Will Robo Bosses Be Banned?

California lawmakers have taken a significant step forward in regulating the use of artificial intelligence (“AI”) in the workplace by passing Senate Bill 7, a bill aptly referred to as the “No Robo Bosses” Act. If Governor Newsom signs the bill into law—a decision he must make by September 30, 2025—SB 7 would take effect on January 1, 2026. It would have an immediate impact, including prohibiting employers from relying solely on AI to make decisions regarding employee discipline or termination. Below, we highlight the most salient aspects of SB 7 and provide recommendations for employers moving forward, should Governor Newsom sign the bill into law.

SB 7 uses the term “automated decision systems” or “ADS” to define AI tools as: [A]ny computational process derived from machine learning, statistical modeling, data analytics, or artificial intelligence that issues simplified output, including a score, classification, or recommendation, that is used to assist or replace human discretionary decision-making and materially impacts natural persons. Story

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California Labor Commissioner Awards $8.55 Million in Grants to Local Prosecutors

As part of the Workers’ Rights Enforcement Grant program established in 2023, the California Labor Commissioner’s Office has awarded $8.55 million in grants to 16 local prosecutors. The purpose of these grants is to help local governments enforce labor laws, including wage payment violations and other employment practices illegal under state law.

Usage of these grants is likely to result in an increased number of investigations into alleged Labor Code violations. The grants may enable local prosecutors’ offices to establish specialized labor law enforcement units and increase prosecutions of California employers who violate the law.

Grant recipients include the following:

• Los Angeles District Attorney — $750,000
• Fresno City Attorney — $750,000
• San Mateo District Attorney — $750,000
• Orange County District Attorney — $700,000
• San Francisco City Attorney — $600,000

Employers can avoid running afoul of the law by familiarizing themselves with the jurisdiction in which they conduct business. They should also respond to investigations by local law enforcement agents, just as they would to the Labor Commissioner’s office.

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Fall Protection Tops OSHA Citation Tables for 15th Year

• Fall Protection citations topped OSHA’s tally of most frequently cited workplace safety standards for fiscal year 2025, the agency said last week.
• Disclosing its preliminary data at the 2025 NSC Safety Congress & Expo, OSHA stated that the list highlights persistent compliance issues and underscores the need for more substantial safety efforts across various industries.
• Fiscal year 2025 marks the 15th consecutive year that Fall Protection-General Requirements tops the list, with 5,914 violations at the latest count. The federal government’s fiscal year ends on Sept. 30.
• Another related citation, Fall Protection–Training Requirements, ranked as the eighth-most cited, with 1,907 instances.

More

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Will California Hamper Arbitration in PAGA Employment Lawsuits?

In Leeper v. Shipt, the California Supreme Court will revisit the ongoing question of whether, and to what extent, employees can pursue litigation in court for violation of the California Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), Labor Code § 2698, et seq., despite signing valid and binding arbitration agreements. Story

AB 889 at Finish Line

Assembly Member Heather Hadwick (R-Jackson) amended her AB 889 on September 5, 2025. AB 889 makes changes to the annualization rule of fringe benefits for work on both public and private construction projects by requiring annualization to apply to all employer payments not made directly to the worker and by eliminating the exemption that the director of the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has determined that annualization would not further the purposes of the law. WECA, ABC of California, and AGC-San Diego all oppose the measure, which is sponsored by the California-Nevada Conference of Operating Engineers and the District Council of Iron Workers. A laundry list of unions support it.

The amendment added Assembly Members Chen (R-Brea), Flora (R-Ripon), Gallagher (R-Chico), and Senator Rubio (D-West Covina) as authors, and clarified that vesting of pension contributions must occur within the first 500 hours worked, and struck language in the bill that mentions the United States Department of Labor Field Operations Handbook. These changes were made at the request of the Newsom administration, which means a veto is unlikely.

The Senate approved AB 889 yesterday, 35-0, with five Republicans voting aye (Dahle-Chico, Choi-Irvine, Grove-Bakersfield, Jones-Escondido, Strickland-Huntington Beach, and Valladares- Lancaster). Senator Choi initially voted no, and all the other Republicans, except Dahle and Strickland, abstained. When the call was lifted, Choi changed his vote and joined the other Republicans in support. Republican Senators Alvarado-Gil, Niello, Ochoa Bogh, and Seyarto abstained.

