Editor’s note: Sacramento Snapshot is a weekly series during the legislative session detailing what Orange County’s representatives in the Assembly and Senate are working on — from committee work to bill passages and more.
It might be time for the legislature to slow down, according to Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon.
The legislature has been “incredibly effective” over the past decade, Rendon said in an interview in his Sacramento office. So as this year’s session gets underway — and as legislators are preparing to tackle the governor’s request to penalize big oil companies that raked in profits while gas prices skyrocketed — Rendon has his sights set on oversight.
“I want to make sure that we slow down, and we don’t pass reforms on top of reforms without knowing the stuff we’ve been doing is effective or not,” said Rendon, D-Lakewood.
That oversight includes money spent on major issues like broadband, utilities and wildfire prevention and housing.
“We’ve doled out a lot of money to the counties and municipal governments (for housing),” Rendon said. “I think now is a really good time to do oversight and figure out how they’re spending that money to the extent that it’s been effective, to the extent that it’s been ineffective and how we can make corrections to some of the things we’ve been doing on that issue.”
Rendon, whose district included just a sliver of Cypress before redistricting, has said he plans to retire as speaker this summer after holding the powerful Assembly leadership position for about seven years. He will term out of office in 2024.
Under his tenure, Rendon granted committee chairs greater authority over the fate of legislation that comes before them. It’s this system — where committee chairs can “attack the issues how they want to” — that allows the legislature to be effective and prioritize a wide array of issues, Rendon said.
Housing and homelessness, a massive budget deficit, climate change and transportation are the major issues Rendon expects to drive the legislative session this year.
And then there is the special session, which is a call by the governor for the legislature to focus on a singular, specific issue: In this case, that’s oil companies that made profits while gas prices soared.
While members of the governor’s team recently met with the Democratic caucus, details of just how the legislature plans to potentially penalize or fine oil companies — or even how to define excessive profit — is still in the works. Just like with any other legislation or topic, legislators will hold hearings.
“We’re going to do the work,” Rendon said.
Natural gas relief
Aside from fuel costs, several Orange County legislators have lambasted extraordinarily high natural gas costs, astronomically driving up energy bills.
Meant to offset some of those costs, California’s Public Utilities Commission unanimously decided to speed up the rollout of a credit that is expected to give customers about $50.
The move was heralded by Senate Republicans, including Minority Caucus Chair Janet Nguyen of Huntington Beach.
“My colleagues and I will continue to advocate for our constituents and remain committed to easing the burden on Californians who are still recovering from the economic effects of the pandemic and rising inflation,” Nguyen said.
And Assemblymember Avelino Valencia, D-Anaheim, said the credit will provide “much needed but temporary relief.”
“Too many Californians are struggling to afford basic necessities, including gas and electricity, amid the recent rise in costs,” Valencia said. “Those payments alone will not resolve the ongoing concerns of rising gas costs. Californians continue to pay higher utility costs than those in other states. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Legislature to develop a more permanent solution for addressing the rising cost in energy.”
In other news
• In response to the recent mass shootings that rocked California, Newsom, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Sen. Anthony Portantino, D-Burbank, unveiled legislation last week to curtail the ability to carry firearms in some public places as well as place greater restrictions on concealed carry permits. Concealed guns would be banned at churches, hospitals, parks and privately owned businesses.
• Sen. Dave Min, D-Irvine, is working on expanding current law to give abuse victims access to copies of photos or digital evidence at no cost.
• Fullerton Sen. Josh Newman, who chairs the Education Committee, introduced a bill requiring schools to provide at least 30 minutes of daily recess time for K-8 students — and that could not be taken away as a form of punishment unless there was an immediate threat to the safety of any student.
• Assembly Republicans unveiled their slate of public safety proposals last week, which includes legislation from Assemblymember Laurie Davies of Laguna Niguel to strengthen California’s APPS database that cross-references gun purchasers against other records to catch people who might be prohibited from owning a firearm. There’s also a bill from Assemblymember Diane Dixon of Newport Beach that would require the Office of Emergency Services to maintain a website of resources for domestic violence victims.
• Rep. Tri Ta, R-Westminster, wants to enhance penalties for people who are not California residents — or are still new to the state — and committed petty theft or shoplifting anything worth less than $950. His bill would make it an offense that could be punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for up to three years.
Source: Orange County Register
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