California lawmakers pass ‘YIGBY’ bill to let churches build affordable housing
The Chronicle, SARAH RAVANI: "A state bill that could allow churches to build affordable housing on their parking lots and excess lands passed the California Legislature on Monday and heads to the governor’s desk.
If Gov. Gavin Newsom signs SB4 — introduced by State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco — into law, it would allow for thousands of urban lots to potentially be used for housing construction."
ADUs could be sold separately from homes under bill passed by California Legislature
The Chronicle, SARAH RAVANI: "Two state bills that could boost construction of ADUs, or accessory dwelling units, moved to the governor’s desk Monday.
AB1033, by Assembly Member Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, allows cities to decide whether property owners can sell ADUs separately, as condos, from the primary home."
Lawmakers send Gavin Newsom major housing bill that targets San Francisco for extra scrutiny
The Chronicle, SOPHIA BOLLAG: "California lawmakers on Monday voted to extend a 2017 law that requires cities behind on their state housing goals to streamline approval of some projects, sending the measure to Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Developers in San Francisco have used the law to speed up thousands of housing units since it took effect at the start of 2018. The law, which was written by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, is set to expire at the end of 2025. The measure lawmakers passed Monday, SB423, would extend them until 2036 with some modifications, including expanding the areas where the law applies to include parts of the coast that are already zoned for housing and wouldn’t be affected by sea-level rise."
Which bills will Gavin Newsom sign into new California laws?
CALMatters, STAFF: "It’s California’s most diverse Legislature ever, and one-fourth of lawmakers are new. But some things never change: Legislators wait until the last days of the session to pass a lot of bills.
In recent days, they have sent Gov. Gavin Newsom some significant legislation — to tax guns and ammunition, ban caste discrimination and decriminalize some psychedelic drugs. And before they finish nearly seven months of lawmaking late Thursday (or early Friday), legislators will approve many more bills. Of the more than 2,600 introduced, the most in a decade, nearly 220 had been sent to the governor as of Friday. Newsom has already signed some and vetoed a few others."
Two new books on the legislative process from Chris Micheli (PODCAST)
Capitol Weekly, STAFF: "This episode we welcome friend of the podcast Chris Micheli to talk about his two new books about the legislative process: Handbook on California’s Legislative Process and Handbook on Legislative Drafting in California.
Micheli will be a familiar name to Capitol Weekly readers; his Micheli Files column, in which he explains – in plain language – nuances of the California legislative process, is a popular feature. The State of California does not make it easy to find much of this information, so Micheli has become a go-to informal adviser to legislative staff, lobbyists and journalists. He explains the purpose of the new books, gives real-world examples of the types of info contained, and talks about who ‘gets’ the process (and who doesn’t)."
The Capitol Weekly interview: Sen. Susan Eggman’s long battle for mental health reform
Capitol Weekly, SIGRID BATHEN: "Widely regarded as the most knowledgeable and effective state legislator on mental health issues in the Legislature, Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton) is credited with major, bipartisan legislative accomplishments over nearly 12 years, first in the Assembly, now in the Senate, where she chairs the Senate Health Committee.
Despite bipartisan and often unanimous support, there has also been intense opposition, mainly from disability rights groups opposed to any kind of “involuntary” treatment and counties concerned about funding and deadlines. Two major Eggman bills are currently before the Legislature, in the final days of the legislative session, reportedly well on their way to passage and the governor’s desk, after facing procedural hurdles and last-minute amendments."
Black activists say Newsom’s new plan to replace Feinstein if she steps down is ‘insulting’
The Chronicle, SHIRA STEIN, JOE GAROFOLI: "Gov. Gavin Newsom has long said he would appoint a Black woman to the U.S. Senate if Sen. Dianne Feinstein leaves before the end of her term, but on Sunday he confirmed a caveat: he would do so as an “interim appointment,” Newsom told Meet the Press Sunday. “We hope we never have to make this decision. But I abide by what I’ve said very publicly on a consistent basis,” he said.
Leading Black political activists — as well as the only Black woman candidate in the race to replace Feinstein — say that arrangement is not true to Newsom’s original promise."