The bill now returns to the Assembly, where it can be voted on as soon as today. Newsom has 30 days to sign or veto, and AB 889 will take effect on January 1, 2026.

We asked Hadwick to submit a clarifying letter to the Assembly Daily Journal, and although Hadwick said she would consider it, she didn’t like the first draft. A second draft was submitted, but she told opponents that she would not submit it or any letter to the Journal.

Hadwick could still hold the bill in the Assembly, but her refusal to file a letter in the Journal makes that unlikely, after what will likely be strong bipartisan support in the Assembly.

Newsom could veto the measure, but with the amendments his administration sought being adopted, that is very unlikely.

The bill will take effect in January. WECA will publish guidance for contractors this fall.

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Construction Spending Slide Deepens

• Nonresidential construction spending slipped 0.2% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.24 trillion, according to an ABC analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data.
• Private nonresidential outlays dropped 0.5% for the month, though public nonresidential construction ticked up 0.3%, according to the report. Spending decreased in seven of 16 nonresidential categories, including manufacturing and commercial work.
• The dip marks the third consecutive monthly decline, as tariffs rise and labor shortages resurface. “It may be a bleak second half of the year for the construction industry,” said Anirban Basu, ABC chief economist.

Story

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It Ain’t Over Till It’s Over

California lawmakers won’t be able to cast the final votes of the 2025 session until Saturday morning, marking one of the latest final days of the session in recent history. Lawmakers published the final piece of new bill language, a bill to extend the state's greenhouse gas trading program, at 10:21 a.m. on Wednesday, meaning AB 1207 can’t be taken up on the Senate floor until 72 hours later, Saturday, under legislative rules. The session will extend beyond that time, as they debate the bill on the floor before it heads to the Assembly for a vote to approve the amendments.

Lawmakers often waive the rules, which end the session at midnight on Friday, along with other deadlines, allowing them to continue working into Saturday during the first year of a legislative session. But veteran lobbyist Chris Micheli, who has worked in the Capitol for over three decades, said this is the first time in his memory that lawmakers are expected to adjourn early Saturday and then return later in the day for votes.

The delay came as Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders scrambled to hammer out a package of climate and energy measures that extended beyond Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning. The first of those bills, a proposal to establish a West-wide electricity market (AB 825), arrived at 5:43 a.m., while legislation to boost in-state oil drilling (SB 237) and to backfill the state’s wildfire fund (SB 254) came in after 9 a.m.

Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire told his chamber on Wednesday to "pack extra socks" in preparation for a marathon end of session, where they will have to be back Saturday morning to "complete our business. We are going to be working late, ladies and gentlemen, here into the evening on Friday,” McGuire said, adding “I would anticipate that we are going to be working into the morning hours of Saturday." Micheli said this is the latest that lawmakers have introduced bills since voters passed Proposition 54 in 2016, which established the 72-hour rule.

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Groups Spend Big Bucks to Send CA Lawmakers on Sponsored Trips to Far-Off Places

Nearly 100 special interest groups spent over $820,000 last year to send California legislators to distant locations such as Hawaii, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, and Israel, writes CalMatters. About three-quarters of the Legislature, or 92 Democratic and Republican lawmakers, received free trips, according to financial disclosure reports. As in previous years, particularly in 2022 and 2023, the largest sponsor of travel last year was the California Foundation on the Environment and the Economy. The nonprofit paid nearly $260,000 to take more than 40 lawmakers on domestic and international trips. The foundation is an unusual umbrella organization that encompasses corporations, oil companies, environmental groups, and other entities. Its international trips, called “study tours,” let representatives from these special interest groups mingle with lawmakers.

Story

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Former AZ Senator Kyrsten Sinema buys $2M Estate

Former U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema paid $2 million for an estate in Cave Creek. The property, which does not belong to an HOA, has recently undergone several additions and has sufficient space to build a casita or a large toy barn. Sinema served from 2019 to 2025 as a United States senator from Arizona. A former member of the Democratic Party, Sinema became an independent in December 2022. Sinema served three terms as a state representative for the 15th legislative district from 2005 to 2011, one term as the state senator for the 15th legislative district from 2011 to 2012, and three terms as the United States representative for the 9th district from 2013 to 2019.

