Atkins on the record

From: POLITICO California Playbook - Wednesday Mar 01,2023 02:12 pm

Mar 01, 2023

By Lara Korte, Jeremy B. White, Ramon Castanos and Matthew Brown

Presented by SEIU-UHW

THE BUZZ: Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins is in the home stretch of her legislative career. But don’t expect her to sit on the sidelines after 2024.

Atkins has made history as the only California lawmaker of the modern era to have presided over both the Assembly and the Senate. She’s been a leader under two governors and was influential in building up state reserves. As she prepares to term out next year, we sat down with her to talk policy, party politics — and Dolly Parton.

Here are some highlights from our conversation:

On how the pandemic changed the way Sacramento operates: It definitely changed how we communicated and how we were able to get things done. ... I didn't recognize [Sen.] Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh [R-Yucaipa], when we finally started to take our masks off, I looked over like, 'who is that?' ... I think people are very thrilled to be back, to be able to do events where they see each other. But it's yet to be determined whether it feels permanent.

On her proudest accomplishments in the Legislature: Some big wins — I have to say working with [Former Gov.] Jerry Brown to get the water bond done and the rainy day fund, as we think about that now. ... Also, for me, it was getting a permanent source of funding for affordable housing, and then my abortion-related bills. I worked in women's health care in the mid-80s, so that work was really important to me.

On why building affordable housing continues to be a struggle: I'm clearly disappointed to see we haven't made more ground, but I also have been doing this for decades. ... It's why I wanted to run for Assembly, to work on housing. … It's unfortunate that sometimes it takes a crisis for people to get serious about solutions. At that point, you're forced to come up with solutions. And it seems to be the way we sometimes have to work, because it takes so many people to pass a bill.

On Gov. Gavin Newsom's penalty for windfall oil profits: Clearly, we have some members and communities that count on this industry for jobs and the economy. But nobody wants to be looking at their constituents and saying 'we can't find a solution to high gas prices.' I think the biggest issue is what you've already put in print — which is members are afraid of unintended consequences.

You've got some consensus and agreement on wanting more data and the ability to push transparency. We're all in alignment there. Then, how do you either incentivize or penalize bad behavior? That's what we are stuck on — how to best thread that needle and do it in a way that's going to result in positive outcomes for ratepayers.

I think if we felt like we had the perfect solution right now, we would all be rowing in the same direction.

On who her successor might be: I think the Senate has got a lot of possibilities. I've got some great leadership.

On how the Senate differs from the Assembly: When I was speaker, members would call me all the time. When I became pro tem, I wasn’t getting calls — don’t print this because then they’ll start calling… It does feel very different. Calmer.

On what's next after 2024: I did that Imagination Library with Sen. Shannon Grove [R-Bakersfield]. I keep trying to meet Dolly Parton. I am telling you, I want to be a backup singer ... but I would love to stay in public service if there is an opportunity. I don't know what that will be.

On her favorite Dolly Parton song: Who doesn't love Jolene? Coat of Many Colors has familial memories for me. I grew up a lot like Dolly, so the songs resonate with me.

There is one song — it's a total downer, but we come from the same part of the world — Daddy Come and Get Me. And I love Smoky Mountain Memories.

BUENOS DÍAS, good Wednesday morning. The Joint Legislative Committee on Climate Change Policies is holding a hearing this morning on the Air Resources Board’s 2022 scoping plan, which lays out a roadmap for how the state can meet its emission-reduction goals.

ICYMI: In January, the Legislative Analyst’s Office said the plan lacked details and the state was at risk of missing the 2030 goal unless lawmakers required the air regulator to provide more direction.

Got a tip or story idea for California Playbook? Hit us up at jwhite@politico.com and lkorte@politico.com or follow us on Twitter @JeremyBWhite and @Lara_Korte.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “She was not my first choice, but I’ve every confidence she’s going to do a great job.” Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on the nomination of California’s own Julie Su to serve as the next U.S. secretary of labor.

TWEET OF THE DAY:

Twitter

WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

A message from SEIU-UHW:

Healthcare workers are burnt out and underpaid, causing many to leave their jobs. Now, California faces an urgent healthcare worker shortage that threatens patient care. Tell lawmakers: Stop the shortage. Pass SB 525 Healthcare Worker Minimum Wage bill.

TOP TALKERS

SU MOVES UP — President Joe Biden has tapped former California Labor Secretary Julie Su to take the top job running the U.S. Department of Labor, as our POLITICO colleagues on Capitol Hill first reported Tuesday.

“Over several decades." Biden said in a statement, "Julie has led the largest state labor department in the nation, cracked down on wage theft, fought to protect trafficked workers, increased the minimum wage, created good-paying, high-quality jobs, and established and enforced workplace safety standards.”

Not everyone is thrilled. California Republicans have been waving their arms for weeks, trying to draw attention to what they say were Su’s missteps leading California’s Labor and Workforce Development Agency. In that role, she oversaw the Employment Development Department, which struggled to keep up with demand for pandemic relief benefits and ended up doling out nearly $20 billion in fraudulent claims, which it has struggled to get back.

— “New poll shows most California voters fear gun violence, but Democrats and Republicans are divided,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Hannah Wiley: “But while 88 percent of registered Democrats said stricter laws would be somewhat or strongly effective, that share dropped to 61 percent among non-party voters and plunged to 20% for registered Republicans. Among the Republicans, 78 percent said stricter laws would not help much.”

— “The epic California snowpack is inching toward record levels,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Jack Lee: “In some parts of the Sierra, snowpack levels are even on pace to surpass totals for the 1982-1983 season — the winter of record in the modern era, Swain said. But that would likely take even more deluges.”

STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today.

CAMPAIGN MODE

ROUDA ROUNDUP — Former Rep. Harley Rouda is announcing endorsements from former House colleagues as the Democrat seeks to return to Congress via the opening CA-47. Reps Madeleine Dean, Jim McGovern and David Trone are backing Rouda, along with former Rep. Max Rose.

— “DeSantis hits the trail. Just don’t call it a campaign,” by The New York Times’ Meggie Haberman: “Mr. DeSantis is also expected on Sunday in California at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, a place that has often been a launching pad for presidential candidacies.”

A message from SEIU-UHW:

CALIFORNIA AND THE CAPITOL CORRIDOR

— “California keeps sending toxic soil to out-of-state landfills — Newsom and legislators are slow to change course,” by CalMatters’ Robert Lewis: “California state and local government agencies largely oversee or directly manage the cleanup projects disposing the waste out of state. California’s own hazardous waste watchdog — the Department of Toxic Substances Control — is one of the biggest out-of-state dumpers and has continued to take its toxic waste to Arizona despite the public revelations, according to information the department recently provided.”

— “Undoing the past: Lawmakers seek to mend California neighborhoods sliced by highways,” by CalMatters’ Wendy Fry: “Now, local and state governments across the nation are exploring ways to undo some of that harm by finding ways to re-link some of those neighborhoods. On Thursday, California’s Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon appointed Assemblymember David Alvarez, a Democrat from San Diego, to chair a new Select Committee on Reconnecting Communities.”

— “California could keep the lights on by expanding grid across the West, report finds,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Ari Plachta: “After years of considering this question, the legislature directed the CAISO to compile relevant research on the effects of greater regional cooperation. The resulting report comes as lawmakers consider legislation that would allow the operator to expand transmission and energy market facilitation across the West.”

— “COVID disparities grow as California ends state of emergency,” by CalMatters’ Kristen Hwang: “Public health will largely return to its typical role of monitoring infectious diseases of all types, investigating outbreaks, communicating the importance of vaccination and supporting medical providers when necessary — similar to the role it plays during flu season.”

— “D.A. Gascón suspends attorney who prosecuted transgender child molester,” by the Los Angeles Daily News’ Scott Schwebke: “Sanna said he has been an outspoken critic of Gascón’s handling of other cases, including one involving convicted murderer Andrew Cachu, who was released from custody in 2021 after serving just six years of a 50-year prison sentence when the D.A.’s former special assistant, Alisa Blair, refused to call witnesses during a disposition hearing.”

— “Former tobacco CEO wants national flavor ban + R’s fail to end special session + JEDI wanted,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Andrew Sheeler: “Quigley isn’t opposed to flavored tobacco bans, but he argued in an interview with The Bee that the current efforts are haphazard and lack all-essential community buy-in. Without that, he said, the big companies might comply with the ban but smaller companies looking to slip under the radar won’t.”

— “In rural California, a hospital with millions in equipment sets empty and closed,” by KVPR’s Soreath Hok: “The hospital has a fully operational facility and many assets, nearly 40 acres of property as well as equipment. But right now, without any services, it's costing roughly $900,000 a month just to maintain the hospital’s skeleton operations, like cleaning, security and accounting.”

DOWNLOAD THE POLITICO MOBILE APP: Stay up to speed with the newly updated POLITICO mobile app, featuring timely political news, insights and analysis from the best journalists in the business. The sleek and navigable design offers a convenient way to access POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Don’t miss out on the app you can rely on for the news you need, reimagined. DOWNLOAD FOR iOS– DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID.

BIDEN, HARRIS AND THE HILL

— Supreme Court appears skeptical of Biden’s student debt relief plan, by POLITICO’s Michael Stratford and Josh Gerstein: “In all, four of the conservative justices — Roberts, Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch — seemed most skeptical of the claimed legal basis for the debt relief plan, while all three of the court’s liberals appeared inclined to reject the challenges to the program.”

A message from SEIU-UHW:

While hospitals made billions during the pandemic, patient care has gotten worse. Why? Healthcare workers are burnt out and underpaid, causing many to leave their jobs. Now, California faces an urgent healthcare worker shortage.

Lawmakers have a choice: Pass SB 525 Healthcare Worker Minimum Wage bill or put more patients at risk.

SILICON VALLEYLAND

— "‘Sometimes things break’: Twitter outages are on the rise," by The New York Times’ Ryan Mac, Mike Isaac and Kate Conger: “The moves have exacerbated fears that there are not enough people or institutional knowledge to triage Twitter’s problems, especially if the service one day encounters a problem its remaining workers do not know how to fix, two people with knowledge of the company’s internal operations said.”

— “FTX's Singh pleads guilty as pressure mounts on Bankman-Fried,” by Reuters’ Jody Godoy and Luc Cohen: “Bankman-Fried, 30, now faces 12 criminal charges after prosecutors unsealed a new indictment against him last week. A spokesman for Bankman-Fried declined to comment.”

— “Biden to require chips companies winning subsidies to share excess profits,” by Reuters’ David Shepardson: “Companies winning funding are also prohibited from using chips funds for dividends or stock buybacks, and must provide details of any plans to buy back their own shares over five years.”

BIRTHDAYS

Nigel Duara … Emily McGuire

CALIFORNIA POLICY IS ALWAYS CHANGING: Know your next move. From Sacramento to Silicon Valley, POLITICO California Pro provides policy professionals with the in-depth reporting and tools they need to get ahead of policy trends and political developments shaping the Golden State. To learn more about the exclusive insight and analysis this -only service offers, click here.

Follow us on Twitter