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Fact Sheet

Law Enforcement Staffing in California

By Brandon Martin, Magnus Lofstrom, Andrew Skelton

Law enforcement is funded largely at the local level, and almost half of California’s law enforcement officers work for municipal police departments. Staffing levels continued to drop in 2022, though losses vary across agencies.

Fact Sheet

California’s Water Market

By Ellen Hanak, Gokce Sencan, Andrew Ayres

Water marketing is an important tool for managing drought and water scarcity in California. Reforms could help strengthen the market.

Report

The California Poverty Measure: A New Look at the Social Safety Net

By Caroline Danielson, Sarah Bohn, Matt Levin, Marybeth Mattingly

A new way of measuring poverty in California shows that 22 percent of residents lived in poor families in 2011. It also underscores the importance of the social safety net for many families in the state. The safety net’s impact on children is especially dramatic—without the need-based programs included in the new measure, 39 percent (or 3.6 million California children) would be considered poor. A companion report released by the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality examines regional and demographic differences in poverty.

This research was supported with funding from The Walter S. Johnson Foundation.

Statewide Survey

PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Their Government

By Mark Baldassare, Dean Bonner, Rachel Lawler, Deja Thomas

Key findings include overwhelming majorities say housing affordability and homelessness are a big problem; many Californians worry younger generations will be unable to afford a home. Majorities expect bad times ahead for the state financially. Approval of Newsom and Biden has remained steady, while approval has fallen for the US Supreme Court and Congress.

Statewide Survey

PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Their Government

By Mark Baldassare, Dean Bonner, Rachel Lawler, Deja Thomas

Californians name economic conditions, homelessness, and housing as the most important issues facing the state today. A majority of Californians favor changing state environmental regulations as a way to increase housing affordability.

Report

Water and the Future of the San Joaquin Valley

By Ellen Hanak, Alvar Escriva-Bou, Brian Gray, Sarge Green ...

California’s largest agricultural region is in a time of great change and growing water stress. New cooperative approaches are needed to bring groundwater basins into balance, provide safe drinking water, and manage water and land to benefit people and nature.

Statewide Survey

PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and the Environment

By Mark Baldassare, Dean Bonner, Rachel Lawler, Deja Thomas

Key findings from the current survey include: One in four Californians name water supply and drought as the state’s top environmental issue; 63% say water supply is a big problem in their region. Majorities approve of the way Governor Newsom and President Biden are handling environmental issues. About six in ten (63%) are very concerned about climate change increasing the severity of wildfires and drought. Majorities across party lines favor prioritizing alternative energy sources, such as wind, solar, and hydrogen.

Fact Sheet

Sea Level Rise in California

By Letitia Grenier, Gokce Sencan

Sea levels are rising, and Californians are already feeling the impact. Adaptation will require new forms of collaboration and coordination—as well as working with nature—to find solutions.

Report

A Path Forward for California’s Freshwater Ecosystems

By Jeffrey Mount, Brian Gray, Karrigan Bork, James Cloern ...

California’s freshwater ecosystems are under pressure and its aquatic biodiversity is in decline. The state needs a new approach to protect the many beneficial uses these ecosystems provide. This report describes a way to manage the state’s freshwater ecosystems—called “ecosystem-based management”—that can improve conditions for native biodiversity and human uses, and increase resilience to climate change.

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