A few takeaways as Newsom seals fate of this year’s state bills

Good morning. Here’s what you need to know to start your day.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk is now empty after he decided the fate of hundreds of bills approved by state lawmakers this legislative session.
On issues including the environment, healthcare and artificial intelligence, the laws our governor decides to approve and reject say a lot about his priorities for California.
One predominant theme this year, explained Laurel Rosenhall, California politics editor and Sacramento bureau chief for The Times: “the state is low on money.”
The state’s massive budget deficit meant lawmakers were limited in their approach to policy bills, “so a lot of the things that got passed were things that wouldn’t cost very much,” she noted.
Laurel pointed to another factor this year: The inescapable national election between Vice President (and longtime Californian) Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.
“There could be political reasons to veto some bills that would bring a lot of attention to California in a year when he’s really wanting to help the Democrat win for president,” Laurel said.
Here are a few of the most consequential approvals and vetoes Newsom made to cap this legislative year — and what they tell us about state and national politics as 2024 winds down.
Wrangling the burgeoning AI industry remains controversial
The benefits and hazards of AI remain a hot topic across the world — and California’s Silicon Valley drives much of the lucrative tech at the center of those hopes and fears.
Although Newsom approved bills related to limiting AI’s use in Hollywood and political deepfake ads, he vetoed the most controversial bill.
SB 1047, authored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), sought to require AI companies to develop guardrails to prevent the technology from being used to conduct cyberattacks and other “critical harm.”
Although the bill garnered support from AI researchers, Elon Musk and economic equity advocates, it was opposed by Meta, ChatGPT maker OpenAI and several Democratic lawmakers, including Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco).
Newsom vetoed the bill Sunday, saying it could give the public a “false sense of security about controlling this fast-moving technology.”
“… The bill applies stringent standards to even the most basic functions — so long as a large system deploys it,” he wrote in his veto message. “I do not believe this is the best approach to protecting the public from real threats posed by the technology.”
His decision wasn’t all that surprising, Laurel said, given Newson’s “very deep ties to Silicon Valley.”
“He very much embraces California’s role as this cradle of innovation,” she said.
And as Times reporters Taryn Luna and Wendy Lee noted this week, Newsom continues to tread lightly with Big Tech so as not to stifle that innovation. But the sustained debate on the topic makes it clear that the AI dilemma is not going anywhere.
Newsom rejected some immigration-related bills his progressive base typically supports
The governor vetoed two bills that aimed to expand services for undocumented immigrants in the state, including one that would have allowed them to participate in a subsidized home loan program.
In his veto message for AB 1840, Newsom pointed to “the finite funding available” for the program and said expanding eligibility “must be carefully considered within the broader context of the annual state budget.”
The other, AB 2586, would have allowed college students who are undocumented to be employed by the universities. Newsom rejected it, citing concerns for “potential criminal and civil liability for state employees” who may run afoul of federal laws.
“Both of those are bills that normally you would expect him to sign because they were supported by constituencies that are very much part of his … progressive base in California,” Laurel explained, noting that immigration issues have been a maelstrom in this election cycle.
Action on reparations ended up a sliver of the initial legislative push
After years of research and deliberation, this was to be the year California’s work on reparations for descendants of enslaved African Americans “was supposed to go from concept to reality,” Laurel noted.
“It was interesting to see how far the state was willing to go on that,” she said. “The truth is, [it] wasn’t very far.”
Only a portion of the reparations-related bills drafted at the start of this year’s legislative session made it through both chambers and to the governor’s desk. Of those, he signed a handful, including:
Newsom also signed AB 3089, which requires the state to issue a formal apology for California’s role in slavery and its legacy of racism against Black people. You can read the full apology here.
Critics have accused Democratic lawmakers of taking an easier, symbolic approach rather than committing to exploring more substantive policies, including cash payments.
The day before Newsom signed the apology bill, he vetoed two other reparations-related bills, as Tayrn reported:
“One sought to begin the process of reversing racially motivated land and property seizures under the Freedman Affairs agency that lawmakers declined to approve. The other would have expanded Medi-Cal coverage, pending federal approval, to include benefits for medically supported food and nutrition.”
Here’s more Times coverage on the fate bills faced at Newsom’s desk this year:
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