All eyes on March

By Jeremy B. White, Juhi Doshi and Chris Ramirez

Presented by Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids

THE BUZZ: If March 11 wasn’t already circled on your calendar, it’s time to bust out a marker.

Students will no longer need to wear masks in schools after next Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday — a long-sought landmark in California’s two-year-long battle against the coronavirus. Newsom rolled out his announcement in concert with Oregon and Washington, ensuring that school kids across the West Coast can soon attend school with their faces uncovered. As of today, the state is not requiring unvaccinated Californians to wear masks inside — although in both cases health officials are still strongly recommending mask use.

Some districts may still mandate masks. The California Teachers Association telegraphed that possibility yesterday, predicting there would be “mixed” reactions as some students “remain very afraid” and urging educational decision-makers to “act cautiously.” State Health and Human Services chief Mark Ghaly predicted some school districts will “continue holding on to the maximum requirements” and said they should “feel empowered to keep masking in place.”

So we could still see district-by-district variation — San Francisco already said they’re not relaxing rules, which may irk some voters who must continue masking their kids while their neighbors needn’t. Meanwhile, Sacramento-area educators walked out and SF parents rallied over mask rules.

Next Friday also happens to be the last day for midterm candidates to file. The parallel developments will draw the contours of this year’s election cycle, introducing the final roster of candidates while removing a formidable source of parental pushback. Even as California voters largely back school masking and vaccination requirements, the persistence of school mask mandates — particularly as other sectors and other states’ schools have dissolved dictates — have remained a driver of discontent.

DEMS IN ARRAY : One thing we won’t see after that March 11 filing deadline is a clash of Democratic incumbents. Assembly member Adrin Nazarian said Monday he’ll bow out of re-election rather than match up with fellow Democratic Assembly Member Laura Friedman in AD-44, defusing the final outstanding D-on-D showdown flowing from redistricting.

Sen. Connie Leyva decided not to run again after she was drawn in with Sen. Susan Rubio, and Sen. Melissa Hurtado has shifted to SD-16 rather than battle Sen. Anna Caballero in SD-14. But Sens. Henry Stern and Bob Hertzberg are still vying for the same LA supervisor seat and Rep. Cristina Garcia is squaring off with Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia for a spot in Congress.

BUENOS DÍAS, good Tuesday morning. The improving coronavirus picture is also bringing change to the Legislature, where Assembly staffers must return to the Capitol today as a temporary work-from-home allowance expires. The Senate will continue with a hybrid model allowing some remote work and capping the number of in-person staff.

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

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “My heart is broken today. My husband was my partner and best friend for more than 40 years. He was by my side for the good times and for the challenges. I am going to miss him terribly. ” Sen. Dianne Feinstein on losing husband Richard Blum to cancer.

TWEET OF THE DAY: SFGate politics editor _@EricTing on localism being determinative: “While Newsom/Ghaly are saying ‘local districts can keep mask mandates’ I'm not sure how tenable that's going to be Officials at already intense board of supervisors/school board meetings often say ‘the state sets this, not us.’ With that cover gone, it's going to get real rowdy”

WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

A message from Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids:

Big Tobacco uses sweet candy flavors to hook kids on their dangerous products. Learn more.

HORROR IN SACRAMENTO —"Father kills 4, including 3 of his children, before shooting himself at Sacramento-area church," by Sac Bee's Rosalio Ahumada: California was rocked Monday night by horrific shootings at a Sacramento County church, where a man killed his three children and another victim before shooting himself dead. The children were all under 15 years old, said Sgt. Rodney Grassmann, a spokesman for the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office.

— Newsom weighed in shortly afterward on Twitter. "Another senseless act of gun violence in America - this time in our backyard," he wrote . "In a church with kids inside. Absolutely devastating."

CALLS TO DIVEST — “California lawmakers push pension funds to divest of Russian assets,” by POLITICO’s Alexander Nieves: A bipartisan group of California lawmakers will try to force the nation’s two largest public pension funds to divest financial holdings connected to Russian assets in the wake of the Ukraine invasion.

— “Chaos in one of California’s largest government unions as VPs lock out Local 1000 president ,” by Sac Bee’s Wes Venteicher: “California’s largest state employee union reached a new level of disarray Monday as three top officers locked the union’s president out of the organization’s Sacramento headquarters.”

THAT’S SUSPICIOUS … “ He pleaded guilty to voter fraud charges. That hasn’t stopped one operative from building a signature-gathering army,” by SF Chronicle’s Dustin Gardiner: “A political operative whose company is gathering signatures for two of the state’s most contested ballot measures this year was previously convicted of falsifying his voter registration in California and has been accused of using misleading tactics in multiple states.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — COP CLOUT: In the latest sign that Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert is law enforcement’s consensus attorney general pick, the Peace Officers Research Association of California and California Association of Highway Patrolmen are endorsing Schubert today. The no-party-preference Schubert has piled up law enforcement money, while the majority of Republican officeholders have so far gotten behind Republican former U.S. Attorney Nathan Hochman.

GOING AGAINST GASCÓN — “ LA mayoral candidate Rick Caruso endorses recall of DA George Gascón,” by Spectrum News 1: “Los Angeles mayoral candidate and real estate developer Rick Caruso Monday endorsed the effort to recall LA County District Attorney George Gascón, joining a chorus of prosecutors, law enforcement officials and victims' advocates who have expressed concern over what they deem Gascón's soft-on-crime policies.”

