New year, new districts. Here’s a guide.

From: POLITICO California Playbook - Monday Jan 03,2022 02:16 pm

Jan 03, 2022

Presented by California Environmental Justice Alliance

THE BUZZ: Welcome to 2022! We are officially in a campaign year.

California has new House and Legislature maps for the next decade, after the state redistricting commission finally wrapped its work. California Playbook was off for the line-finalizing and the flurry of campaign declarations that followed. We’re here today to get you caught up fast.

The top line: The House landscape looks more favorable to frontline Democrats than to vulnerable Republicans in a year when California contests will help determine control of Congress. The state legislative maps all but lock in a Democratic supermajority. But buckle up for some incumbent-on-incumbent conflict, with several Dem-on-Dem races already looming.

Here’s a regional guide to where we stand now, two months from the candidate filing deadline and five months from the primary:

— ORANGE COUNTY ODYSSEY: Frontline House members will run in different districts: Democratic Rep. Katie Porter in the new coastal 47th, GOP Rep. Michelle Steel in the heavily Asian-American new 45th and GOP Rep. Young Kim in the new 40th. The shuffle means Democratic challenger Jay Chen swaps opponents from Kim to Steel.

Democratic former Rep. Harley Rouda has officially suspended his campaign to return to Congress as of this morning after first blasting Porter for seeking “my coastal district” (where Porter lives). Republican OC supervisor Lisa Bartlett jumped in to take on Democratic Rep. Mike Levin, and former GOP Assemblymember Scott Baugh is challenging Porter. Speaking of state legislators: Democratic state Sens. Dave Min and Josh Newman are drawn in together, although they’re not up for re-election until 2024.

— CENTRAL VALLEY CLASHES: Democratic Rep. Jim Costa will seek the newly blue seat held until a few days ago by Republican Devin Nunes. There was speculation Rep. Josh Harder might seek the Stockton-anchored district 70-year-old Rep. Jerry McNerney represents, but instead Harder is aiming for the newly drawn majority Latino 13th.

The new lines will improve Democratic Assemblymember Rudy Salas’ shot at unseating GOP Rep. David Valadao; Democratic former Assemblymember Nicole Parra ended her challenge to Valadao and is now running for the new SD-16, along with Democratic attorney Rob Fuentes. And Democratic state Sens. Anna Caballero and Melissa Hurtado will be vying for the same 14th Senate district this year.

— BATTLEGROUND LOS ANGELES: This populous blue stronghold will be the site of much intraparty combat. Voters will choose between two Garcias, as Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia and Assemblymember Cristina Garcia seek the House seat that consolidated those of retiring Reps. Alan Lowenthal and Lucille Roybal-Allard (California’s loss of a House seat required a merger).

Assembly members Laura Friedman and Adrin Nazarian are seeking the new 44th Assembly district. Most expensive of all could be a 22nd Senate district clash between business-friendly Sen. Susan Rubio and labor ally Sen. Connie Leyva — dynamics that echo Rubio’s 2018 election, a moderate-vs.-liberal clash that drew over $5 million in outside spending.

— BAY WAY: Redistricting watchers noted San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo’s dogged advocacy for a San Jose-majority seat — a push that contributed to the creation and the swift demise of a sprawling “Ribbon of Shame” that drew national derision . Some observers believed the terming-out Liccardo was trying to create a potential landing spot for himself (which Liccardo denies), but long-serving South Bay Democratic Reps. Zoe Lofgren and Anna Eshoo are running again for the newly birthed 16th and 18th districts, respectively. Democratic Assemblymembers Marc Berman and Evan Low were poised to square off, but after some soft, feathery scuffling, Low decided to move and seek the new AD-26.

BUENOS DÍAS, good Monday morning. We haven’t even gotten into a crowded ballot initiative landscape, a bellwether attorney general race, looming policy fights in the reconvening Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom soon deciding whether to parole Sirhan Sirhan. Don’t worry. The year is young, and there will be plenty of time to cover it all.

