Assembly departures + How lawmakers want to spend the surplus + Special election for Chau’s seat
Good morning! Welcome to the AM Alert!
ASSEMBLY DEPARTURES?
The wheels of the Legislature keep turning.
Last week, news of two impending departures from the Assembly broke: Assemblyman Bill Quirk, D-Hayward, and Assemblyman Dr. Joaquin Arambula, D-Fresno.
Per GVWire.com, Arambula, who has represented the Fresno area since 2016, is considering a run for Rep. Devin Nunes’ soon-to-be-empty seat. Under proposed redistricting boundaries, that seat would cover parts of Fresno, eastern Fresno County and some of Tulare and Kings counties.
Nunes’ departure from Congress could have the domino effect of opening up several seats in the Legislature. Although they haven’t officially jumped in, Assemblyman Devon Mathis, R-Visalia, and State Sen. Melissa Hurtado, D-Sanger, indicated last week they were getting messages encouraging them to run for the Central Valley seat.
Unrelated to Nunes, Quirk on Thursday said he decided not to seek a sixth term in his seat, which represents some major California players, including Silicon Valley and part of the Bay area.
Quirk, perhaps in a nod to his future plans, said he wants California to meet its greenhouse gas reduction goals and stop the climate crisis, but the best way to do so is through the private sector and regulators.
WHAT TO DO WITH A $31 BILLION SURPLUS?
Earlier this year, analysts at the LAO announced a projected $31 billion surplus in next year’s budget ($51 billion if you count Proposition 98 spending). Now, lawmakers are laying out just how they want to spend it.
A surplus that big is exciting news until you add in the complication of the Gann Limit, a 1970s-era law that limits how much the state can spend. If the state hits the threshold, it must send more money to schools and some money back to taxpayers through rebates.
Last year, California avoided hitting the Gann Limit, in part, by sending out Golden State Stimulus checks. This year, Democrats say they want to invest in infrastructure.
Leaders in the State Senate and Assembly laid out preliminary goals last week.
Assemblyman Phil Ting, who runs the lower chamber’s budget committee, said he wants to spend a “significant portion” of the surplus on infrastructure, including $10 billion for school facilities and $10 billion for transportation projects.
That would, in theory, mean lawmakers wouldn’t have to send as much money back to taxpayers in the form of rebate checks, though they could still send stimulus checks anyway, regardless of the limit. Ting said stimulus checks are still on the table, depending on the feedback lawmakers receive from their constituents.
Read more in today’s story from Sophia Bollag and Lara Korte.
SPECIAL ELECTION FOR ED CHAU’S SEAT
Assemblyman Ed Chau, D-Monterey Park, will soon be Judge Chau of the Los Angeles Superior Court, which means its time to select a replacement.
Newsom, after appointing Chau to the bench last week, called a special election for his seat in the Assembly’s 49th district, to be held April 19. It’s the only majority Asian American state electoral district in California.
Chau’s district today covers Alhambra, San Gabriel, Arcadia and Rosemead in Northeast L.A. Under the current redistricting draft maps, the district would absorb South Pasadena and El Monte next year.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“For many different reasons, this building’s outlived its usefulness, but it’s got a tremendous amount of history.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom getting nostalgic about the “Horseshoe” while giving a tour of the gubernatorial offices. Newsom is the 10th and final California governor to work from the annex, which will soon be demolished as part of a $1.2 billion plan to scrap the old east wing of the Capitol — built when Earl Warren was governor — and replace it with a modernized statehouse, visitor’s center and parking garage.