PROJECT REPORTS

• 10/24/08
  Diesel Truck Traffic in Port-Adjacent Low-Income and Minority Communities; Environmental Justice Implications of Near-Roadway Land Use Conflicts (pdf)
  by Doug Houston, Margaret Krudysz, Arthur Winer
  Description
  Container traffic at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach has tripled in the last fifteen years resulting in massive port-related heavy duty diesel truck (HDDT) traffic on surface streets in the port-adjacent low-income and minority communities of Wilmington and western Long Beach. Responding to the limitations of existing data on volumes of HDDTs on surface streets, this study used direct video measurements of surface street traffic at eleven intersections and line segments in these communities to document port-related truck traffic traveling to and from intermodal facilities, truck services and local amenities, and regional goods movement roadways. Volumes of HDDTs often reached 400-600 per hour for several hours, immediately upwind of ‘sensitive’ land uses such as schools, open-field parks and residences. Diurnal truck traffic patterns on surface streets varied by intersection, local conditions, and passenger car commute patterns. Given the documented health and environmental consequences of HDDT emissions, our results raise serious public health concerns for inhabitants who reside, work, attend school, or recreate in close proximity to roadways with heavy diesel truck traffic in these port-adjacent communities. This paper discusses the environmental justice implications of truck-related land use conflicts and current planning and emission control strategies to mitigate the local air pollution impacts of increasing port-related truck traffic in these low income, minority communities.

• 03/06/07
  Evaluating the Fiscal Impacts of Privatizing Bus Transit Service in California (pdf)
  by J. R. DeShazo and Hiroyuki Iseki
  Description
  

• 02/15/06
  California Policy Options 2006 (pdf)
  by Edited by Daniel J.B. Mitchell
  Description
  

  The purpose of California Policy Options is to collect and publish annually fresh UCLA research on public policy issues facing California. This 2006 edition of California Policy Options, which includes a range of policy topics as diverse as ballot-box budgeting, domestic partnerships, and economic development at Redondo Beach, is a snapshot that captures the breadth, range, and depth of our research.

  The California Policy Options report of the UCLA School of Public Affairs has built on its legacy as an outgrowth of the annual UCLA Anderson Forecast. Now produced in conjunction with the Ralph and Goldy Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies, it has become a trusted source of thoughtful research and analysis on policy issues affecting the state of California.

  
  Table of Contents
  Preface
  Introduction
  One: The California Economic Outlook
  Two: Standing in Front of the California Ballot-Box Train: The Present and Past of Ballot-Box Budgeting
  Three: Should California Adopt an Earned Income Tax Credit?
  Four: Evaluating Reforms in the Implementation of Hazardous Waste Policies in California
  Five: California's Adoption of Strong Domestic Partnership Legislation for Same-Sex Couples
  Six: Structuring Inequality: How California Selectively Tests, Classifies, and Tracks Language Minority Students
  Seven: Southern California Survey
  Eight: Heart of the City: Development at Redondo Beach
  Authors’ Biographies
  

• 05/31/05
  CALWORKS Sanction Patterns in Four Counties: A Technical Analysis (pdf)
  by Paul M. Ong and Douglas Houston
  Description
  This technical report is part of a study commissioned and funded by the Welfare Policy Research Project (WPRP, a program administered by the California Policy Research Center, University of California, Office of the President). Additional funds were provided by the Ralph and Goldy Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies at UCLA; UCLA’s School of Public Affairs; and the UC Office of the President. We are indebted to Paul Smilanick, Leslie Raderman, and Everett Haslett of the California Department of Social Services for their assistance in accessing state employment and earnings data, and to those with the welfare agencies in the four participating counties who facilitated access to and provided assistance with welfare administrative data for this project. We also thank the WPRP staff and numerous colleagues who provided valuable comments and suggestions, and Lucy Tran and Al Averbach for helping prepare this report. We alone are responsible for all interpretations and any errors.

• 05/31/05
  CalWORKs Sanction Patterns in Four Counties: An Analysis of Administrative Data (pdf)
  by Paul M. Ong and Douglas Houston
  Description
  California policymakers are seeking information on how counties are administering welfare sanctions― the procedures by which the state and county welfare agencies penalize low-income adults with children when they fail to comply with various CalWORKs program requirements. In this Briefing Paper, we list policymakers’ key questions and the aspects of each addressed by our study on CalWORKs sanctions in Alameda, Fresno, Kern, and San Diego counties.

