California’s Public Universities: Harder To Get Into

November 25, 2009

Gaining admission to California’s public universities is becoming more difficult. Not only are the University of California (UC) and the California State University (CSU) increasing student fees in response to state budget cuts, they are also reducing enrollment. The decisions to cut enrollments come at a time when applications to the UC and CSU are increasing.

Last week, the UC President proposed cutting 2010-11 freshman enrollment by 2,300 students if the UC does not receive an increase in state funding. The proposal follows a reduction of 2,300 to freshman enrollment made in 2009-10. The decision to reduce UC enrollment comes after two years of increasing freshman applications to the UC. Between 2007 and 2009, the number of California freshman applicants increased by nearly 6,900 (9.3 percent). This increase in applications, coupled with enrollment reductions, has made it more difficult for Californians to gain admission to the UC: 72.5 percent of California freshman applicants were admitted to the UC this fall, compared to 77.5 percent in the fall of 2007.

The CSU also is planning to reduce enrollment. By the spring of 2010, the CSU plans to enroll 10,000 fewer students and the system projects a total enrollment reduction of 40,000 students over the next two years – a cut of approximately 9 percent. This reduction is likely to make it more difficult to gain admission to the CSU, especially given recent increases in applications. Between the fall of 2007 and 2008, freshman applicants to the CSU increased by more than 12,600 (8.4 percent), and the admission rate dropped from 76.1 percent to 68.8 percent.

Recent budget cuts to higher education call into question the state’s commitment to provide its residents with access to a high-quality, affordable college education. In the absence of additional funding, not only will fewer Californians have the opportunity to earn a college degree at the state’s public universities, but the state’s employers may have an even tougher time finding the highly skilled workers they need to compete successfully in the global economy.

— Jonathan Kaplan

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Food Stamp Program Helps 2.9 Million Californians Avert Hunger

November 24, 2009

With Thanksgiving nearly upon us, it seems fitting to give thanks for a key component of the nation’s safety net for low-income families – the Food Stamp Program. More and more Californians with incomes below or near the poverty line turned to the program to help put nutritious food on their tables as the recession deepened and job losses mounted over the past two years. The number of Californians receiving food stamp benefits reached nearly 2.9 million in August 2009, an increase of more than 814,500 (39.4 percent) from the August 2007 level of nearly 2.1 million. By comparison, the number of Californians receiving food stamp benefits during the prior two-year period – August 2005 to August 2007 – increased by just 3.1 percent.

The impact of food stamp benefits, which are 100 percent federally funded, extends beyond the households that receive them. Food stamp benefits free up income that low-income households would otherwise likely spend on food, thereby allowing families to increase their purchases of clothing and other necessities, which in turn boosts economic activity. Economists estimate that every dollar spent on food stamp benefits increases economic activity by $1.73 – a significant “bang for the buck.” Increased economic activity, in turn, boosts state sales tax revenues because many purchases that food stamp households make are subject to the sales tax. In short, increasing the number of Californians who receive food stamp benefits not only helps low-income families avert hunger, but also draws more federal dollars into the state, boosting both economic activity and state revenues.

— Scott Graves

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Healthy Families Waiting List Pared Down, But so Is Enrollment

November 18, 2009

The Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board (MRMIB), which administers the Healthy Families Program, reported this afternoon that it has enrolled about 55,000 children who had been placed on a waiting list for Healthy Families when the program’s funding fell short. This figure includes children who have been enrolled in November, and who are not reflected in the latest enrollment reports that cover October 2009.

Staff also reported that MRMIB’s vendor has processed about 80 percent of the applications for nearly 90,000 children who had been placed on the waiting list, which was in effect for two months from July 17 through September 16. Staff expects to have processed all applications by the end of the month.

Today’s news is welcome, considering that only 25 percent of waiting list applications had been reviewed at the time of MRMIB’s October meeting.  That said, overall enrollment is down substantially since its peak in July. At that time, 922,429 children had health coverage through Healthy Families. By the end of October, 865,440 children were enrolled in the program, which represents fewer children than were in the program 18 months earlier.

— Hanh Kim Quach

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Jean Ross on the Legislative Analyst’s Office Forecast

November 18, 2009

In response to the forecast on the state’s long-term budget situation today by the Legislative Analyst’s Office, Jean Ross, executive director of the California Budget Project, a nonpartisan public policy research group, released this statement:

“Today’s forecast issued by the Legislative Analyst’s Office shows that California is not out of the woods and won’t be for some time. Although the recovery appears to be under way, the weak economy will continue to take a toll on the state’s General Fund in the near future. Funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) have provided an economic boost and helped prevent even deeper cuts. But California’s budget shortfalls are certain to continue beyond the expiration of ARRA funds in 2010 and 2011. California, like many states, needs a second round of federal aid as we face record unemployment and continuing economic weakness.

Today’s forecast also increases the urgency for true prison reform. Earlier this year, the Legislature failed to enact sufficient policy changes to enable California to significantly reduce growth in corrections and meet a $1.2 billion savings target specified in the July budget agreement. California must significantly rein in its out-of-control prison spending.

It’s also clear that California cannot afford to subsidize the state’s largest and most profitable corporations through the tax cuts enacted in September 2008 and February of this year. The Legislature should repeal corporate tax cuts that were included in these budget agreements that could cost the state as much as $2.5 billion per year when fully implemented.

Policymakers should strive to do all they can to avoid yet another round of cuts to state services that would further weaken the economy and undermine the effectiveness of programs and services that Californians depend on.”

— California Budget Project

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Podcast: Cuts to the Safety Net

November 16, 2009

California made big cuts to safety-net programs even as the demand for services rose with the recession. In a new podcast, CBP Senior Policy Analyst Scott Graves talks about the cuts that were made in the February and July budget agreements and why they may be difficult to restore soon.

Want to know more about this topic? Check out the CBP’s analysis, An Overview of Recent Cuts to California’s Safety Net.

— Lisa Gardiner

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