California Republicans want to tackle fentanyl. But some oppose a $5B bond to fight overdoses
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REPUBLICANS ARE IFFY ON FENTANYL BOND
California Republicans are not entirely sold on a $5.2 billion bond to curb fentanyl overdoses — even though a GOP lawmaker co-authored the bill.
Assembly Public Safety Committee Chair Reggie Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles, and Vice Chair Juan Alanis, R-Modesto, are pushing Assembly Bill 1510, which would fund substance abuse treatment, harm reduction programs, targeting of “high level drug traffickers” and more.
Jones-Sawyer sees the bond as a “comprehensive approach, instead of a bill-by-bill approach” to the fentanyl overdose crisis. Alanis is on board, saying he wants to “look at solutions on both the front end and the back end” of the problem.
But Assemblywoman Diane Dixon, R-Newport Beach, and Assemblyman Joe Patterson, R-Rocklin, think a bond measure may not be the best approach.
Dixon and Patterson say AB 1510 — which would go before voters during the March primary or November general election — would take too long to enact and convert into programming.
“We’re asked to watch the long game,” Dixon said. “And so I’m interested in seeing the benefits and accountability of a long game. But right now, we have a fentanyl crisis here today.”
Dixon, Patterson and Alanis authored Assembly Constitutional Amendment 12, which would enact Alexandra’s Law and require judges to warn dealers they could face homicide charges if they knowingly sell fentanyl that kills people.
The law is named after a 20-year-old woman from Temecula who died after taking half of an oxycodone pill she did not know contained fentanyl.
ACA 12 has not yet been assigned to an Assembly committee, and Dixon wants to see public pressure applied to make that happen. She cited the recent outcry over Senate Bill 14 from Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, a child trafficking bill that passed the Assembly Public Safety Committee after a GOP-led campaign.
“People are now becoming awakened to the failure of the Legislature to launch these bills into the process,” Dixon said.
Patterson favors some of the bond priorities, but he believes the money for fighting fentanyl should come from the state’s general fund. He also wants to see more penalties for dealers and accountability for state spending.
“We should be addressing it at the highest priority,” Patterson said. “Not a 30-year bond that’s going to cost more than twice the amount of money that we’re going to be borrowing. I’d rather take that twice amount and fund it on a regular basis every year, because it is the one of the leading causes of death of Californians.”
Jones-Sawyer said in a statement that those who favor only harsher penalties “are missing the point.”
“Preemptive measures to end demand and actions to help those suffering from addiction save lives and put a stop to the sales of fentanyl and other illicit drugs,” he said. “Locking up dealers happens after someone has died or their lives have been ruined.”
Alanis said he knows he will be fielding questions from his Republican colleagues. But he remains confident about the bond measure, and he also isn’t done pushing for stiffer punishments for dealers.
“I’ve actually found when I talk with my colleagues in private, or even in committee, that they listen,” he said. “They respect my background in law enforcement and know where I’m coming from on that.”
ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS TAKE ON OIL-DRILLING REFERENDUM
A coalition of environmental, public health and community groups are uniting to take on an oil-backed California ballot measure challenging a recent law that prevents oil drilling near homes and schools.
The Campaign for a Safe and Healthy California launched on Wednesday to combat the measure, which will appear on the November 2024 ballot and attempt to repeal Senate Bill 1137.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed SB 1137 in 2022, and it went into effect on Jan. 1. It creates setback requirements for oil and gas wells, preventing the state from approving new drilling within 3,200 feet of hospitals, schools and homes.
The California Independent Petroleum Association reportedly spent millions of dollars on a signature-gathering effort to fight SB 1137. The Secretary of State’s Office announced in February the group had collected enough valid signatures to qualify for the November ballot.
The Campaign kicked off with $550,000 in initial contributions, with $500,000 from the Advocacy Action Fund and $50,000 from the Center for Biological Diversity, according to its Form 497 Contribution Report.
Sen. Lena Gonzalez, D-Long Beach, who co-authored SB 1137, said the campaigners are “fighting for their lives and for a future for all Californians from oil drilling in their neighborhoods.”
“The law passed with overwhelming support from your elected leaders across California to protect communities and bring accountability to Big Oil,” Gonzalez said in a statement. “And now, we are standing with the Campaign for a Safe and Healthy California to hold Big Oil accountable for the decades they’ve spent poisoning our neighborhoods for profit.”
CALIFORNIA JUDGE THROWS OUT BIDEN ASYLUM RULE
Via Gillian Brassil and Michael Wilner
A federal judge in California tossed President Joe Biden’s new immigration policy on Tuesday, writing that the rules for asylum-seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border were unlawful.
U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar, who is based in Oakland, California, wrote that the new rules imposed conditions on asylum-seekers did not align with the intent of Congress. The policy was put in place by the Biden administration in response to an historic surge in migrant arrivals at the U.S. southern border, and offered asylum seekers other pathways to legal status into the country while limiting options for entry at border crossings.
Before requesting asylum in the United States, migrants must have asked for asylum and prove that it was not granted in another country.
Migrants schedule interviews to claim asylum via a mobile application, CBP One, or have a U.S. citizen sponsor them. There are minimal exceptions for health and safety threats.
While Biden’s immigration policies have been criticized on the political right as too lenient, the California lawsuit was brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, which argued they were too harsh.
The Biden administration previously said that the rule was coupled with more legal immigration pathways.
Responding to the ruling, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the Justice Department would quickly appeal the decision. Tigar stayed the ruling for two weeks to allow the appeal to go forward.
“We strongly disagree with today’s ruling and are confident that the Circumvention of Lawful Pathways rule is lawful,” Mayorkas said in a statement.
Read more in The Sacramento Bee.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“The Legislature weakened itself by not showing up and that relationship between the branches has never been the same. We love to piss on the administration and Gavin, but that’s something that was our fault. It was never rectified.”
- Former Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, in the Los Angeles Times. Rendon believes lawmakers’ departure from the Capitol during the COVID-19 pandemic empowered the Newsom administration.
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This story was originally published July 26, 2023 at 4:55 AM.