Institute and PPIC Release New Report on Federal Formula Grants and California: Federal Highway Programs -- California Capitol Hill Bulletin -- Volume 10, Bulletin 4 -- February 27, 2003

The California Institute and the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) are pleased to announce publication of a new report detailing California's fiscal relationship with the federal highway programs that help state and local governments build and maintain the nation's roads and highways.

The report was released on February 26 at a luncheon briefing attended by nearly 100 Congressional staff members, reporters, public officials, and representatives of the business, labor and academic communities.

Congress will soon revise TEA-21, the $29.5 billion comprehensive surface transportation law that governs policy and funding for federal highway programs. In fiscal year 2002, California received nearly 9 percent - $2.7 billion - of total federal highway dollars distributed through TEA-21.

For decades, many California lawmakers have questioned the equity of the formulas used to determine the state's share of federal highway funds. Federal Formula Grants and California: Federal Highway Programs examines the mechanics of the federal highway formulas that determine funding levels for California and other states. It also analyzes possible formula-change scenarios and the state-by-state effects of those changes.

This report is the fourth in an ongoing series reviewing California's share of federal formula grant programs. The series was developed at the request of the bipartisan leadership of California's congressional delegation and is produced by PPIC in collaboration with the California Institute for Federal Policy Research.

At the luncheon on February 26, PPIC Senior Fellow and Director of Research Mark Baldassare introduced the project and outlined its goals, objectives and products. California Institute Executive Director Tim Ransdell then discussed formula programs generally, how they fit into the context of the federal budget, and then outlined California's share of the ten largest formula grants (Medicaid, highways, TANF, Title I, school lunch, head start, special education, foster care, SCHIP and WIC). He also detailed California's share of the ten grants to states that make up the Federal-Aid Highway Program, and discussed the state-by-state impact of possible formula changes. Formula grants project associate Shervin Boloorian provided an overview of transportation laws and described California's perspective on TANF and federal welfare programs.

For the full text of the report, go to http://www.ppic.org and click on the link for "Federal Formula Grants and California." A subscription to the full series of reports may be ordered from PPIC on this project's page, http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=172 . The highways report alone is available at http://www.ppic.org/content/other/203Highway.pdf .

A two-page overview of highways-related information entitled "Just The Facts" is also available on the site.

To expand communications between Washington and California, the California Institute provides periodic faxed bulletins regarding current activity on Capitol Hill which directly impacts our state. Bulletins are published weekly during sessions of Congress, and occasionally during other periods. The e-mail edition is made possible in part by in kind donations from Sun Microsystems and IBM Corp.

The California Institute for Federal Policy Research
A Source of Information on California and Federal Policy
419 New Jersey Avenue, SE, Washington, D.C. 20003
voice: 202-546-3700   fax: 202-546-2390  ransdell@calinst.org    http://www.calinst.org