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Jeremy B. White and Lara Korte’s must-read briefing on politics and government in the Golden State | | | | |  | | By Lara Korte, Jeremy B. White, Matthew Brown and Ramon Castanos | THE BUZZ: Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to make something clear: He’s not messing around on housing. The governor and Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a new lawsuit Thursday against the city of Huntington Beach, where the GOP-majority City Council has not only failed to comply with state requirements for housing plans but is now acting in open defiance of laws intended to make it easier to build homes in a state that desperately needs them. The move tracks with a shift in recent years to hold local officials accountable on housing. The state has worked to incentivize construction. But with the goal of building 2.5 million units by 2030 bearing down, Newsom and the Legislature have focused more on enforcement and oversight. Much of that oversight has involved housing elements — the multi-year building plans that cities and counties must submit to the state for approval. Dozens of local governments are out of compliance, per state data, but deliberately choosing to defy the laws meant to grease the tracks for much-needed housing is a whole different ball game, Bonta and Newsom said. At issue is a decision by the Huntington Beach City Council to block the development of accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, often called “granny flats,” directly violating a state law known as SB 9 that allows for up to four units on properties zoned for single family homes. They’re also on track to block another state law known as the “builder’s remedy.” Within a few hours of Newsom’s announcement, the city responded with their own lawsuit. Huntington Beach’s argument boils down to, essentially, localism — which we know Newsom loves to tout — but Mayor Tony Strickland’s definition looks a bit different. Earlier this week he accused the state of “overstepping their bounds” when it comes to affordable housing laws. Newsom and Bonta, however, aren’t sympathetic. The lack of affordable housing in the state has reached a crisis level, they said, and everyone needs to be pulling their weight. “The message we're sending to the city of Huntington Beach is simple: Act in good faith, follow the law, and do your part to increase the housing supply,” Bonta said. We could see more battles like this in the coming years as the state looks to sharpen its enforcement tools — like Sen. Scott Wiener’s Senate Bill 423, which would extend the lifetime of the “builder’s remedy” provision to streamline affordable housing. Buffy Wicks, who chairs the Assembly’s housing and community development committee, echoed similar sentiments about enforcement on Thursday in a Capitol Weekly forum. “I think what has been, prior, sort of a paper tiger, now really has teeth,” she said. BUENOS DÍAS, good Friday morning. The California Republican Party launches its spring organizing convention in Sacramento today. The event will run through Sunday and feature keynote speeches from former Rep. Devin Nunes and Speaker Kevin McCarthy. 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: "He is one of the most anti-freedom governors in the most anti-freedom political party in the country." Newsom going after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in campaign fundraising email sent out Thursday. TWEET OF THE DAY:
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SenToniAtkins | WHERE’S GAVIN? Isolating after testing positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday.
| | | | PLAYBOOK MEET & GREET! Join California Playbook and POLITICO’s growing team in Sacramento at Smic’s Sip & Quip on Wednesday, March 22, 2023, for an evening of cocktails and conversation. As POLITICO expands in California, we want to more frequently convene our most influential readers in Sacramento and beyond. Swing by and have a cocktail on us—you never know who you might run into! Register here. | | | | | |  | TOP TALKERS | | — “S.F. housing nonprofit spends big on politics. Tenants deal With infestations, overdoses,” by The San Francisco Standard’s Josh Koehn and David Sjostedt: “A review of complaints with the S.F. Department of Building Inspection confirmed that the eight SoMa properties owned by TODCO, which has $48.5 million in assets and receives multimillion dollar contracts from the city and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, have repeatedly had issues with infestations, mold and heating in recent years.” DEJA VU — “Gov. Gavin Newsom puts most of California in emergency as atmospheric river storm arrives,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Michael McGough: “With a strong atmospheric river storm bearing down on the state and creating flooding concerns following weeks of heavy snow, California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday evening expanded an emergency proclamation to 21 additional counties, with a majority of the state now covered. The big storm is forecast to begin Thursday, bringing heavy rain and snow through the weekend, National Weather Service forecasts show.”
| | CAMPAIGN MODE | | FAREWELL, SAN FRANCISCO — “How California political power could shift south — and to the left — after Feinstein,” by CalMatters’ Jim Newton: “Younger, more liberal, more weighted to the south: California’s political demography is shifting, particularly as two of its political lions move off the stage. For generations, the Bay Area has punched above its weight in terms of influence, and California’s political position has grown up – and old – with it. That’s changing.”
