| | | | |  | | By Jeremy B. White, Lara Korte and Juhi Doshi | Presented by CVS Health | THE BUZZ: California's oil and gas industry may be past the peak of its political and economic might. But fossil fuels are still often at the burning center of California politics. Action inside and far beyond the state Capitol demonstrated that point yesterday. As the Legislature hurtled toward a deadline for floor votes, members in both houses struggled against opposition to their environmentally friendly bills. Hundreds of miles south, the future of California's energy extraction was getting hammered out in the industry's longtime epicenter. — IN THE SENATE: Sen. Henry Stern voted against his own billto shutter the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility that suffered a monthslong leak from 2015 to 2016 — and urged his colleagues to do the same — after resistance from SoCalGas's parent company Sempra helped force amendments erasing a planned closure date. "I get it. The gas industry is very powerful ," Stern said on the Senate floor. Per his wishes, the measure failed badly. This came after the demise in the Appropriations Committee of a billto shut down offshore drilling in response to last year's spill off the coast of Orange County. — IN THE ASSEMBLY: Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi decried energy players by name as he fought for a billcompelling the California Air Resources Board to regularly study the efficacy of California's cap-and-trade system. California extended that mechanism in 2017, securing the needed two-thirds votes with some concessions to carbon-emitting industries. Some of those players warned in a floor alert that Muratsuchi's bill would undercut that deal, despite the Torrance Democrat's protestations to the contrary — and his explicitly calling out "Western States Petroleum Association lobbyists running around in the hallways." The bill FELL SHORT. — IN KERN COUNTY: A court yesterday weighed whether to unlock a wave of new wells. As POLITICO's Colby Bermel covered, county officials and environmentalists are clashing over a sweeping approval of more exploration. None of this is to say oil and gas interests are untouchable in Sacramento — the Senate advanced legislation yesterday forcing California's enormous pension funds to divest from fossil fuel companies, and the Senate passed a separate climate-focused package of bills. California has paced the nation on clean energy policies. But ambitious environmental legislation often founders. That's in part because some Democrats are receptive to the argument that California lacks the alternative energy resources to fully abandon fossil fuels. It's partially because of labor: these bills are often opposed by unions whose members work in the affected sector. It also reflects the reality that the industry spends heavily on both lobbyists and campaigns. The Western States Petroleum Association has spent more than $5.2 million to influence Sacramento since the start of this legislative session. A political action committee funded by Chevron and other companies has poured more than $1.5 million to vault one Democrat past another in a pair of safely blue Assembly districts; Chevron is also the single-largest contributor to a business-funded PAC that backs moderate Democrats. As much as California is broadly committed to a greener future, legacy energy industries will continue to shape what that looks like. BUENOS DÍAS, good Friday morning. It's the final day for the Senate and the Assembly to pass bills that were introduced in the respective bodies. That's right: the House of Origin deadline is upon us. We'll be bringing you all the news of what survived and what didn't in Playbook's next edition. Stay tuned! PROGRAMMING NOTE: We'll be off Monday for Memorial Day. California Playbook will be back in your inbox Tuesday. Got a tip or story idea for California Playbook? Hit us up jwhite@politico.com and lkorte@politico.com or follow us on Twitter @JeremyBWhite and @Lara_Korte. QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I tried to claw back that item." Assemblymember Kevin Mullin after mistakenly bringing up a just-passed bill largely banning cat declawing. TWEET OF THE DAY: LATimes reporter @mattdpearce on grim news from another mass shooting: "Everything I read today is worse than the stuff I've already read. I don't know how anybody is getting any work done right now." WHERE'S GAVIN? In San Francisco, where he's set to sign a climate pact with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. | | A message from CVS Health: Californians want the lowest prescription drug costs possible and CVS Health's pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) team is delivering for them. With big drug companies continually increasing the price of prescription drugs, we negotiate lower prescription drug costs for employers, consumers and working families across the state. That saves Californians and employers tens of millions of dollars each year so they can continue to provide affordable coverage that keeps their employees healthy. Learn more. | | | |  | Top Talkers | |
— "How California EDD's bureaucracy made the Bay Area housing crisis that much worse," by SF Chronicle's Lauren Hepler: "Mathis was one of hundreds of thousands of California workers ensnared by pandemic unemployment delays at the state Employment Development Department (EDD) and its contractors. At first, she was able to dig herself out of the bureaucratic mess, restart her cleaning business and eke out enough last May for a two-bedroom in the tiny Contra Costa County town of Crockett."
SCRAPPED PLANS — " 710 Freeway expansion dropped after decades of planning, marking a milestone for L.A," by the Los Angeles Times' Rachel Uranga: "A decades-old plan to widen one of America's busiest cargo corridors was scrapped Thursday, as the agency acknowledged it must find a new way to lessen traffic without adding lanes." | | CAMPAIGN MODE | |
RATINGS SEASON: The Cook Political Report had good news yesterday for both parties in California. The handicapper moved CA-40 to from "likely Republican" to "leans Republican" as GOP Rep. Full post here. The Cook rating now matches POLITICO's rating for the district. Young Kim faces a surprisingly strong challenge from Greg Raths. Conversely, Cook sees Democratic Rep. Mike Levin having a tougher path, shifting CA-49 from "likely" to "lean" Democratic.
