Parking that was once free now comes with a meter. Trash pickup costs more, and local ballots continue to carry proposals for new taxes and fees. Across California, people are being asked to pay more as cities, counties, and school districts face pressure to maintain the services residents use every day. Each charge can look like a separate local decision.
The financial reports behind them tell a broader story, and the same pressures do not leave every community in the same position.
John Moorlach, Senior Fellow and Director of the Center for Public Accountability at the California Policy Center, is a CPA and former state senator who warned about Orange County’s bankruptcy before it occurred. He joins us to explain how he compares the finances of California’s state and local governments, and what those rankings may show about the condition of a resident’s own community.