Got a tip or story idea for California Playbook? Hit jwhite@politico.com or follow me on Twitter @jeremybwhite.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Just because a map looks complicated doesn’t mean it’s gerrymandered. … We tried to spread the pain and the gain as thoughtfully and as fairly as we could.” Republican redistricting commissioner Russell Yee’s summation.

TWEET OF THE DAY: Emeryville Mayor @JohnBauters on public street fights: “Every time someone tweets about how they hate sharing the road with bicyclists I choose another street parking space to eliminate.”

WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

A message from California Environmental Justice Alliance:

Governor Newsom: Commit to California’s 2022 Clean Energy Resolutions - Let’s ring in the New Year with healthier, more resilient communities and clean, affordable energy for all. Read the full list of Clean Energy Resolutions for 2022 from a dozen environmental justice, equity, clean energy and climate organizations.

TOP TALKERS

— “COVID stole the heart of my family. It also divided it,” by the LA Times’ Brittny Mejia: “This year, I thought hope had come in the form of the vaccine. But I had family members who didn’t trust it, others with excuses for why they didn’t need it. Meanwhile, they kept working essential jobs. Like many whose extended families fell to the virus, their work could not be done from the safety of their homes. So the risk never faded. My grandma was not vaccinated — not of her own will — and I fear it is a decision that will haunt my family and evoke anger for years.”

TOUGH WATCH — “ LAPD Releases Video of Officer’s Fatal Shooting of 14-year-old Girl Inside Burlington Store,” by LAist’s Frank Stoltze.

POLICING THE POLICE — “How Paid Experts Help Exonerate Police After Deaths in Custody,” by NYT’s Jennifer Valentino-DeVries, Mike McIntire, Rebecca R. Ruiz, Julie Tate and Michael H. Keller: “When lawyers were preparing to defend against a lawsuit over a death in police custody in Fresno, Calif., they knew whom to call.”

DARK PAST — “How ‘free state’ California wrote slavery and white supremacy into its law books,” by the SF Chronicle’s Bob Egelko.

— “ Burglars hit at least a dozen Sacramento lobbyists and nonprofits in downtown break-in,” by the Sac Bee’s Lara Korte.

CALIFORNIA AND THE CAPITOL CORRIDOR

COVID QUO — California’s case rate has surged in the two weeks since California Playbook last published, as the Omicron variant has taken hold. On the last day of 2021, the seven-day average test positivity rate had soared to 15.7 percent — nearly triple the rate registered on Christmas Eve. The silver lining is that hospitalizations have not increased at the same rate, suggesting that many positive tests do not lead to serious or deadly illness.

— “ LA Unified tried to mandate vaccines. Then it faced the reality of sending 30,000 students home,” by POLITICO’s Jessica Calefati: Los Angeles school officials defended their eleventh-hour delay as necessary given the absence of a plan for how to reassign teachers, consolidate classes and shift tens of thousands of students to remote instruction at once.

STORMY SUSTENANCE — “ California snowpack jumps to nearly 160% of average, nourishing hopes for drought recovery,” by the SF Chronicle’s Kurtis Alexander: “The rapid change of fortunes for the state, which has seen increasing weather extremes due to climate change, is only a first step toward shaking off a grueling drought that’s entering a third year.”

— “ Map: See How a Parade of Early Winter Storms Improved Drought Conditions in California,” by NBC LA’s Jonathan Lloyd.

FIRE FIGHT — “California continues to face wildfire risks. Insurers think they have an answer,” by POLITICO’s Debra Kahn: It’s pushing for a new model that would account for future climate change risks — an approach that California has been alone in resisting.

NEW YEAR, NEW LAWS — “Bringing home the bacon tops new California laws in 2022,” by the AP’s Don Thompson: “It’s among a host of other legislation designed to safeguard employees, shield those seeking abortions, protect protesters from police, spare children from gender influence in store displays, and further ease criminal penalties to reduce mass incarceration.”

— “What new California laws mean for the workplace in 2022, from warehouses to pay disputes,” by the Sac Bee’s Jeong Park: “A first-in-the-nation law to regulate quotas in warehouses. A ban on nondisclosure agreements in workplace harassment and discrimination lawsuits. An easier pathway to becoming barbers and hairstylists.”

