News: Gavin Newsom’s blunt instrument on housing

Thursday, October 3, 2024

Gavin Newsom’s blunt instrument on housing

Oct 03, 2024

California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a press conference.

Gov. Gavin Newsom, shown in this 2022 file photo, has grown increasingly aggressive in his efforts to crackdown on cities that block housing construction. | Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

THE BUZZ: HAMMER MEET NAIL — For months, Gov. Gavin Newsom has warned that he’s ready to take more aggressive enforcement action against cities that block the construction of new housing.

Now, that hammer is falling on Norwalk, a middle-class suburb in southeast Los Angeles County that enraged Newsom when it passed an ordinance in August banning new homeless shelters and other low-income housing.

Newsom’s office, his aides exclusively told Playbook, will announce today that the state is decertifying the city’s housing plans — a first-of-its-kind move that forces Norwalk to approve many types of affordable housing projects and allows the state to withhold homelessness and housing funds.

The details are nuanced, but the move dramatically limits Norwalk’s authority over its own land-use. It allows developers to build larger apartment buildings virtually anywhere in the city, regardless of whether those projects are allowed under the city’s zoning rules.

“It's beyond cruel that Norwalk would ban the building of shelters while people are living on the city's streets,” Newsom said in a statement to Playbook. “This crisis is urgent, and we can't afford to stand by as communities turn their backs on those in need. No more excuses.”

The move is the most aggressive action Newsom has taken against a city for allegedly violating state housing laws. It comes as the governor has, in recent months, grown increasingly impatient with cities that resist development as California faces the twin crises of a statewide housing shortage and growing homelessness.

Newsom’s action against Norwalk, which he’s expected to announce this morning, weaponizes the so-called “builder’s remedy,” a cudgel in state law that requires cities to approve any size of housing project if the local government hasn’t planned for enough homes.

The “builder’s remedy” law has been on the books for years, but the state has never deployed it in this way by revoking a city’s housing plans.

That’s why Newsom's action is actually more than just a blunt instrument. It’s an unmistakable warning siren to dozens of other cities that are on the state’s proverbial “naughty list” — such as Huntington Beach, Millbrae or Elk Grove — for opposing housing: Build your state-assigned share of homes — or give up local planning control.

Norwalk has become a boogeyman for Newsom and pro-housing activists across the state in recent weeks, after the City Council passed a moratorium prohibiting any new homeless shelters, single-room occupancy supportive housing projects (SROs) or transitional homes for formerly homeless people.

Newsom had earlier threatened to pursue litigation against the city, but Norwalk officials doubled down and extended the ban.

On Monday, the City Council met in closed session to consider the state’s threats. It didn’t repeal the ban, but the city said it would pause enforcement of the residential portion. That, apparently, did nothing to ease the governor’s frustration.

City Attorney Arnold Alvarez-Glasman told the Whittier Daily News earlier this week that the shelter policy “attempts to preserve local control of issues related to land use.”

The city’s ban previously scuttled LA County’s plans to open a homeless housing project in Norwalk, which was part of Homekey, Newsom’s signature program to convert hotels and motels into supportive housing.

It’s clear Newsom doesn’t intend to let that setback go unanswered.

GOOD MORNING. Happy Thursday. Thanks for waking up with Playbook. Shanah tovah to our readers celebrating Rosh Hashanah.

You can text us at ‪916-562-0685‬‪ — save it as “CA Playbook” in your contacts. Or drop us a line at lkorte@politico.com and dgardiner@politico.com, or on X — @DustinGardiner and @Lara_Korte.

WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.

CAMPAIGN YEAR

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: MO’ MONEY — Southern California continues to be a center of gravity for competitive House races. To wit, Congressional Leadership Fund, the main GOP congressional super PAC, is reserving an extra $2.1 million in airtime in the Los Angeles media market and $315,000 in Palm Springs.

The cash infusion comes just one week after the group added $2.6 million to their original Los Angeles reservations.

That’s almost $5 million in just two weeks for LA, the state’s priciest media market. It is a hub for a reason. Republicans are defending three area incumbents — Orange County Rep. Michelle Steel, Rep. Mike Garcia of Santa Clarita and Rep. Ken Calvert, whose district also includes the Palm Springs market. They’re also gunning for the open Orange County seat currently held by Democratic Rep. Katie Porter.

The additional money will enable the group to start their ad barrage a week earlier that initially planned.

"We’re bringing more resources to ensure our message resonates with voters, so we can help protect our valuable incumbents and expand the map on offense,” said CLF spokeswoman Courtney Parella. — Melanie Mason

SAN FRANCISCO

Matt Alba, a San Francisco firefighter and cancer survivor, speaks at a campaign event for Proposition H. To his right, is Christine Pelosi, the daughter of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Christine Pelosi was a key figure at a press conference with San Francisco firefighters last month. | Adele Gilani, courtesy of San Francisco Firefighters Local 798

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: FIRED-UP — Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi is going to the mat in support of a San Francisco ballot measure that would lower the retirement age for firefighters to receive a full pension.

Pelosi made an impromptu appearance during a phone bank at Democratic Party county headquarters last night, where she railed against criticism of the ballot measure. It was a not-so-subtle rebuttal to the editorial board of the San Francisco Chronicle, which published a blistering editorial on Wednesday labeling the measure an “irresponsible IOU” to the firefighter union.

“To those who say it costs too much, cancer costs too much,” Pelosi said, according to a recording obtained by Playbook. “Firefighters are our nobility.”

