Among employers surveyed in the West, 18 percent plan to add staff, while 8 percent anticipate a decline in payrolls, resulting in a Net Employment Outlook of +10% for Quarter 1 2014. According to seasonally adjusted survey results, employers in the West anticipate a relatively stable hiring pace compared to Quarter 4 2013 and one year ago at this time.
Public safety realignment substantially reduced the state’s prison population. Between 2011 and 2012, property crime increased in California as a result of this policy change. Auto theft increased most dramatically, by 14.8 percent—or about 24,000 per year. By contrast, violent crime rates did not appear to be affected.
November’s tax receipts could look somewhat disappointing at face value, but delays in collections and recording appear to have accounted for much of the shortfall. Relative to projections contained in the 2013-14 Budget Act, total November revenues fell $376 million, or 5.9%, shy of estimates. Those figures do not include approximately $440 million in late November sales tax deposits which, because of the late Thanksgiving holiday, were recorded to the State’s books in December.
To ensure stability and expand opportunity in California, Speaker John A. Pérez (D-Los Angeles) and Assembly Budget Committee Chair Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) released the 2014 Blueprint for a Responsible Budget today, highlighting priorities Assembly Democrats will focus on in upcoming budget deliberations.
The 19th annual edition of the LAO’s Fiscal Outlook–a forecast of California’s state General Fund revenues and expenditures over the next six years–reflects continued improvement in the state’s finances. A restrained budget for 2013-14, combined with our updated forecast of increased state revenues, has produced a promising budget situation for 2014-15. Our forecast indicates that, absent any changes to current laws and policies, the state would end 2014-15 with a multibillion-dollar reserve. Continued caution is needed, however, given that these surpluses are dependent on a number of assumptions that may not come to pass. For example, as we discuss in this report, an economic downturn within the next few years could quickly result in a return to operating deficits. In this report, we outline a strategic approach for allocating potential surpluses that prepares for the next economic downturn while paying for past commitments, maintaining existing programs, and making new budgetary commitments incrementally to address other public priorities.
Construction industry employment has been one of the fastest growing job sectors in Los Angeles County over the last year, driven in large part by a resurgent housing market and continued demand for multi-family housing.
The labor market recovery in the East Bay has been relatively lackluster during recent months, although the slowdown is expected to be temporary. According to the California Employment Development Department, the East Bay’s August payroll number was 992,200, just about the average of the preceding months. On a year-over-year basis, nonfarm employment increased by 0.8%, or 7,800 jobs in total.
The South Bay continues to be one of the regions driving California’s overall employment growth. For the first eight months of 2013, total nonfarm employment in the South Bay was up 3% over the same period last year. The state, on the other hand, was up 1.7%.
Each year, growth in the Inland Empire labor market edges up, as the region continues its slow, steady march out of the Great Recession. As of August 2013, total nonfarm employment in the Inland Empire stood at 1.2 million, which is 9% below the region’s peak employment level set in July of 2007. Since August 2012, the region has added back 6,900 nonfarm payroll jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis, a 0.6% year-over-year increase. This is a lower rate of growth than in the state overall (1.5%), but it is important to remember that the Inland Empire was one of the hardest hit regions in California after the housing bubble burst.
The San Francisco Metropolitan Division (MD) continued its leading role in California’s employment recovery in the third quarter of 2013. In August, the region added over 21,000 jobs on a year-over-year basis. That 2.1% increase represented the fourth fastest growth rate in California behind San Jose, the Central Coast, and Orange County. The San Francisco MD is one of a handful of regions in the state to have exceeded their pre-recession peak employment levels.
San Diego County continues to be a key driver of employment growth in Southern California’s economy. Behind Orange County, it has been Southern California’s second fastest recovering job market. Since nonfarm employment hit bottom in February 2010, San Diego County has added back more than 66,000 jobs, a 5.5% increase. This is stronger than the growth experienced in Los Angeles (5.1%), the Inland Empire (3.7%), or the rest of Southern California (4.8%). In addition, San Diego’s unemployment rate dipped from nearly 11% in 2010 to 7.2% in August 2013. This is well below the statewide average of 8.9%, and is again only second to Orange County in Southern California.
The Latino population in California is large, growing rapidly, and on its way to attaining majority status inless than 40 years. However, Latino college-degree attainment is low, despite a significant increase in collegegoing rates.
A California Greenhouse Gas Inventory Spreadsheet (GHGIS) model was developed to explore the impact of combinations of state policies on state greenhouse gas (GHG) and regional criteria pollutant emissions. . . Results indicate that all three scenarios are able to meet the 2020 statewide GHG targets, and by 2030, statewide GHG emissions range from between 208 and 396 MtCO2/yr. However, none of the scenarios are able to meet the 2050 GHG target of 85 MtCO2/yr, with emissions ranging from 188 to 444 MtCO2/yr, so additional policies will need to be developed for California to meet this stringent future target.
The cities highlighted in this report—Dayton, Irving, Memphis, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, San Antonio,Sioux Falls—each in their own unique way, are examples of how enterprise-friendly leadership,strategies, and partnerships can be put into action to achieve meaningful results.
The purpose of this report is to provide information on 31 key health care occupations in California. The occupations are those with one or more of the following criteria: expected strong growth, anticipated high demand due to employees leaving the health care workforce, and occupations in demand due to the needs of underserved communities.