READ ALSO -- Rep. Barbara Lee: Gov. Newsom ‘insulting to countless Black women’ on potential Senate appointment -- BANG*Mercury News, JOHN WOOLFOLK; Newsom faces backlash after saying he would appoint a Black woman as interim senator -- Sacramento Bee, DAVID LIGHTMAN
Dispute over Dianne Feinstein’s family fortune aired further as attorneys spar in court
LA Times, KEVIN RECTOR: "Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s family squabble over the extreme wealth left behind by her late husband, Richard Blum, was on full display in a San Francisco courtroom for the first time Monday, before a judge ordered private mediation that will drag the case into next year.
As was already clear from multiple court petitions filed in recent months, the dispute is over millions of dollars in assets and several valuable properties, including a multimillion-dollar beach house north of San Francisco and a mansion in the city worth more than $20 million. Blum died in February 2022."
Stinson Beach home at center of Dianne Feinstein property feud listed as ‘coming soon’ for $8.5M
The Chronicle, KATHLEEN PENDER: "The Stinson Beach house that is a big part of the escalating legal feud between Sen. Dianne Feinstein, her daughter and the daughters of her late husband Richard Blum has been entered into the multiple listing service for North Bay counties as “coming soon” to the real estate market for almost $8.5 million.
It also appeared, as of Monday, on the website of the Sherfey Group, which is part of Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty in Stinson Beach."
Oil lobby pressure dooms state bill aimed at curbing refinery pollution
BANG*Mercury News, WILL MCCARTHY: "A bill that would have tripled the fines paid by oil refineries for emitting toxic pollutants, like those released last year in Martinez, has stalled in the California Legislature.
The bill would have served as a way to hold companies accountable for incidents such as the one last November in which residents woke up to a layer of fine white dust on their gardens and cars from a toxic chemical release by the Martinez Refining Co. Instead, the bill, AB 1465, was unceremoniously pushed to 2024 after Democratic Sen. Nancy Skinner sent it to the “inactive file” last Thursday. Skinner’s senate district includes cities in Alameda County and Contra Costa County along the 880 corridor, but not Martinez."
FDA gives approval to updated COVID booster shots
AP, JACQUELINE HOWARD: "The US Food and Drug Administration on Monday gave the green light to updated Covid-19 vaccine booster shots from Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech. The updated vaccines are each approved for people 12 and older and are authorized under emergency use for individuals 6 months through 11 years old. As part of the FDA’s update, the original bivalent Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccines are no longer authorized for use in the United States.
“Vaccination remains critical to public health and continued protection against serious consequences of COVID-19, including hospitalization and death,” Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a news release Monday. “The public can be assured that these updated vaccines have met the agency’s rigorous scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality. We very much encourage those who are eligible to consider getting vaccinated.”"
Why UCSF’s Bob Wachter says COVID subvariant BA.2.86 is the ‘scariant of the moment’
The Chronicle, AIDIN VAZIRI: "Dr. Bob Wachter, UCSF’s chief of medicine, hosted his first COVID roundtable discussion since June late last week, aiming to assess the current pandemic trajectory amid a summer wave of infections and hospitalizations in the Bay Area.
For the introductory Grand Rounds of the new academic year, he brought together three well-known UCSF infectious disease experts with “different but mutually respectful perspectives” — Dr. Monica Gandhi, Dr. George Rutherford and Dr. Peter Chin-Hong."
Lawmakers, Newsom and UC agree on new community college transfer plan, legislative leader says
EdSource, MICHAEL BURKE: "In an attempt to make it easier for students seeking to transfer to the University of California, the Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom are in agreement on the framework for a new pilot transfer program between the community college system and UC, a top lawmaker told EdSource on Monday.
“This is monumental,” Assemblymember Kevin McCarty, D-Sacramento, said in an interview Monday. “This is the biggest transfer bill in over a decade and the first time we’re able to get pretty darn close to having a universal transfer process for all community college students.”"
$750,000 in overtime: How a group of LAUSD employees abused extra-pay practices
LA Times, HOWARD BLUME: "A small group of Los Angeles Unified School District employees collected more than $750,000 combined in extra pay over three years, much of it improperly approved, prompting investigations and leading to the demotions, reassignments or departures of at least 10 employees, including four senior administrators, court documents and district records show.