Firefighters argue the measure, Proposition H, would save many from early death due to cancer and other illnesses tied to prolonged exposure to smoke. Their proposal would lower the retirement age at which firefighters qualify for a maximum pension from 58 to 55 — which would raise pension costs by an estimated $3.7 million starting next year, a price tag that would increase annually over the next 16 years.

But the fight also carries political significance for Pelosi. Her daughter, Christine Pelosi, is widely expected to be preparing to run for the city’s congressional seat, whenever the speaker emerita retires.

The elder Pelosi has made a series of recent moves that many city political insiders interpret as an effort to shore up union support for her daughter in an inevitable showdown with state Sen. Scott Wiener, who plans to run for the seat.

It was likely no coincidence that Christine Pelosi was front in center last month at a press conference where the firefighters launched their Prop H campaign.

SACTOWN

Rebecca Bauer-Kahan speaks at an event.

Democratic Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan. | Rich Pedroncelli/AP

HOLIDAY HUFF — A California state agency rescheduled its bimonthly meeting this week after Jewish lawmakers protested its overlap with the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah.

The California Privacy Protection Agency issued a notice of rescheduling on Wednesday after Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan criticized the agency on social media for continuing with its Friday meeting even after the conflict was brought to members’ attention. Bauer-Kahan, an Orinda Democrat, is a member of the Jewish Caucus and chair of the Assembly committee on privacy and consumer protection.

“It is inappropriate that [the Privacy Protection Agency] has opted to hold a public board meeting during Rosh Hashanah, effectively ensuring no participation by practicing Jews,” Bauer-Kahan wrote on X. “Public agencies should do everything in their power to provide meaningful access for ALL people. Anything less is simply unacceptable.”

A spokesperson for the agency told Playbook that members “appreciate the concerns raised by Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan.” The meeting has been rescheduled for Nov. 8.

CLIMATE AND ENERGY

NO MATCH — You’d think the housing industry, with all its current cachet, would be able to muscle through a fix to the property insurance crisis that’s slowing sales and builds. But insurance problems are really, really intractable. Read more in yesterday’s California Climate.

TOP TALKERS

Vice President Kamala Harris waves as she boards Air Force Two at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, en route to Georgia. (Brendan Smialowski/Pool via AP)

Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris. | AP

UNION STATEMENT — VP Kamala Harris is standing behind the thousands of dockworkers on strike at ports along the Eastern Seaboard and Gulf Coast, POLITICO’s Holly Otterbein and Chris Marquette report, declaring in a statement the workers “deserve a fair share” of “record profits” from foreign-owned shipping companies.

The vice president also seized the moment to juxtapose her labor record against former President Donald Trump’s as she looks to shore up union support in Rust Belt battleground states. “Just recently, he said striking workers should be fired,” she said, referencing comments Trump made during an August interview with Elon Musk on X.

But Trump is also supporting the longshoremen saying in his own statement that “American workers should be able to negotiate for better wages, especially since the shipping companies are mostly foreign flag vessels.”

STATE OF THE UNIONS — California unions are having a good week, at least on the organizing front. Officials for SEIU 721, which represents more than 55,000 Los Angeles County employees from nurses to librarians, announced earlier this week they were pausing plans for a looming strike after “productive meeting” with county leaders, the Los Angeles Times reports.

And in San Francisco yesterday, more than 100 employees at an Amazon warehouse announced they were joining the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the San Francisco Chronicle reports, following in the footsteps of other Amazon workers nationwide who organized against the retail giant this summer.

BET (ON) THE HOUSE — Political gambling is back with just five weeks to Election Day after a panel of federal appeals court judges lifted a temporary freeze on election-betting markets yesterday, POLITICO’s Declan Harty reports.

COME AND TAKE IT — Huntington Beach officials are doubling down on their claim that the city’s charter status exempts it from a state law signed by Newsom last month, which bans local governments from requiring voter ID at the polls, the Daily Pilot’s Matt Szabo reports. “The laws that they just signed are unconstitutional as it relates to charter cities, full stop,” said City Attorney Michael Gates. “It's not even a close call.”

Huntington Beach voters approved a ballot measure earlier this year that requires residents to show photo ID at the polls. The city is facing a legal challenge from Attorney General Rob Bonta over the law, with a hearing scheduled for Friday.

AROUND THE STATE

— AG Bonta wants Los Angeles to draw new boundaries for its 15 City Council districts, according to a confidential document. The current map has stirred concerns about Latino representation. (Los Angeles Times)

— Mayor London Breed is trying to persuade voters that San Francisco is on track to solve its biggest issues, despite outsiders looking to give the city a “bad rap.” (San Francisco Standard)

— San Francisco is threatening to tow RVs parked on city streets if people living inside refuse shelter offers from city officials. (San Francisco Chronicle)

— State enforcers are cracking down on Yucca Valley property owners who are out of compliance with a ban on polluting septic tanks, threatening to issue fines of $5,000 a day if violators don’t cooperate by December. (The Desert Sun)

PLAYBOOKERS

San Francisco's iconic skyline. | Getty Images

HAPPY TRAILS — John King, the San Francisco Chronicle’s longtime urban design critic, retired Wednesday. In his final column, King reflected on how the city’s iconic skyline has evolved over his 23 years in the gig. He also shared an optimistic take on its future, despite the doomsayers: “The pieces are in place for San Francisco’s inherent creativity to re-emerge.” Congratulations, John!

BIRTHDAYS — LA Mayor Karen Bass … Jonathan Lamy of Live Nation … (was Wednesday): Alex Karp

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