• 05/31/05
  CalWORKs Sanction Policies in Four Counties: Practices, Attitudes, and Knowledge (pdf)
  by Sofya Bagdasaryan, with Ruth Matthias, Paul Ong, and Douglas Houston
  Description
  

  The federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 was the most sweeping overhaul of the U.S. welfare program for poor families with children since its inception in the 1935 Social Security Act. To comply with the new federal law, California passed its Temporary Assistance to Needy Families plan in August 1997. Counties began implementing the new program, CalWORKs (California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids), on January 1, 1998.

  The federal law increased work participation requirements for able-bodied adults and restricted the circumstances under which recipients can be exempted from working or engaging in workrelated activities. If adults fail to comply with program rules without good cause, states reduce or eliminate cash aid to their households. These sanctions, or the threat of these sanctions, are intended both to motivate recipients to comply with work-related program requirements and, for those under sanction, to hasten their return to compliance (generally referred to as “curing” or “lifting” the sanctions).

  The federal legislation gave states some leeway in defining the terms of recipient compliance and in prescribing the severity of the sanction for noncompliance. In California, CalWORKs requires adult heads of single-parent families to engage in 32 hours a week of work and work-related activities averaged over a month (the federal minimum in order to count toward the state’s work participation rate requirement is 30 hours). As under prior law, California imposes partial-family sanctions: a reduced cash grant to children in families in which the adult or adults have lost assistance because of noncompliance. In California, the policy did not change markedly, but sanctions are imposed more frequently than under the Greater Avenues for Independence (GAIN) program, the predecessor to CalWORKs.

  In order to better understand how California counties administer sanctions, the University of California’s Welfare Policy Research Project commissioned a study to answer six questions: (1) How do counties implement sanction procedures prescribed by CalWORKs? (2) How, if at all, do counties attempt to prevent sanctions, and how do they help recipients to lift a sanction once it has been imposed? (3) How knowledgeable are county welfare workers about CalWORKs sanction policies, and (4) what opinions do they hold about the purpose and efficacy of sanctions? (5) How well do recipients in these counties understand sanction policies, and (6) what have their experiences been with these policies? To address these questions, we examined in depth the sanction policies and procedures in four highly disparate counties: Alameda, Fresno, Kern, and San Diego.

• 05/01/05
  California Policy Options 2005 (pdf)
  by Edited by JB Mitchell
  Description
  California faces a host of interrelated challenges as the year 2005 opens. Although there is always short-term uncertainty concerning the economic outlook, the larger economic problems for the state are longer-term. This edition of California Policy Options includes articles on policy topics as diverse as the local challenges of homeland security, expert critical analysis of the state budget, and a passionate advocacy to incentivize public transportation on the UCLA campus.
  
  Table of Contents
  Preface
  Introduction
  California's Economic Outlook: Short-term Recovery But Longer-term Uncertainties
  Following the Governor, Political Options in California for 2005
  Warren's Way Back from the Budget Cliff: "Action, Action, Action" Won't be Enough
  California Housing Policy
  California Policy Options: Supplying California's Need for Nurses
  Parking on a Smart Campus: Lessons For Universities and Cities
  Dealing with Public-Sector Labor Disputes: An Alternative Approach For California
  Port Security: Improving Emergency Response Capabilities at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach
  Authors' Biographies
  

• 10/12/04
  Arts and Cultural Institutions in Los Angeles: Patterns of Utilization (pdf)
  by Douglas Houston, Sofya Bagdasaryan, and Paul Ong
  Description
  Arts and cultural institutions enrich the communities of the Los Angeles region through art exhibits, cultural activities, and educational programs. Many museums have adopted outreach strategies and developed programs that respond to and embrace regional growth and increasing diversity, but substantial challenges remain to their efforts to reach all groups and communities.

  The Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Museum of Contemporary Art, the Japanese American National Museum, the Skirball Cultural Center, and the Museum of Tolerance participated in this study because of their commitment to serve the region’s diverse communities. This report contributes to this effort by providing a geographic perspective on neighborhood-level usage patterns and by suggesting ways the arts and cultural community can continue to diversify its base of support and visitation.

  Warning! The pdf file is 1.9MB.

