Taxes on alcohol, tobacco, gambling and cannabis produce a lot of revenue, but they raise questions of fairness.
Drivers could potentially pay per mile driven. The state transportation department predicts fuel tax revenues will decline by 2030 and drop by half by 2050.
Across the nation, state transportation agencies are warning that public safety is at risk if lawmakers don’t overhaul how road maintenance gets funded. Some states are proposing new taxes and fees.
The state has not yet signed up for a federal program that would help feed 2 million children who receive free or reduced-cost school lunches over the summer. State officials expect their own funds to be sufficient.
As inflation and interest rates ease, 2024 will be a perfect time for overdue multiyear strategic planning and keeping up with breakthrough information technologies.
‘Are we going to revert back to “normal?” No, we will have a new normal.’
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore promised to revive long-neglected transit projects when he took office earlier this year. Instead, he’s now proposing broad-based transportation cuts.
Florida was the only state to decline millions in federal funding that could have been put toward reducing tailpipe emissions and the effects of climate change. The state will build roads and bridges instead.
The state's projected $68 billion shortfall for the coming fiscal year represents a big challenge. Still, California’s deep reserves can reduce the burden.
The proposed bill would charge electric vehicle owners $290 a year to supplement decreased revenue lost from the state’s gas tax. It is estimated the fee would generate as much as $20 million annually for the state.
Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators this year made budget cuts and deferred spending as a way to address the $31.5 billion spending gap. But, as tax revenues were delayed by winter storms, the gap has grown to $68 billion.
High-profile departures of senior-level executives reflect not only an aging workforce and a more politicized operating environment but also salaries and benefits that need to be competitive with the private sector’s.
In 2021, the state’s surplus was $3.7 billion and a year later it had grown by nearly another $3 billion. Now with $16 billion reserved, it’s likely that increased spending will occur in next year’s session.
The City Council voted unanimously to equip about 810 sworn police officers with body cameras next year, making a summertime pilot program permanent. However only 297 of the patrol officers will be required to wear them routinely.
The state has pledged billions of dollars to its pre-kindergarten program, which will be available to 4-year-olds for free, but has no plans to formally evaluate its benefits. Many are wondering: Is the program effective?
Brandon Johnson had previously critiqued how the city has used a tax structure that relies on property taxes, fines and fees, and yet his 2024 proposed budget counts on $46 million more in fines and fees than this year.
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