MOUNTING PRESSURE — " Facing recall, Chesa Boudin says he puts victims first. Advocates in his office dispute that," by SF Chronicle's Heather Knight: "The complaints coming from inside Boudin's office are proof that while the recall may turn on political disagreements over how to prosecute crime, that tension isn't the whole story. There are deeper concerns about the district attorney's management style and the performance of his office — concerns that former prosecutors also have raised." | | | | 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. | | | | | | | CALIFORNIA AND THE CAPITOL CORRIDOR | | MASKS BACK FOR BRUINS — "UCLA reinstates indoor mask mandate as L.A. County coronavirus cases rise," by the LATimes' Rong-Gong Lin II and Luke Money: "Officials said the mask order was needed to avoid disrupting in-person learning and campus activities, including graduation." VOICING CONCERN — "Burned Out by Covid and 80-Hour Workweeks, Resident Physicians Unionize," by California Healthline's Sarah Kwon: "More than 1,300 unionized residents and other trainees at three L.A. County public hospitals, including Harbor-UCLA, will vote May 30 on whether to strike for a bump in their salaries and housing stipends, after a months-long negotiation deadlock with the county. Since March, residents at Stanford Health Care, Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, and the University of Vermont Medical Center have unionized." — " California wants to force insurers to reward homeowners for fireproofing homes," by CalMatters' Grace Gedye: "New rules proposed by California's Department of Insurance would require insurers to take homeowners' efforts to reduce wildfire risk into account when setting premiums. But they would still allow non-renewals." LATEST ON DROUGHT — " With a third year of drought, Southern California facing a hot, dry summer," by the LATimes' Paul Duginiski: "This year, after an unusually wet December, California experienced the driest January, February and March on record — some of the very months when the state expects to get almost all of its precipitation. California's precipitation typically comes in a handful of winter storms." | | | | A message from CVS Health:   | | | | | BIDEN, HARRIS AND THE HILL | |
— "Interior launches next phase in California offshore wind buildout," by POLITICO's Kelsey Tamborrino: The Interior Department announced Thursday it would open up public comment on proposed lease sales in two regions as part of the next phase of its planned expansion of offshore wind power off the coast of California.
WILDFIRES — "California senator wants FEMA to pick up more of the tab to fight and recover from wildfires ," by Sac Bee's Gillian Brassil: "Federal lawmakers are hoping to speedily pass legislation that would help California brace for longer, hotter and drier wildfire seasons." SCOTUS OPINION — "Supreme Court Allows Greenhouse Gas Cost Estimates ," by the NYTimes' Adam Liptak: "The Supreme Court said on Thursday that it would allow the Biden administration to continue to take account of the costs of greenhouse gas emissions in regulatory actions, rejecting an emergency application from Louisiana and other Republican-led states to block the use of a formula that assigns a monetary value to changes in emissions." NUNES' FORMER CHIEF HEADS DOWNTOWN, via POLITICO influence: Jilian Souza has left the Hill, where she most recently served as chief of staff to former Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), to join tobacco giant Altria Client Services , the parent company of Philip Morris and an investor in vape company Juul, as a senior director for federal government affairs. | | SILICON VALLEYLAND | |
— "In private, vulnerable Senate Dems back off tech bill," by POLITICO's Adam Cancryn and Emily Birnbaum: A bipartisan legislative effort to rein in the nation's largest tech companies is facing fresh resistance from a faction of Senate Democrats over complaints the measure could threaten their chances of holding their slim majority, 10 people familiar with the matter told POLITICO.
TIKTOK TROUBLE — "TikTok learned these women were pregnant. Things got scary ," by LATimes' Brian Contreras: "Across the country and around the world, pregnant women are finding themselves pummeled on social media with video after video about the most terrifying aspects of pregnancy." | | | | DON'T MISS DIGITAL FUTURE DAILY - OUR TECHNOLOGY NEWSLETTER, RE-IMAGINED: Technology is always evolving, and our new tech-obsessed newsletter is too! Digital Future Daily unlocks the most important stories determining the future of technology, from Washington to Silicon Valley and innovation power centers around the world. Readers get an in-depth look at how the next wave of tech will reshape civic and political life, including activism, fundraising, lobbying and legislating. Go inside the minds of the biggest tech players, policymakers and regulators to learn how their decisions affect our lives. Don't miss out, subscribe today. | | | | | | | HOLLYWOODLAND | |
SPACEY CHARGED — "Kevin Spacey to face 4 sex assault charges in Britain," by the AP's Jill Lawless: "British prosecutors said Thursday they had authorized police to charge actor Kevin Spacey with four counts of sexual assault against three men, an announcement that came as the actor was in court in New York testifying in a different case."
| | MIXTAPE | | MONEY TALKS — "Do San Francisco police get paid to march at Pride?," by SF Chronicle's Rachel Swan. FINAL MOMENTS — "The last days of a homeless encampment in San Pedro," by LATimes' Ruben Vives. — " Sacramento clears another homeless encampment. It was supposed to become a tiny homes site," by Sac Bee's Theresa Clift.
| | IN MEMORIAM | | — "Ray Liotta Remembered By Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Lorraine Bracco, Seth Rogen, More: "A Sweet, Playful And Passionate Collaborator"," by Deadline's Matt Grobar: Tributes to actor Ray Liotta have begun flooding in following the stunning revelation in Deadline of his death today at age 67, with colleagues remembering him not only for his artistic gifts, but also for his character, and a demeanor at odds with that of his most iconic characters. | | A message from CVS Health: CVS Health manages prescription drug plans for millions of Californians.
Every day, our PBM is helping the people of California reduce their prescription drug costs while improving their health outcomes. This means patients can access and afford medications while getting personalized support along the way.
Through end-to-end coordination of care, we work hard to keep costs down and improve medication adherence — because we know that people who take their medications as prescribed have better results.
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