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Jennifer Hawks, California treasurer candidate, 2026 primary election questionnaire

May 4, 2026

Ahead of the June primary election, the Southern California News Group compiled a list of questions to pose to the candidates who wish to represent you. You can find the full questionnaire below. Questionnaires may have been edited for spelling, grammar, length and, in some instances, to remove hate speech and offensive language.

Name: Jennifer Hawks

Current job title: Retired

Age:

Political party affiliation: Republican

Incumbent: No

Other political positions held: None

City where you reside: Los Altos

Campaign website or social media: hawksforus.com

What’s the most important aspect of the treasurer’s role in state government? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

Managing the state funds in a way that brings wealth back to Californians — by decreasing the burden unnecessary debt places on taxpayers. When the state incurs debt without paying it down or mitigating it, its credit rating reduces. Then the interest rate the state pays increases, and taxpayer money goes to interest instead of to making life better for Californians. If there are ways to invest the state funds that bring in wealth — and there are — this will reduce the debt while relieving burdensome taxes.

As treasurer, you would sit on the board of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and California Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS). For many years, some activists have called for state pension funds to divest from Israel. What is your position on that and why? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

I favor smart investing, so Californians get the best rate of return possible for their money. So whatever is going to maximize our investment returns is what matters most. CalPERS and CalSTRS manage a $1 trillion portfolio combined. Those funds are invested in a wide variety of banks, bonds, and companies, based on what is going to profit Californians. The target is 7% to remain solvent.

Between $1 and $2 billion is invested in banks, bonds and stocks linked to Israel. Some of those companies are well-known multinational corporations, like Caterpillar and Chevron. And the return on those for fiscal year ’24-’25 was 11.6% for CalPERS and 8.5% for CalSTRS, well above the target 7%. So 0.1-0.2% of the portfolio is putting $100 to $227 million into their trusts, helping cover unfunded liabilities and reducing the amount of taxpayer money the state must contribute in the future to keep the pension system solvent. That just makes financial sense; it’s smart investing.

How would you ensure state funds are invested safely while still bringing in strong returns? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

I will focus on diversifying the portfolio by investing 20% of the state funds into authorized, high-yielding asset classes. That means transitioning to more government-sponsored enterprises, like Federal Home Loan Banks and Farmer Mac; corporations with high credit ratings, like Apple, Alphabet, and JP Morgan; and short-term prime-rated commercial paper, like Amazon and McDonald’s. I would move away from overnight accounts, short-term CDs and money-market funds because those have the lowest yields.

By only investing 20% in these stable, high-yield categories, there is statistically almost no principal loss risk, and I project these changes would bring in $155.5 million annually. That’s the equivalent of 20,000 middle-class Californians’ annual income taxes. And it would beat inflation by moving beyond the 3.8% PMIA average. 80% remains in cash and U.S. Treasuries to maintain liquidity in the event of a recession.

The treasurer’s office is responsible for financing a wide range of projects, from schools to transportation and environmental projects. What area do you see as needing more fiscal oversight, and how would you work to ensure the state’s money is being utilized transparently? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

It’s a pillar of my campaign to be a watchdog over where the money earmarked for schools, transportation and infrastructure is actually going. The state has spent $24 billion on homelessness since 2018, yet the crisis has only gotten worse. $92 million was spent on a wildlife crossing bridge with nothing functional to show for it. The high-speed railway Californians approved almost $10 billion in bonds to build has turned into a $128 billion project, and not a single track has been laid.

Where is the money going? Why do the costs keep going up? Taxpayers deserve answers. I believe in checkbook transparency. As treasurer, I will create a real-time, public-facing dashboard showing exactly where every bond dollar is spent to prevent misappropriation and keep disbursements honest. I will work with other state officials to conduct independent audits of all state authorities that issue debt, with a focus on the Housing Finance Agency, the Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority and the California Transportation Commission, where we seem to keep spending untold amounts of money with meager returns.

Much has been said about how California has spent oodles of money in an attempt to address homelessness and housing. How could the treasurer’s office help lower borrowing costs for affordable housing projects? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

Lowering borrowing costs, for any public project, starts with improving the state’s credit rating. For every $1 billion borrowed, a 0.5% decrease in the interest rate saves taxpayers $5 million per year. Higher ratings free up money for core infrastructure instead of debt service.

Currently, California is rated AA- from Fitch and S&P. That’s one of the lowest in the country. As treasurer, I will target an AA rating or higher, which will reduce the interest rate the state pays when borrowing for public projects. Rating agencies like Moody’s give upgrades when you can show transparency and a roadmap for managing the debt load.

