POLITICO California Playbook PM: Sacramento revisits a privacy debate

Presented by Greenpeace: Your afternoon must-read briefing on politics and government in the Golden State

May 09, 2022 View in browser   By Susannah Luthi Presented by Greenpeace LABOR'S LOVE LOST: We're watching an under-the-radar drama that could have huge repercussions in workplaces across California. It revolves around the right to privacy Californians can expect when they're working. On a basic level, lawmakers will have to answer questions that are now commonplace in an age of almost constant surveillance. For example: Can a trucking company track its drivers when they're off the clock?  Do bosses have to tell their remote, Zooming employees if or when they are screening their emails or Slack messages? Recording their phone calls? Taking video recordings via work-owned laptops? And then there are the complicated logistical matters. If companies can't collect or store their workers' data, does that interfere with other functions, like cybersecurity shields on their computer networks?  In making sure they're not storing personal data that their employees don't want them to, do companies have to read workers' personal emails so they know what to delete? The deadline for a fix could be tight, depending on how lawmakers decide to pass their bill. Legislators carved the worker-privacy rules out of the state's consumer privacy law that took effect in 2020, but only temporarily: those exemptions expire at the end of the year. Labor groups have made it clear they're not OK with another punt. Three lawmakers are rushing to cobble together a compromise: State Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), who helped steer the state's landmark privacy law, the California Consumer Privacy Act; Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino), who chairs the Assembly's privacy panel; and Assemblymember Ash Kalra (D-San Jose), a key labor ally. Kalra had to ax his own labor-backed proposal last month after panic from businesses and legislators alike. The worry was that in trying to beef up privacy measures for workers, the 33-page proposal would have unleashed even more surveillance on employees and contractors, while making it tough for businesses to comply. For example, the California Chamber of Commerce argued the way Kalra's bill was written could have required businesses to check their workers' email accounts for personal messages — and then delete any they found. The Hertzberg-Gabriel-Kalra trio has less than a month to reach a deal if they want to pass it in through policy committees before summer recess. With some of Sacramento's most powerful and feisty lobbying powers involved, what could go wrong? HAPPY MONDAY AFTERNOON! Welcome to California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check of California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. We'll go Monday to Thursday through June 9 before returning in August for the legislative homestretch. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to katymurphy@politico.com and sluthi@politico.com or send a shout on Twitter. DMs are open! A message from Greenpeace: Oil Companies are clamoring for new drilling permits, claiming they will relieve California's pain at the pump. In reality, Big Oil executives won't use these permits to reduce gas prices at all. They want to entice investors, maximize profits, and keep us locked into a perilous fossil-fueled future. New drilling won't magically lower the cost of fuel, but it will threaten our children's health, fuel wildfires, and jeopardize our future. Get the facts.   WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY California energy regulators are reopening public input on a wildly unpopular proposal to cut rooftop solar benefits and impose a monthly grid charge. The California Public Utilities Commission had originally planned a January vote on the draft decision, but postponed it following public outcry and criticisms from key lawmakers in the state's congressional delegation — not to mention from former GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and current Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom. Now, the CPUC wants Californians to weigh in on parts of its plan, with a June 10 deadline for feedback.   A message from Greenpeace:   ON THE BEATS ABORTION ACCESS: A bill to create a state-administered fund that would help people, including those from outside of California, cover the costs of getting an abortion here was referred today to the state Senate Appropriation Committee's "suspense file," where its fate will be determined May 19. The brief hearing did draw some abortion opponents, but the committee's chair, state Sen. Anthony Portantino (D–La Cañada Flintridge), countered with his support, describing himself as the father of two daughters. Advocates and the Legislative Women's Caucus are seeking $20 million to launch the fund. Senate Bill 1142, by state Sens. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) and Anna Caballero (D-Salinas), would also create an online portal to provide information about where and how to seek abortion services in California. MICRA ANALYSIS: Ananalysis released today by UCLA researchers suggests that California's longtime cap on pain-and-suffering awards in malpractice cases could actually have contributed to an increase in malpractice cases over the past 50 years — potentially by weakening the deterrent effect of being sued. UCLA researchers reviewed state Medi-Cal data on potential malpractice cases from huge screw-ups like mismatched blood-type infusions or objects left inside patients. The researchers found more of these preventable mistakes — about 16 percent more — in states where such caps exist. Since California spent $1.5 billion on these kinds of medical mess-ups in 2018, the researchers suggested a 16 percent reduction could translate into a $245 million savings. The research comes as California gears up to adjust its 1970s cap of $250,000 to catch up with inflation. A message from Greenpeace: Right now, fossil fuel CEOs are lining their pockets with profits from the war in Ukraine and soaring gas prices. Chevron's US operations alone could net as much as $7.3 billion in record-setting profits this year. At the same time, Oil Companies are clamoring for new drilling permits, claiming they will relieve California's pain at the pump. The truth is, building new fossil fuel infrastructure would take years to come on line and won't help the current crisis. Big Oil executives don't want these permits to reduce gas prices at all. They want to entice investors, maximize profits, and keep us locked into a perilous fossil-fueled future. New drilling won't magically lower the cost of fuel, but it will threaten our children's health, fuel wildfires, and jeopardize our future. Get the facts.   AROUND CALIFORNIA Compiled by Chris Ramirez "Galvanized by abortion fight, Orange County women could upend congressional races, " by the LA Times' Seema Mehta and Priscella Vega: "While these races are unlikely to determine which party controls Congress, they will help decide the margin, and therefore the degree of power the GOP wields. "Recent elections showed the clout of college-educated suburban women. In 2016, though Trump won the presidential election, these voters helped Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton win the popular vote and prevail in historic red bastions including Orange County, which last voted for a Democrat for president during the Great Depression." "Mayor Breed picks San Francisco police spokesman Matt Dorsey for District 6 supervisor," by the SF Chronicle's J.D. Morris: "Breed saw Dorsey as a strong ally on the board as well as the candidate best positioned to address public drug dealing and other street issues that are common in District Six. But tapping Dorsey is also a risk. He faces what looks to be a competitive November election for the seat and if he loses, it would be the second time in the last few years that a supervisor Breed had appointed failed at the polls. In selecting Dorsey, the mayor passed over Haney's preferred successor, his former chief of staff Honey Mahogany. Haney had urged Breed to appoint Mahogany to the board after he won the special Assembly election last month." MIXTAPE — California's cumulative Covid-19 death toll is the lowest among the top 10 most populous states in the country. On a per capita basis, the state has the 11th lowest death rate. (LA Times) — Late fees associated with traffic and minor violation tickets may be fully repealed, if Gov. Gavin Newsom can come to an agreement with lawmakers and advocates. (CalMatters) — More than three-fourths of Californians agree that a degree from a UC or CSU is valuable, but 45% of respondents in a statewide poll said a degree is not as useful in achieving economic opportunities. (LA Times) — The Sacramento Bee's new columnist wins a Pulitzer Prize for her columns on a former police officer in Kansas accused of rape. (SacBee)   Follow us on Twitter Kevin Yamamura @kyamamura Katy Murphy @katymurphy POLITICO California @politicoca   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Ottawa Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters Follow us

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