• 09/02/04
  The State of Southern California’s Housing (pdf)
  by Paul Ong, Kim Haselhoff, Michela Zonta and Christopher Thornberg
  Description
  This report contains the findings from an analysis of Southern California’s housing sector, which has experienced an acute affordability crisis in recent years. High housing costs have kept homeownership rates low in comparison to the rest of the nation and created a heavy financial burden on both renters and owners. This report analyzes both the long-term housing trends in the region and the more recent short-term housing cycles, as well as the effect of housing prices on migration and the effect of public policy on housing. High housing costs are driven by high land costs, which are associated with the region’s enormous size and the high cost of commuting and transport within the region. Over the long term, high population growth, soaring home prices, and stagnant income growth have all contributed to the housing crunch. In the short term continued population growth, increasing personal income, and declining interest rates, combined with limited levels of housing production, have led to an extremely tight housing market and tremendous price appreciation. However various factors indicate that the current level of price appreciation is not sustainable in the long run. Migration data indicate that those who leave California are more likely to become homeowners, and many do move away for better housing opportunities. Despite the disadvantage in housing affordability, people continue to move to the region for the other advantages it offers. Finally, local barriers to housing development impact both the distribution of affordable housing and the overall supply of housing in the region. More effective policies are needed to help increase the supply of affordable housing and provide for a more balanced distribution of affordable housing throughout the region.

• 06/22/04
  Caregiver Training Initiative: FINAL PROCESS AND OUTCOME EVALUATION REPORT (pdf)
  by Ruth Matthias, Ph.D., Susan Chapman, Ph.D., Jordan Rickles, M.P.P., Ellen Morrison, Ph.D., Paul M. Ong, Ph.D., A.E. (Ted) Benjamin, Ph.D., and Robert Newcomer, Ph.D.
  Description
  A final report prepared for the California Employment Development Department. The proportion of Californians over age 65, 85, and even 95 will increase dramatically over the next two decades. There are not enough caregivers in California to respond to current and future demands from elderly and other populations, and this worker shortage can threaten patient safety and compromise quality of care. To address these issues, the State of California established the statewide Caregiver Training Initiative (CTI) in 2000 to help recruit, train and retain caregivers using twelve collaborative programs. Our evaluation of the CTI provides significant and some unexpected findings. Despite program time constraints and other limitations, our findings indicate that the CTI program exceeded expectations. PDF

• 02/27/04
  California Policy Options 2004 (pdf)
  by Edited by JB Mitchell
  Description
  The 2004 edition of California Policy Options paints the picture of a state starting to turn things around politically and economically, but constrained by structural flaws and demographic demands, particularly poverty, affecting education, law enforcement, and labor markets. This edition of California Policy Options also includes articles on policy topics as diverse as the challenges facing ex-offenders looking for work, human resources policy and morale issues at the Los Angeles Police department, urban design for public safety, and incentives for school reform.
  Introduction
  California's Economic Outlook
  Caliornia's Policy Options 2004
  Family Time, Cliffs and Train Wrecks 661KB
  Trajectory of Poverty in LA 754KB
  Designing Incentives for California Schools
  The Labor Market for Ex-Offenders in LA
  Protecting Against Transit Crime 886KB
  Tracking Changes within the Los Angeles Police Department
  Authors' Biographies
  

• 02/20/04
  Analysis of the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency's Enforcement of Wage and Hour Laws (pdf)
  by Paul Ong and Jordan Rickles
  Description
  This study was funded by the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency. In accordance with AB 2985, our analysis highlights the characteristics of the workforce most at risk of wage and hours violations, describes the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) efforts to enforce these violations, and presents a set of recommendations to improve enforcement strategies. To complete the study we relied on the synthesis of state documentation, publicly available data on the workforce, and state administrative data. When appropriate, and the available data permit, we compare the environment and operations in California to Illinois, New Jersey, and Washington, and compare workers and firms associated with complaints and enforcement to noncomplaint/ enforcement workers and firms.

• 01/15/04
  Strengthening the Voice of California's New Workers: Labor and Community Efforts to Improve Worker Health and Safety (pdf)
  by Marcos Vargas and Paul Ong
  Description
  This research project is based on the belief that public policy must respond to the problems of how changes in the new economy adversely affect the health of workers and their families. Despite California’s recent business boom, structural changes are reproducing low-wage and contingent employment and increasing worker health and safety risks. A growing segment of California’s working families is struggling simply to make ends meet, and minorities and immigrants are disproportionately over-represented in this labor market niche. In our political economy, societal institutions can and must play a role in promoting better public policy, and organizations that provide a collective voice for workers are central to improving work conditions and access to health care.