I will mandate an annual debt affordability study comparing California’s debt load to peer states and set a strict borrowing limit. I will support structural budgeting: pushing for on-time, balanced budgets and reforms that pay down past borrowing. I will address pension liabilities by pushing for sustainable funding models for CalPERS and CalSTRS, which is a key credit risk factor for rating agencies. I will enforce a debt service ratio ceiling, keeping the General Fund debt service below 5% of revenues. And every year, I will publish a fiscal stress test, modeling how the state’s debt would perform in the event of a recession. With transparency and solid budgeting plans, I am confident we can improve the state’s credit rating and get lower interest rates, in turn lowering borrowing costs for public projects and making life better for Californians.

In what other ways do you see the treasurer’s office playing a role in financing affordable housing — but not at the detriment of other important projects? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

Unfortunately, almost a third of Californians live at or near the poverty level, and our state’s homeless population is the largest in the nation, with the highest rates of unsheltered homelessness. The obvious and best way to create more housing for renters and low-income homebuyers is to cut red tape and incentivize construction while reducing the wasteful spending and consultant payouts that drive costs up. I will only approve projects that come with strict, measurable performance metrics: built on time and in budget, with long-term affordability verified for the full 55-year compliance period.

The treasurer also chairs the Tax Credit Allocation Committee, which grants hundreds of millions in low-income housing tax credits annually. I will demand measurable results before awarding any credits, and I will push to reform the Qualified Allocation Plan so projects that demonstrate the fastest path to shovels in the ground are rewarded.

What would be your approach to managing California’s debt? And what goes into your thinking when weighing whether the state should raise revenue or borrow money? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

My approach to managing California’s debt is simple: reduction. Right now, the state is in bond debt to the tune of $99 billion. We’re projected to have a deficit of $18 billion this year. Simply put, Sacramento has maxed out California’s credit card.

I will use the treasurer’s platform as a megaphone to speak out against legislation that adds long-term debt without a clear repayment plan. Further, bonds should be issued only for true infrastructure, like roads, water and public safety. As for raising revenue and borrowing money, taxpayers should come first. Our state has one of the highest tax burdens in the country, and we should not be treating tax hikes or borrowing as the default solution to our problems. Before asking hardworking Californians to fork over more in taxes or saddling our children with more debt, we need to exhaust all other options: spending restraint and maximizing efficiency. Put PMIA to work. Borrow for bricks-and-mortar only. Demand full transparency for revenue increases, which should only be used as a last resort.

What in your background gives you the experience necessary for this position? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

I am not a career politician; I’m a retired businesswoman and mother. I know what it means to balance a budget for both a company and a household. I built my career on managing complex budgets and teams with care and precision.

Career politicians treat our state’s funds like a blank check because they’ve never worked in the private sector, where you have to balance the books, meet payroll, ensure there’s a return on every dollar spent and hold vendors to account. As a businesswoman, I know how to cut unnecessary costs and deliver results. I will bring the discipline, transparency and tough love that I learned from years as a business owner to Sacramento.

How do you think taxpayers could better understand the work of this office? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

Many Californians have no idea what the state treasurer actually does, except when a new bond measure appears on the ballot. But taxpayers do know how a bank works: You can’t be approved for a loan unless your credit is good and you can afford the repayment plan. They also know how investing works: You put a reasonable amount into accounts and portfolios that are going to bring in the best return possible, so your hard-earned money works for you.

In plain English, the treasurer is the state’s banker and chief investment officer. So the common-sense thinking of what good bankers do and what good investors do should be the same thinking Californians apply to the treasurer’s job. But then that means the treasurer actually has to abide by those common-sense principles: Don’t spend money you don’t have, and invest your funds wisely. When you put it that way, taxpayers have an easier time understanding where their money is going and better understand how they can hold the office accountable.

What’s a hidden talent you have? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)

The ability to persevere, to keep going despite the punches. I’ve experienced a lifetime of fulfilling highs and extraordinarily difficult lows; there were points in my life where, as a single mother raising a child, I went to bed hungry and relied on powdered milk to get by. But I was able to make it through those difficult times through hard work and unrelenting grit, and can happily say those days are behind me.

The reality is that, nowadays, a can-do attitude and unrelenting work ethic aren’t enough to live comfortably, much less to achieve the same American dream our parents did. Many Californians have worked for decades to put hard times behind them, but to no avail. As someone who lived through the hard times and sees the value in hard work and perseverance, I want to restore fiscal sanity for those Californians — so they can live happier, healthier, more prosperous lives.

Orange County Register

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Jennifer Hawks, California treasurer candidate, 2026 primary election questionnaire

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