| | CALIFORNIA AND THE CAPITOL CORRIDOR | | — Jury awards $375,000 to protester shot with projectile by LAPD officer, by the Los Angeles Times’ Libor Jany and Kevin Rector: “In the first verdict of its kind since mass protests swept Los Angeles in 2020, a federal jury on Thursday awarded $375,000 to a man who was shot in the face and badly wounded by an LAPD officer wielding a projectile launcher. The verdict followed a finding by the jury that the officer, Peter Bueno, violated protester Deon Jones’ civil rights.” — “ICE abruptly transfers 4 detainee hunger strikers from California to Texas, sparking fears of force-feeding,” by KQED’s Tyche Hendricks: “The four hunger strikers, transferred this week from California to an El Paso detention facility, ate lunch on Thursday after reportedly being threatened with force-feeding, one of their attorneys said.” — “Black patients dress up and modify speech to reduce bias, California survey shows.” by California Healthline’s Annie Sciacca: “Of the strategies they describe taking, 32% pay special attention to how they dress; 35% modify their speech or behavior to put doctors at ease. And 41% of Black patients signal to providers that they are educated, knowledgeable, and prepared.” BOVINE LIFELINE— “Cows stranded by snow are starving to death. The plan to save them: Drop hay from the sky,” by San Francisco Chronicle’s Tara Duggan: “Helicopters usually reserved for water rescues and wildfires are transporting hay bales to stranded cows. The constant storms and cold weather have added up to deep accumulations of snow, even at low elevations, making it impossible for the cattle to graze and for ranchers to reach them to drop off feed.” FREEDOM FIGHTS — Are Californians fleeing 'woke' policies and moving to Florida, as DeSantis claims? by the Las Angeles Times’ Don Lee: “Yes, for the first time in many years, California seems to be experiencing a net decline in total population. The latest California Finance Department figures, which are for 2022, show the state’s population dropped by about 211,000 from 2021 out of a total population of 39 million.” — “D.A. Brooke Jenkins reverses position on sanctuary ordinance,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Joel Umanzor: “In February, Jenkins said she was seeking permission from the Board of Supervisors to cooperate with federal immigration authorities in bringing two men accused of violent crimes to justice, after locating them abroad.” — “CalChamber dubs year’s first ‘job creator’ proposal. State labor leader calls it ‘dangerous’,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Mathew Miranda: “Currently, employers are financially liable for violations if a court’s decision overturns existing policy from the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. If approved, the bill would shield employers from these fines if they can prove “good faith” and show that they relied on DLSE guidance.” — “The culture war comes to Sacramento as anti-transgender 'de-transitioner' rally planned,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Andrew Sheeler: “Billed by organizers as the “biggest gathering of individuals harmed by gender ideology to date,” the event is expected to feature several “de-transitioners,” — people who sought gender-affirming treatment and later stopped it or attempted to reverse its effects.”
| | BIDEN, HARRIS AND THE HILL | | — “Senate tees up vote on Eric Garcetti's nomination to be ambassador to India,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Jennifer Haberkorn: “Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Thursday set up the process of holding a vote on Garcetti’s nomination as soon as next week as the former mayor’s chances of confirmation grow increasingly positive. Since Biden nominated him in July 2021, Garcetti’s nomination has been stalled over questions about whether he should have known that a top City Hall aide was allegedly sexually harassing colleagues.” — “Fox News' Rupert Murdoch derided Kimberly Guilfoyle in leaked email,” by SFGATE’s Eric Ting: “A trove of texts, emails and other internal communications at Fox News have been made public amid a high-profile defamation lawsuit filed against the network by Dominion Voting Systems.”
| | SILICON VALLEYLAND | | — “Elon Musk is planning a Texas utopia — his own town,” by The Wall Street Journal’s Kirsten Grind, Rebecca Elliott, Ted Mann and Julie Bykowicz: “Executives at the Boring Co., Mr. Musk’s tunnel operation, have discussed and researched incorporating the town in Bastrop County, about 35 miles from Austin, which would allow Mr. Musk to set some regulations in his own municipality and expedite his plans, according to people familiar with Mr. Musk’s projects.”
| | BIRTHDAYS | | Biz Stone
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