— “What you need to know about California’s new composting law — a game changer for food waste,” by the LA Times’ James Rainey.

GET READY — “Here comes another COVID vaccine debate as California lawmakers brace for more protests,” by the Sac Bee’s Sophia Bollag: “Each time the Legislature takes up a new vaccine bill, vitriol from opponents grows, [Sen. Richard] Pan said. Next year, he expects that trend to continue.”

ICYMI — “ California education official resigns after working from Texas,” by POLITICO’s Susannah Luthi: Pamela Kadakia served as a CDE equity project manager but resides in Texas, based on public records and her LinkedIn profile. Her exit follows the departure of Daniel Lee, a Philadelphia-based psychologist, life coach and long-time acquaintance of California schools chief Tony Thurmond, who was involved in Lee's hiring.

CRIME STATS — “ LAPD warn of crime wave, but data show theft, robberies down,” by NBC’s Dennis Romero: “The numbers tell one story, but recent messaging from the Los Angeles Police Department appears to be telling another.”

TESTING TROUBLES — “Did California get its money’s worth from $1.7 billion COVID test contract?” by the SF Chronicle’s Kristen Hwang and Ana B. Ibarra: “A patient sample that wasn’t processed for more than 30 days. A test used without proper validation of its accuracy. Patient results changed without notification. Safety and disinfection procedures called into question.”

SMOKY SETBACK — “Wildfires Are Hurting California Program to Fight Climate Change,” by the WSJ’s Jim Carlton: “California’s cap-and-trade system, designed to reduce carbon emissions that contribute to climate change, is being undermined by forest fires caused in part by climate change, according to scientists.”

H2O HEADACHE — “Paper records and steel vaults: Can California water rights enter the digital age?” by the LA Times’ Ari Plachta: “In the world’s fifth-largest economy — a state where global warming is contributing to ever longer and more frequent droughts — regulators say reliance on such an antiquated system is troubling. They say the lack of a comprehensive digital system and full information about who owns the right to use water and how much they actually use makes basic water management in the state mystifying at best, and inaccurate at worst.”

— “ In South L.A., the battle to stay ahead of the mental health turnstile never ends,” by the LA Times’ Joe Mozingo: “In South Los Angeles and surrounding areas like Compton, mental disorders mostly go untreated until they have caused irreparable damage.”

NO ONE HOME — “ California struggling to find use for vacant governor’s mansion,” by the SF Chronicle’s Dustin Gardiner.

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BIDEN, HARRIS AND THE HILL

— “One year in, Biden has been slow to unwind Trump immigration policies,” by the SF Chronicle’s Tal Kopan: “Biden has extended Trump’s policy turning away the vast majority of immigrants at the border ostensibly because of COVID. The administration has also, under court order, reinstated and expanded a policy forcing migrants to wait in Mexico for court hearings, despite Biden running against the policy in his campaign. And his Justice Department is defending some of Trump’s policies in court against challenges from immigrant advocates.”

LEGAL CORNER — “ Devin Nunes said he will leave Congress. Why is he still trying to sue a Twitter cow?” by McClatchy’s Gillian Brassil.

— “Bay Area man who sent menacing email to McConnell can be criminally charged, appeals court rules,” by the SF Chronicle’s Bob Egelko.

CAMPAIGN MODE

COMMUNITIES THAT COUNT — “California’s political redistricting was all about defining a ‘community,’” by the LA Times’ John Myers: “On the new political maps, the number of counties split into different Assembly, Senate and congressional districts will more than double from the maps drawn a decade ago. There will be a sizable uptick in the splitting of cities, too, in favor of what the commission judged to be important communities. … Twenty-two of the state’s new 80 state Assembly districts will now have a Latino citizen voting-age population greater than 50%. So, too, will 11 of the 40 state Senate districts and 16 of the state’s 52 districts in the House of Representatives.”

