Behind the scenes of a housing blowup

Your afternoon must-read briefing on politics and government in the Golden State

Sep 21, 2023 View in browser   By Jeremy B. White A person stands on a balcony next to new residential units under construction on Aug. 4, 2022 in Los Angeles, Calif. | Mario Tama/Getty Images HOUSING WHODUNIT: This was a banner year for pro-housing legislation. But larger battles over zoning are still looming if the fiery post-session fallout over one bill is any indication. The legislation from Sen. Anna Caballero would have allowed expedited approval of multiple units on a single parcel, including those zoned for single-family homes. It’s a divisive subject – as YIMBY’s blame exclusionary zoning for California’s housing crunch. But Caballero’s bill was scaled back to such an extent that one of its champions took the unusual position of urging Gov. Gavin Newsom to veto it — with some pointed warnings about racial implications. How it got to this point is a messy story. The bill was sailing through the Legislature, evading the scrutiny and skirmishes that greeted other housing measures. Then it was amended to exempt parcels zoned for single-family homes. If that sounds like a modest change, you must not be a YIMBY. California Community Builders CEO Adam Briones blasted the change for concentrating development in lower-income communities of color that “matter less to those in power than wealthy, white neighborhoods.” California YIMBY made a similar argument and pressed Assembly leadership to back a 2024 follow-up extending the benefits of single-family neighborhoods to communities of color. People have been looking to assign blame. Caballero’s office felt blindsided by the amendments and struggled to understand their origins. Frustrated advocates faulted the Assembly Housing Committee – a surprising charge given that its chair, Assembly member Buffy Wicks, is a YIMBY paragon. Housing committee staff did indeed flag that Caballero’s under-the-radar bill was more sweeping than people may have realized. Amendments snipping out single-family parcels followed. And that trimming reflected some political realities. The biggest housing bill of 2023 – SB 423, which extends a vital streamlining law – surmounted strenuous opposition to get to Newsom’s desk. An unwelcome zoning battle could have distracted from that effort. As Wicks helped guide SB 423 through the Assembly, “there was some sensitivity to making sure that didn’t blow up,” according to a source familiar with the Caballero bill’s journey. It didn’t blow up. Newsom is likely to sign SB 423. But as we look to next year, you can expect more disputes about what gets built where. HAPPY THURSDAY 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. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to jwhite@politico.com or send a shout on Twitter. DMs are open! Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Los Angeles) and allies urged Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign Assembly Bill 28, taxing gun and ammunition sales. | Rachel Bluth/POLITICO WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY INSURING ACTION: The Legislature couldn’t craft a compromise on property insurance, so Newsom is urging Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara to find a fix. Climate change has forced a reckoning in California’s insurance markets, with intensifying wildfires driving up costs and leading major insurers to stop extending new coverage to homeowners and businesses. But the politics of finding a solution that maintains coverage without overinflating premiums are exceedingly complex. Now Newsom has issued an executive order directing Lara to swiftly stabilize the market. The governor’s EO has some overarching goals — like expanding coverage options and ensuring the state’s fallback insurance pool stays fiscally stable — but it’s light on specifics, although it asks Lara to consider crafting emergency regulations. The Legislature’s negotiations were shadowed by debate over the extent of Lara’s authority, including questions about whether the commissioner needed the Legislature’s approval to act. By kicking it over to Lara, the governor could further test that question. Lara was expected to detail his plans this afternoon. ON THE BEATS ABORTION TUG-OF-WAR: Attorney General Rob Bonta announced today that the state of California is suing the anti-abortion group Heartbeat International and a chain of five crisis pregnancy centers called RealOptions Obria. Crisis pregnancy centers don’t offer abortions and discourage people from seeking them elsewhere. The state’s suit alleges that both groups violated California’s False Advertising Law and Unfair Competition law by claiming they can reverse medication abortions. “Patients making serious and time-sensitive medical decisions must have transparency. They must have the facts. They must have all the data in front of them so they can make the right decision for their own health based on facts.” Bonta said. “That's not what they're getting from HDI and from RealOptions.” Medication abortion reversal is an experimental protocol with no accepted scientific backing. It attempts to halt a medication abortion with excessive doses of the hormone progesterone. The American Medical Association and American College of Gynecology and Obstetrics both refuse to endorse it. –Rachel Bluth  ACTING LEGIT: Julie Su may technically be acting labor secretary, but she can stay in that role indefinitely. That’s what the Government Accountability concluded today in a finding that undercuts Republican complaints about Su staying on without a Senate confirmation vote.The ruling will also fortify her labor regulations against legal challenges. Su decamped for the Biden administration after serving as California’s top labor regulator, but persistent concerns about her record prevented her from securing Senate approval. She’s still been able to expand overtime eligibility and could act on worker classification — a defining issue from her California tenure. WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY TALK IT OUT: Hollywood executives and Writers Guild of America representatives convened again today as they sought to end a monthslong strike over industry working conditions. Topics included residuals, staffing levels, and artificial intelligence. (Variety) COOL SUMMER: The summer of 2023 was the coolest in California since 2011 even as the Northern Hemisphere experienced the highest temperatures on record. That’s because of unusually cloudy weather in Southern California. Unfortunately, California’s cool summer was still hot – No. 34 over the past 129 years. (The New York Times)   Follow us on Twitter 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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