The Price may not be right

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

Mar 04, 2024 View in browser   By Jeremy B. White LET’S TALK ABOUT DRUGS — Join POLITICO at the Elks Tower in Sacramento on March 19 for a conversation with Sen. Scott Wiener and other health care players to explore the challenges of prescription drug affordability. How might officials find savings in the drug supply chain ecosystem? Doors open at 8:30 a.m. RSVP here for “Corrective Action: How to Address Prescription Drug Cost." Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price. | Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle via AP EARLY DISMISSAL: The numbers do not look good for embattled Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price. Public safety concerns could cost Price her job before she gets halfway through her first term. Crime surged by double digits last year in Oakland, the county’s urban hub, prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta to dispatch reinforcements in the form of California Highway Patrol officers and state prosecutors (violent crime was up year-over-year at the end of February, though homicide and assault declined). Those dynamics would put Price in serious peril if she has to face a recall vote — and that outcome looks likely. Pro-recall Price foes need about 73,000 valid signatures to trigger an election. They submitted around 123,000 today, which means they need about 60 percent to be valid. That’s an eminently clearable bar: The validity rate in the successful push to recall ex-San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin was around 79 percent. A failed effort to recall Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón achieved about 72 percent. Recall efforts began percolating almost as soon as Price defeated the establishment pick in 2022 and set about remaking the DA’s office, pledging to lighten sentencing and prosecute wayward cops. Her opponents raised more than $1 million to oust her last year, including substantial sums from real estate and finance players like Farallon Capital’s Philip Dreyfuss, who kicked in $390,000. Former D.A. Nancy O’Malley also contributed. The pro-Price campaign assailed the recall drive, saying in a statement that the “undemocratic effort threatens to undo the strides we've made in Alameda County toward a more just and equitable criminal justice system.” The county registrar now has 10 days to vet the signatures. IT’S  MONDAY AFTERNOON. This is California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check on California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to dgardiner@politico.com or send a shout on X. DMs are open. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY Gov. Gavin Newsom campaigns for Proposition 1, his mental-health reform ballot measure, during a stop at SEIU 2015's union hall in downtown San Francisco on Monday. | Dustin Gardiner/POLITICO DOWN TO THE WIRE: Newsom made his final campaign push for Proposition 1 in San Francisco today, stopping at a union hall to urge voters to approve the ballot measure to fund a $6.4 billion expansion of the state’s mental-health treatment system. There has been no significant, organized opposition to Prop 1. But the measure's fate could be surprisingly close — with just over 50 percent of likely voters supporting the proposal, according to one poll released last week. Newsom’s camp isn’t taking anything for granted, especially in a primary election where unusually low turnout could lead to surprises. He spent the weekend crisscrossing the state to stump for Prop 1, with campaign stops in Palm Springs, San Diego and Los Angeles and a flurry of media appearances. The Democratic governor’s voice was hoarse as he spoke to health care union workers and reporters on Monday, imploring them to vote and keep working to boost turnout. “I’ve been all over. I lost my voice today, it’s back today,” Newsom said. “Voter turnout tends to be a little stubborn (in March elections). It’s unsurprising because the top of the ticket, the presidential, isn’t driving and it’s a forgone conclusion on both sides. So, we’ve got to make up for that with a lot more energy.” Newsom, perhaps seeking to appeal to skeptical independents and Republicans, noted that Prop 1 has bipartisan support in the Legislature and includes strict accountability and reporting requirements. — Dustin Gardiner ON THE BEATS Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, a Democrat, said Monday's Supreme Court decision did not surprise her. Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom shares that sentiment. | Francis Chung/POLITICO MEH ON SCOTUS RULING: The governor brushed off a question on the biggest news of the day, the Supreme Court’s ruling that states cannot remove former President Donald Trump from the ballot. “Unsurprising. If it surprised anyone, I'm surprised,” Newsom said of the ruling, before quickly moving onto another question. Ironically, Newsom spoke as he stood next to Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, who unsuccessfully urged the state to remove Trump from tomorrow’s primary ballot, citing the argument that he violated the Constitution's “insurrection clause” when his supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, as he tried to overturn the results of the last presidential election. Kounalakis didn’t touch the question, and her office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. — Dustin Gardiner California Assemblymember Chris Holden and fast-food workers celebrated the passage of Assembly Bill 1228, on Sept. 28, 2023 in Los Angeles. | AP FRANCHISE PLAYERS: A Capitol veteran will oversee a new fast food industry oversight board. Newsom has tapped Nick Hardeman, chief of staff to former Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, to serve as president of the nascent Fast Food Council. Other appointees include fast food workers and executives. The council has less authority than originally envisioned, thanks to a deal that sidelined an industry referendum. The compromise pared back its power to set regulations on top-of-labor’s-agenda goals like predictive scheduling and leave. But workers will still get a raise — unless their employers bake bread onsite. — Jeremy B. White DOWN ON THE FARM: Animal rights groups have submitted signatures to qualify a ballot measure in Sonoma County that has alarmed farmers there and around the state. The Coalition to End Factory Farms says it turned in 37,000 signatures today for an initiative that would ban so-called concentrated animal feeding operations. They need 19,746 to qualify for the November ballot. Backers of the initiative have estimated that 50 to 60 agricultural operations in Sonoma County would be forced to shut down or to overhaul operations as a result of an initiative. The local Farm Bureau warns the measure will have severe consequences for Sonoma and potentially elsewhere if other counties pursue similar efforts. — Ben Fox BUDGET BUMP: California lawmakers got a rare shred of positive news on the state budget this morning amid a streak of lower-than-expected revenues. The Legislative Analyst’s Office said income tax withholding in February came in $1.2 billion higher than was anticipated in Newsom’s budget plan. That’s good news — but far from good enough to wash away concerns about the state’s budget deficit — which the LAO estimates at $73 billion. Importantly, the slight overperformance was driven by a $600 million Leap Day tax collection, which gave the state an extra day’s worth of cash to count toward February. An apples-to-apples comparison suggests state income ran only 3 percent higher this February than last, according to the LAO. Plus, withholding numbers only reflect one of the state’s revenue sources. The California Department of Finance typically releases official, comprehensive numbers later in the month. — Blake Jones WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY TRUMPING IT ALL: The California Senate race was billed as a generational clash and a fight over ideologies but it really just came down to a contest about the former occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. (POLITICO) BOOM & BUST: California’s almond boom appears to be heading toward a bust, judging by the falling prices and the bankruptcy of a major farming conglomerate. (Los Angeles Times) SIERRA SNOW: The worries about a lack of snow from two months ago can be put to rest as the snowpack now stands at about 104 percent of normal after 6-11 feet fell across the Sierra over the weekend. (San Francisco Chronicle)   Follow us on Twitter 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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