New Fiscal Year Begins with Revenues on Target

The Department of Finance (DOF) reported that General Fund revenues for the first month of the 2004-05 fiscal year met the 2004 Budget Act forecast. The August 2004 Finance Bulletin, which reports July collections, indicates that revenues slightly exceeded the forecast by $108 million. Revenues from the personal income tax and the sales and use tax were right on target, while corporation tax revenues exceeded the projected level by 25%, adding $60 million to the state treasury. The other minor taxes (insurance, estate, alcoholic beverages, and tobacco) added a net $48 million.The Finance Bulletin also highlighted strong gains in the state’s home building market as further evidence that the economic recovery continues. For the first six months of 2004, home building was up 3.4% over the same period in 2003, with major gains in Southern California compensating for reductions in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Los Angeles-Long Beach region registered gains of 18% over 2003, while the Inland Empire showed gains of 15%.

In a separate news release, the Employment Development Department (EDD) reported that California saw its unemployment rate reach its lowest point in almost three years in July. The August 13, 2004, EDD report indicated that the state’s unemployment rate dropped to 6.1% for July 2004 compared to 6.9% in July 2003. In another bit of good news, the EDD noted that the number of people receiving unemployment insurance benefits dropped in July to just over 401,000 compared to 418,000 in June. Read the rest of this entry »

29 Days Late, The Legislature Approves A $105 Billion State Budget

On July 28, 2004, the State Assembly approved the State Budget and the State Senate followed on July 29, 2004, sending the Budget to the Governor for his signature. It is expected that the Governor will sign the Budget on July 31, 2004.Community College Budget

The following is a summary of the major community college budget items that are included in the State Budget as it was sent to the Governor for his consideration. Keep in mind that the Governor may �blue pencil� items in the Budget that were not included in his May Revision or items augmented by the Legislature.

The Budget provides a 7.4% increase in State General Funds. This will support an increase in community college enrollment of 40,297 full-time students. Funding per FTES will rise to $4,663, an increase of $168 over the prior-year level. Read the rest of this entry »