A message from California Environmental Justice Alliance:

SILICON VALLEYLAND

BOOTED — “Twitter Permanently Suspends Marjorie Taylor Greene’s Account,” by NYT’s Davey Alba: “Twitter suspended Ms. Greene’s account after she tweeted on Saturday, falsely, about ‘extremely high amounts of Covid vaccine deaths.She included a misleading chart that pulled information from a government database of unverified raw data called the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, or VAERS, a decades-old system that relies on self-reported cases from patients and health care providers.”

OOPS — “Tesla recalls nearly half a million Model 3 and Model S cars, ” via The Verge’s Russell Brandom:

— “The Metaverse’s Dark Side: Here Come Harassment and Assaults,” by the NYTimes’ Sheera Frenkel and Kellen Browning: “Bad behavior in the metaverse can be more severe than today’s online harassment and bullying. That’s because virtual reality plunges people into an all-encompassing digital environment where unwanted touches in the digital world can be made to feel real and the sensory experience is heightened.”

— “Zuckerberg Buys More Hawaii Land, Including Deadly Dam Site,” via the AP.

HOLLYWOODLAND

— “Business manager to Kardashians found dead; boyfriend charged with murder, torture,” by the LA Times’ Lila Seidman: “The boyfriend of a celebrity business manager found dead in her car last week has been charged in connection with the woman’s torture death, authorities said Wednesday.”

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CANNABIS COUNTRY

— “California’s weed market should be flourishing. But bureaucracy is blunting it,” by POLITICO’s Alexander Nieves: Complicated local rules, understaffed city departments and slow communication with state regulators have made starting a weed business in California a protracted and risky ordeal. Red tape and paralyzing legal battles are stunting the market’s growth, leaving aspiring entrepreneurs in cities such as Los Angeles, Pasadena and Fresno waiting months or even years for permission to open, often while leasing empty storefronts.

LA TIMES EDITORIAL — “ Californians overwhelmingly supported legalizing marijuana. Why is it still a mess?”

MIXTAPE

— “Mater Dei president Walter Jenkins resigns,” by the OC Register’s Scott M. Reid.

— “ Merced man arrested on way to White House with rifle, ‘hit list’ compiled from TikTok,” by the LA Times’ Nathan Solis.

— “Satu, beloved orangutan at San Diego Zoo, dies at 26,” via the San Diego Union Tribune.

— “ From a Burger King to a Concert Hall, With Help From Frank Gehry,” by NYT’s Adam Nagourney.

— “These are the Bay Area ZIP codes with the fastest and slowest home value growth in 2021,” by the SF Chronicle’s Kellie Hwang.

— “ Massive sewage spill closes California beaches,” via Reuters.

IN MEMORIAM

— "Hollywood mourns the death of Betty White, ‘a spirit of goodness and hope’," by the LA Times' Yvonne Villareal.

— “ Ex-Raiders coach John Madden, NFL Hall of Famer and broadcasting legend, dies at 85,” by the SF Chronicle’s Matt Kawahara.

— “Wayne Thiebaud, Sacramento’s celebrated artist of the everyday, dies at 101,” by the Sac Bee’s Vincent Moleski and Darrell Smith.

— “Joan Didion, masterful essayist, novelist and screenwriter, dies at 87,” by the LA Times’ Elaine Woo.

BIRTHDAYS

Rep. Katie Porter … Noam Levey ... Jenna Golden … Alexander Linz

A message from California Environmental Justice Alliance:

As we enter 2022, California is at a crossroads.

Our communities are reeling from COVID-19, and the climate crisis continues to shape our lives in new and frightening ways. High fossil fuel prices are adding to this pressure for many families, while air quality remains dangerous to breathe in many communities. Urgent action is needed.

Fortunately, creating healthier, more resilient communities and building an economy rooted in prosperity for all are inextricably linked by clean, affordable energy that is available to everyone.

That’s why a dozen environmental justice, equity, and climate organizations are asking Gov. Newsom to adopt these Clean Energy Resolutions:

Eliminate utility debt
Increase access to affordable, truly clean electricity
Invest in transmission
Install solar + storage on 1 million homes & community buildings
Reject fossil fuels
Retire California’s dirtiest fossil fuel power plants
Invest in increased climate resilience infrastructure

Read the full list here.

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