BECOME A GLOBAL INSIDER:  The world is more connected than ever. It has never been more essential to identify, unpack and analyze important news, trends and decisions shaping our future — and we’ve got you covered! Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, Global Insider author Ryan Heath navigates the global news maze and connects you to power players and events changing our world. Don’t miss out on this influential global community. Subscribe now.

— “Why flush California still takes child support from low-income families,” by the LATimes’ Mackenzie Mays: “Now, Gov. Gavin Newsom is trying to chip away at the policy, shaped by a 1975 federal law that created a child support enforcement program with a focus on “welfare cost recovery.” But the governor’s plans stop short of giving families on public assistance full access to their child support payments without state intervention.”

DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS — “ Newsom hypes 1 millionth electric vehicle sold in California, even if the details are “squishy”,” by Mercury News’ Paul Rogers: “Some experts raised eyebrows about the fuzzy timing the 1 millionth vehicle and the fact that the buyer the state chose to feature just happened to mirror the demographic message the governor is trying to promote in his budget.”

— “ Streets of Despair: Street Homelessness Appears to Be Surging in San Diego,” by Voice of San Diego’s Lisa Halverstadt: “Street homelessness and despair appear to be rising on city streets and partial county data shows drug overdose deaths also spiked among homeless residents last year, ushering in renewed calls for new solutions.”

YOU’RE DONE … — “ Exclusive: State fires Sacramento County Fair chief following critical financial audits,” by SacBee’s Dale Kasler: “Last week the state decided it had seen enough. The California Department of Food and Agriculture, which oversees the fair, told The Sacramento Bee it has dismissed Pamela Fyock as acting CEO, just three months before the 2022 fair is scheduled to take place at Cal Expo.”

RISING PRICES — “The California ZIP codes where home prices rose the most in the pandemic,” by SF Chronicle’s Kellie Hwang: “The results show the ongoing trend during the pandemic of people fleeing city centers to generally more affordable areas with perks including more square footage, bigger lots and outdoor attractions.”

— “Lowell’s merit-based admissions won’t return — no matter who’s on the school board,” by Mission Local’s Joe Eskenazi: “Numerous current and former Board of Education members tell Mission Local that the school district’s general counsel has warned them, in closed-session meetings and in writing, that Lowell’s old merit-based admissions policy is incompatible with California law.”

— “California, shockingly, has the lowest literacy rate of any state ,” by Capitol Weekly’s Will Shuck: “Decades of underinvestment in schools, culture battles over bilingual education, and dizzying levels of income inequality have pushed California to the bottom of the pile, making it the least literate state in the nation.”

A message from Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids:

— “Supreme Court justices lean toward hobbling EPA's climate authority,” by POLITICO’s Alex Guillen: The Supreme Court on Monday appeared poised to narrow the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to reduce carbon pollution from power plants, a move that could further derail President Joe Biden's ambitious plans to fight climate change that have already suffered a setback in the Senate.

TWITTER TALKS — “Twitter to label all state-affiliated Russia media,” by POLITICO’s Samuel Benson: “Twitter will begin labeling content from Russian state-affiliated media websites, the company announced Monday, amid a flood of Russian-backed disinformation related to the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.”HOLLYWOODLAND:

— “How a man’s death in Beverly Hills exposed a sprawling Hollywood drug delivery business ,” by the LATimes’ Michael Finnegan: “Mascolo’s November 2020 death set in motion a federal investigation that uncovered a booming drug delivery service Todorova is accused of running from her apartment on Hollywood Boulevard. CANNABIS COUNTRY:

CANNABIS BOOM — “ Get ready for the Northeast to become cannabis country,” by POLITICO’s Mona Zhang, Shannon Young, and Daniel Han : “New York, New Jersey and Connecticut — with a combined population of 33 million — are scrambling to open recreational markets in the coming months. Millions of other East Coast residents in neighboring states will suddenly find themselves within an easy drive of legal weed.”MEDIA MATTERS: 

— “S.F. teachers union official sparks controversy by sharing a social media post blaming the U.S. for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” by SF Chronicle’s Rachel Swan.

CASE FOR CONTROVERSY — “‘You guys shot his mouth off’: Family of Frederick Holder confronts L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva,” by LATimes’ Justin Ray.

HOUSE HUNTING — “ Sacramento is among the nation’s top destinations for homebuyers. Where the region ranks,” by Sac Bee’s Ryan Lillis.

— Shana Mansbach has been promoted to be deputy communications director and Joy Lee to be national press secretary for Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Mansbach most recently was director of speechwriting for Pelosi and Lee most recently was press secretary in the office.

— Ritika Rodrigues Robertson, public policy manager at Meta and a Ken Buck alum, and Jeff Robertson, SVP at Federal Capital Partners and a Deloitte alum, recently welcomed William Jefferson Robertson.

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— Katie Miller, a communications consultant and a Trump WH alum, and Stephen Miller, founder of America First Legal and a Trump WH alum, on Friday welcomed Jackson Grant Miller, who joins big sister Mackenzie.

— Joel Miller is starting as senior manager for U.S. policy and economic graph at LinkedIn. He most recently was a policy director at the Information Technology Industry Council, and is a Mike O’Rielly and Brett Guthrie alum.

Nigel Duara … Zev Garber ... Peter Guber ... Lou Gerstner … Steve Holmgren … Emily McGuire … John P. Holdren

A message from Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids:

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