California Budget

A lawmaker — with salt-and-pepper colored hair and wearing a black suit — looks straight forward as the silhouettes of two people cover the foreground of the frame. Other people and the American flag can be partially seen behind the lawmaker.

Commentary

Here’s how Newsom’s spending binge outstripped revenues, creating California’s chronic deficit

Obscure charts show how California's spending exploded under Newsom, far outstripping its stagnant population growth, inflation and a hefty increase in revenues.

By

Dan Walters

• February 13, 2026

A person in a crowd holds drumsticks and strikes a white bucket while others stand around them, some wearing red shirts and baseball caps, during a gathering outdoors.

Commentary

Cal State reneged on pay increases for skilled trade workers but gave its executives raises

CSU agreed to a contract with “step” increases for workers, who helped it get state funding. Instead CSU will give them a one-time bonus.

By Ernesto Torres • February 6, 2026

An older lawmaker sits at a wooden desk inside a legislative chamber, wearing a suit and patterned tie, looking to the side as other lawmakers work in the background.

Commentary

California budget volatility continues to complicate efforts to close its deficits

California's budgets have been susceptible to the ways wealthy taxpayers derive their income, particularly during periods of economic uncertainty.

By

Dan Walters

• January 28, 2026

A person wearing a red blazer stands while facing a room full of people sitting at their desks. The room is decorated with beige columns and red curtains.

Commentary

Cracks between Newsom and frustrated lawmakers show in first budget hearings

Newsom has steadily opposed major tax increases, but an ongoing, multiyear deficit and growing frustration among legislators has created a gulf between the governor and his allies on how to fix the problem.

By

Dan Walters

• January 27, 2026

People stand in front of a row of tents along the sidewalk of a street. The tents are decorated with various words and graffiti.

Commentary

It ‘took a village’ to heal her trauma and homelessness. Will California keep funding this help?

California’s Prop 36 has put at risk the funding stream for the state’s 24 Trauma Recovery Centers, which provide a variety of services to crime victims.

By Kathy Brown-Lowe • January 26, 2026

Students sit on desks in a classroom as a door on the far left side of the room is partially open.

Commentary

Newsom wants to overhaul state oversight of California schools. Will students benefit?

Gov. Gavin Newsom dropped a brief and vaguely worded section into his State of the State address earlier this month, suggesting an overhaul of how California’s vast public education system is managed. “It’s long overdue that we modernize the management of our educational system,” Newsom said, “and so in the budget I’ll be submitting tomorrow, […]

By

Dan Walters

• January 23, 2026

Politics

The fight over how to pay for Medi-Cal puts pressure on Newsom to raise taxes

Newsom has already vowed to tank a proposed ballot initiative that would impose a 5% wealth tax on the state’s billionaires to bolster Medi-Cal. Progressive lawmakers and their allies in labor and health seem hopeful that Newsom could support a different long-shot funding idea.

By

Maya C. Miller

and

Jeanne Kuang

• January 15, 2026

Two people in suits shake hands and smile in an ornate legislative chamber as others around them applaud, with tall columns, draped curtains, and a wall clock visible in the background.

Commentary

How Newsom’s presidential ambitions complicate his last budget as California governor

As both governor and a likely presidential candidate, Gavin Newsom's final state budget faces a political trap of his own making.

By

Dan Walters

• January 14, 2026

A printed document titled “Governor’s Budget Summary 2026–27” is clipped together, showing a black-and-white image of the California State Capitol with the state flag flying in front.

Commentary

Newsom’s final budget faces a litany of political and financial challenges

With a dead-on-arrival budget draft, deep differences over revenues, chronic deficits and pressure to offset cuts in federal aid, it’s hard to even find a starting point.

By

Dan Walters

• January 13, 2026

A state official speaks at a podium during a budget presentation, flanked by U.S. and California flags, as a screen beside them lists key features including a balanced budget, continued progress, and long-term fiscal resilience.

Commentary

Newsom’s budget shows big revenue gain, but we’ve been down that path before

The Newsom administration once overstated income by $165 billion over four years. Now Newsom has announced $42 billion in new revenues over three years.

By

Dan Walters

• January 9, 2026