• 12/04/03
  The Trajectory of Poor Neighborhoods in Southern California, 1970 - 2000 (pdf)
  by Shannon McConville and Paul Ong
  Description
  In the past three decades, the Los Angeles region has witnessed a large-scale spatial reorganization of poverty. Where once concentrated poverty was confined to neighborhoods in the inner-city, it has since spread to the suburbs. This shifting concentration of poor neighborhoods is driven mainly by immigration and broader changes in the regional economy. Increasing economic mobility for second and subsequent generations of immigrants through education is the region's key challenge.
  This report was sponsored by The Brookings Institution This report is 5 MB

• 10/29/03
  Southern California's Labor Force: Diversity and Aging (pdf)
  by Paul Ong, Doug Houston and Jennifer S. Wang
  Description
  To meet the demands of the changing labor market it is important for human resources management to improve and enhance their knowledge of the workforce. This report profiles the labor force in Southern California for Human Resources Round Table (HARRT) and presents key findings regarding diversity and aging. This report will provide employers with basic trends and implications and will help promote potential strategies to improve practice in shaping the quality of the workforce. This report is structured around five research objectives: • Analyze labor force trends in Southern California from 1980 to 2010. • Compare Southern California to the state and nation. • Profile labor force by gender, ethnicity, education, etc. • Examine the size of the older labor force. • Identify implications for employers.

• 10/14/03
  Access to Employment -Based Insurance Among Welfare Recipients in Los Angeles County: Offering, Eligibility and Participation (pdf)
  by Shannon McConville and Paul Ong
  Description
  This report combines analysis of firm-level insurance data with welfare and employment information to explore the availability of employment-based insurance for welfare recipients who are transitioning into the labor market in Los Angeles County. To understand the complex and dynamic nature of this issue, multiple data sources are utilized to provide information from the perspective of both welfare recipients who are transitioning into the labor market (laborsupply side) and the firms that employ them (labor-demand side). The primary data sources include an employer benefits survey completed in 2000, administrative welfare and employment data covering a period from 1996 to 2001, and a survey of recent welfare recipients conducted in 2002/2003.

• 08/21/03
  The Economic Cycle and Los Angeles Neighborhoods; 1987-2001 (pdf)
  by Paul Ong, James Spencer, Michela Zonta, Todd Nelson, Douglas Miller and Julia Heintz-Mackoff
  Description
  Changes in the economic conditions are responsible for broad gains and losses across a region, but the ways that these changes play out at a neighborhood level throughout the region are not uniform. Neighborhoods may benefit or suffer disproportionately according to their mix of jobs and income sources, and the ability to respond to new conditions depends on the resources available to residents. Spatial differences in economic outcomes have been linked to secular economic changes, in which the economy undergoes structural transformations. Communities are also influenced by the short-run up and down variation that are collectively referred to as the business cycle. In the past, little attention has been given to the effects of cyclical contractions and expansions on neighborhoods.This report represents an important first step in understanding the dynamic nature of neighborhood response to cyclical economic fluctuations, but more study is clearly required. To facilitate such studies, we strongly recommend new efforts to make existing data available to researchers and to explore new avenues of data collection. This report is 2.36 MB.

• 08/21/03
  California Transportation Needs Assessment: The Transportation Barriers and Needs of Welfare Recipients and Low-Wage Workers (pdf)
  by Evelyn Blumenberg, Douglas Miller, Mark Garrett, Lisa Schweitzer, Karen Kitsis, Michael Manville and Bravishwar Mallavarapu
  Description
  The purpose of this report is to aid policymakers, planners and administrators in using available funds to effectively plan for the transportation needs of welfare recipients and other low-income adults in California. More specifically, the objectives of this project are: To identify the transportation obstacles facing welfare recipients and other lowincome individuals in California; To provide transportation options to better enable CalWORKs recipients and lowincome individuals find and keep employment; To provide information and county-specific data to better assist local welfare agencies, transit providers, workforce development boards, state agencies, and the private sector in planning and implementing welfare-to-work transportation programs; and, finally, To develop a statewide strategy for applying for and allocating funding through the Job Access and Reverse Commute program. This report is 3.4MB Click for Maps

• 08/18/03
  The NonCustodial Parent: Employment, Earnings, Child Support and Parenting (pdf)
  by Rosina Becerra and Paul Ong
  Description
  This report examines the characteristics and behavior of noncustodial parents (NCP) who are behind on their payments and with a child on welfare. The analysis focuses on unemployed or under-employed NCPs and is based on a close-ended telephone survey of 874 NCP respondents and 424 CP respondents from Los Angeles County, the county with the largest NCP caseload in the state. The study also uses administrative data from the Los Angeles County’s Family Support Bureau (now the Los Angeles County Department of Child Support Services) and Department of Public Social Services, and California’s Employment Development Department (EDD) and Department of Social Services.