Employees from the Westside region — including one top regional administrator and another who later served on then-Supt. Austin Beutner’s cabinet — became the focus of an internal investigation. Five people collected extra pay that totaled from $78,000 to $149,000 over a three-year span beginning in 2017. In one year alone, a mid-level administrator, whose regular salary was $127,509, received $55,569 in extra pay."
Cal State trustees decide this week on 6% tuition rate hike but with a sunset provision
EdSource, ASHLEY A. SMITH: "California State University Board of Trustees will decide this week on whether students will see a 6% tuition rate increase over the next five years.
But ahead of their Wednesday vote, the nation’s largest public university system has already tweaked the proposal: any tuition rate increase will sunset after five years and be reevaluated for the 2029-30 academic year."
California pushing back on school book bans
CALMatters, CAROLYN JONES: "While some states have been banning books by the hundreds, California appears headed in the opposite direction — enacting a law that would penalize local school boards that block any book reflecting the state’s diversity.
Gov. Gavin Newsom is poised to sign Assembly Bill 1078, which is intended to prevent school boards from banning books based solely on the books’ inclusion of history or culture related to Black, Latino, Asian, Native American, LGBTQ people or other groups. It expands the state’s existing education code requiring schools to include the experiences of racial, ethnic and LGBTQ groups in curriculum."
California lawmakers vote to give striking workers unemployment benefits despite low funds
Sacramento Bee, MAYA MILLER: "Striking workers in California are one step closer to receiving state-funded financial help after a key vote Monday afternoon.
The California Assembly voted 53-14 to give employees on strike access to state unemployment insurance benefits. The measure still needs the approval of the Senate labor committee, and then it must pass the Senate floor on a concurrence vote before it goes to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk."
Labor, business reach deal to raise fast-food wages and end California ballot fight
LA Times, TARYN LUNA: "Fast-food companies agreed over the weekend to pull a California referendum off next year’s ballot that sought to reverse a landmark worker protection law, forgoing a costly political fight with labor unions over employee pay.
The deal between labor and fast-food companies will result in an increase in the minimum wage for fast-food workers to $20 an hour in April and form a new council of representatives for workers and companies to consider pay bumps in the future, according to sources involved in the negotiations."
California fast-food workers will get $20 minimum wage under new deal
The Chronicle, BOB EGELKO: "Hundreds of thousands of fast-food workers in California would have their wages increased to $20 an hour while a state commission considers improvements in their working conditions under an agreement announced Monday with restaurant owners, who are withdrawing a ballot referendum that would have blocked further-reaching changes.
Labor unions and the restaurant industry negotiated the compromise with assistance from Gov. Gavin Newsom, who last year signed a bill that would have raised the workers’ wages to $22 an hour this year and established a commission with the authority to order better workplace conditions and further wage increases. The restaurant industry quickly collected enough signatures for a referendum that blocked the bill until November 2024, when voters would have decided whether it should take effect."
READ ALSO -- Last-minute deal: Wage hike for fast food workers, no ballot measure in 2024 -- CALMatters, JEANNE KUANG/ALEXEI KOSEFF
Disney and Charter end blackout, returning ESPN and ABC to Spectrum TV
LA Times, MEG JAMES: "Following a more-than-10-day ESPN and ABC station blackout that infuriated customers and threatened to accelerate the demise of the cable bundle, Walt Disney Co. and cable giant Charter Communications reached a truce that restored Disney channels to the Spectrum pay-TV service.
The companies announced a new agreement Monday that requires Charter to pay higher fees to distribute Disney programming. The cable company gained the ability to provide Disney’s ad-supported streaming apps — including Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ — along with Spectrum’s television service. Charter eventually will be able to offer the ESPN channel as a streaming add-on when Disney takes that service directly to consumers."
Soon, you won’t need a Clipper card to ride BART or Muni. Here’s how it will work
The Chronicle, RICARDO CANO: "Starting next year, Bay Area transit riders won’t need a Clipper card to ride a train or ferry, and instead will be able to pass BART turnstiles or board Muni buses with the simple tap of a credit card.
The new contactless debit or credit card payment option launching in summer 2024 realizes a perk for the region’s riders that’s already enjoyed by New York and London riders. It’s among several new functions that will be included with an upgraded Clipper system most regional transit agencies use to charge fares."