall, nine of the 10 most expensive Senate races occurred this year.
The new congressional stimulus package does not include direct aid for states and localities. Only a few states have seen revenues increase from last year, meaning cutbacks are coming due to COVID spending pressures.
The company will provide financial support to the state’s economic recovery initiative that will fund local nonprofits, cover worker wages and help bring students back to classrooms.
North Carolina accidentally “overpaid” thousands of residents in unemployment benefits and now asks that the claimants give some back. The total overpayment is estimated at $61.5 million.
Recent data shows that while overall spending has increased, there is great variation among states on public education expenditures per student. The average is $12,612, but New York spends nearly double that amount.
The COVID-19 pandemic recession has revealed major cracks in our systems of public finance, from the way we tax to the limits of fiscal federalism. We need to get to work on repairs.
The county approved the budget, which includes a one-time bonus of $1,000 per county employee to help offset the impacts of COVID-19. The county also focused funds on climate change measures.
A coalition of nonprofit community groups have been distributing one-time stipends between $1,000 and $3,000 to families impacted by COVID-19. The groups hope that investments like this continue in the future.
The California Dream Index aggregates indicators of equity to determine how the state is faring in its fight against economic inequity, and according to the numbers, there hasn’t been any improvement since 2010.
New data shows that nearly 4,000 businesses received Paycheck Protection Program loans of $1 million or more, which accounts for 38 percent of the total money spent statewide.
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For local government finance leaders, timely and relevant data is crucial for planning, budgeting and reporting; however, many local governments struggle to get the right data when they need it. So, what can they do?
Local governments have come to rely more and more on user charges to fund municipal operations. They're being challenged through the lens of equity and social justice, and they warrant a review.