• 08/12/03
  California Caregivers: Final Labor Market Analysis (pdf)
  by Ong, Paul, Jordan Rickles, Ruth Matthias and A.E. (Ted) Benjamin
  Description
  The demand for healthcare workers is growing, but the supply of workers has not kept pace. California has responded to this worker shortage by funding the Caregiver Training Initiative (CTI), part of the Governor’s Aging with Dignity Initiative. One focus of the initiative is on the labor market issues facing caregivers. In late 2000, California’s Health and Human Services Agency and the Employment Development Department (EDD) solicited UCLA to conduct a labor market analysis of caregivers. The primary purpose of this labor market analysis is to develop a better understanding of the caregiver labor market and the dynamics associated with this market.

• 08/12/03
  Caregiver Training Initiative Process and Implementation Evaluation (pdf)
  by Matthias, Ruth, Ellen Morrison, Susan Chapman, and A.E. (Ted) Benjamin
  Description
  The intent of the Caregiver Training Initiative (CTI) is to increase the number of health caregivers in the State of California. This initiative, which is part of the Governor’s Aging with Dignity Initiative, has provided $25 million through competitive grants to twelve Regional Collaboratives statewide for an 18-21 month period from early 2001 through late 2002. The goals of the CTI project are to address urgent workforce shortages through innovative approaches for recruiting, training, and retaining employees in the healthcare industry, and also to enhance the earning potential of health caregivers. The primary participants in the program are Workforce Investment Act (WIA) clients and Welfare-to-Work (WtW) clients.

• 12/18/02
  The 2000 Census Undercount in Los Angeles County (pdf)
  by Ong, Paul and Douglas Houston
  Description
  This working paper reports the findings from an analysis of the estimated undercount of the population in the 2000 Census for Los Angeles County. The Bureau of the Census improved its performance for 2000 relative to 1990, but the enumeration was not complete. The are three key findings: 1) Los Angeles County has a disproportionate number of the undercounted population; 2) the undercounted population is unevenly distributed within Los Angeles County across neighborhoods, varying across neighborhoods from -0.3% to 5.9%; and 3) neighborhoods with the highest under-count rates tend to be poor and predominantly minority, and have a relatively large number of children. Because of the geographic differences, disadvantaged neighborhoods and populations are at risk of being under-represented, under-served, and under-funded.

• 11/25/02
  Socioeconomic Characteristics of American Indians in Los Angeles County (pdf)
  by Ong, Paul and Doug Houston with Jennifer Wang and Jordan Rickles
  Description
  Los Angles County is home to the largest urbanized American Indian population in the country. This culturally diverse population has survived and maintained its identity despite centuries of oppression and a legacy of marginalization. Today, the American Indian population in the Los Angeles region is an economically disadvantaged group that is difficult to serve because of its geographic dispersion. Knowledge of the socioeconomic characteristics and spatial patterns of American Indians is critical to identifying the needs of this community and to improving programs tailored to it. This report contributes to our understanding of the needs of American Indians by examining census and enrollment data on the socioeconomic status and distribution of American Indians in Los Angles County. (Released in Conjunction with the United American Indian Involvement, Inc. of Los Angeles)

• 08/15/02
  Economic Needs of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Distressed Areas: Establishing Baseline Information (pdf)
  by Ong, Paul and Doug Miller
  Description
  This report provides baseline statistics needed for policy-oriented research on disadvantaged Asian-Pacific Americans (APAs) neighborhoods. We profile 17 poor APA neighborhoods across the United States and provide insights from a survey of community-based organizations (CBOs). The neighborhood profiles reveal diverse neighborhood characteristics, including variations in economic base, size, and ethnic composition. In spite of substantial differences, some common features are seen. Most neighborhoods are linguistically isolated immigrant communities with low educational attainment and low earnings. This report is the final product from a grant made by the Economic Development Administration to the National Coalition on Asian Pacific Americans Community Development (NCAPACD), the Little Tokyo Service Center and UCLA's Asian American Studies Center who contracted the Lewis Center out to conduct the survey.

• 08/15/02
  Technical Supplement to Economic Needs of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Distressed Areas: Establishing Baseline Information (pdf)
  by Miller, Doug, Paul Ong and Doug Houston
  Description
  This technical supplement provides the tables and maps upon which the analysis included in the report for the Economic Development Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce, "Economic Needs of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander in Distressed Areas” was based. contains detailed neighborhood profiles and maps of low-income APA areas in the following MSAs: Chicago, Long Beach (Little Phnom Pen), Los Angeles (Koreatown), Lowell, New Orleans, New York City (Chinatown), New York City (Jackson Heights), Orange County (Little Saigon), Sacramento, Saint Paul, San Francisco (Chinatown), Seattle, Stockton (Cambodian), Stockton (Filipino), Hawaii Study Area, Oahu, Hawaii Study Area, Molokai and San Francisco (Samoan).

NOTE: To read PDF documents, you must download Adobe Acrobat Reader