Sinema was considered a key swing vote in the Senate during the 117th and 118th Congresses, when it was almost evenly split between Democrats and Republicans. On March 5, 2024, she announced she would not seek reelection and was succeeded by Democrat Ruben Gallego.

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Players Gonna Play

Earlier this year, California lawmakers delivered a historic victory for champions of more housing construction by exempting most urban apartment developments from the California Environmental Quality Act, a 50-year-old statute that Yes In My Backyard advocates and the building industry have long blamed as an impediment to building more homes.

A bill proposed Monday night, just days before the end of the legislative session, would punch a tiny hole in that landmark law that appears to apply to just one proposed apartment building in California — in the district represented by the incoming leader of the state Senate.

Senate Bill 158 would subject any project within a city of more than 85,000 but fewer than 95,000 people and within a county of between 440,000 and 455,000 people to the state’s environmental review law.

That only describes one place in California, according to 2020 Census data: Santa Barbara, a city represented by Sen. Monique Limón. Earlier this year, Democrats in the state Senate chose Limón as the body’s next leader. She is set to replace Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire, who is termed out in 2026.

Story

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Immigration Crackdowns Intensify Construction Labor Woes

• Ramped-up immigration enforcement has impacted nearly a third of construction firms, according to a survey released Aug. 28 by the Associated General Contractors of America and the National Center for Construction Education and Research.
• Labor shortages continue to be the main reason for project delays, with 45% of contractors mentioning worker gaps as the cause. Ninety-two percent of respondents said they struggle to fill open positions.
• The survey highlights how labor issues and immigration enforcement intersect with broader policy pressures, like tariffs, which 16% of firms say have already caused project changes, according to the report.

Story

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Discredited Bureau of Labor Statistics Says Demand For HVAC, Electrical, and Plumbing Workers is Expected to Grow

Organizations are launching programs aimed at expanding access to skilled trades at a time when the federal government is predicting above-average growth in these jobs over the next decade.

The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which includes information on approximately 600 occupations, states that the need for HVAC-R mechanics and installers is expected to grow by 8% and add about 40,100 openings per year through 2034. That’s “much faster than the average for all occupations,” BLS says.

Electrician employment is projected to grow 9% over the decade, with approximately 81,000 openings projected each year on average, according to the BLS. 

The need for plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters, and general maintenance and repair workers is projected to increase by 4% over the next decade, according to the data. 

Story

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Hanks’ Award at West Point Cancelled by Trump

Last time we mentioned that former Governor Schwarzenegger’s Hall of Fame Induction was on hold, possibly because of his opposition to Prop 50.

President Donald Trump recently applauded the decision of the US Army Academy to cancel an award ceremony for actor and veterans advocate Tom Hanks, accusing the celebrity of being “woke” in a post on Truth Social. “We don’t need destructive, WOKE recipients getting our cherished American Awards!!!” Trump wrote. “Hopefully, the Academy Awards, and other Fake Award Shows, will review their Standards and Practices in the name of Fairness and Justice. Watch their DEAD RATINGS SURGE!”

The West Point Association of Graduates alumni association announced in June that Hanks would be recognized for his work in several movies, where he portrayed U.S. service members, and his advocacy for building the World War II memorial on the National Mall. Hanks also supports service members through the profits of his coffee company, HANKS for Our Troops.

Robert A. McDonald, chairman of the alumni association, said in June that Hanks has “done more for the caring of the American veteran, their caregivers and their family” than many other Americans.

The actor’s ceremony to receive the Sylvanus Thayer Award, which is awarded to an “outstanding citizen” with a record of service exemplifying “Duty, Honor, Country,” was set for Sept. 25.

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Utah Ordered to Redraw Congressional Districts Ahead of the 2026 Elections

On Aug. 25, a federal judge ordered Utah to redraw its congressional map, making the state one of 13 where district boundaries might change before the 2026 elections. Notably, on August 29, Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) signed a new congressional map into law, aimed at gaining five Republican U.S. House seats. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) scheduled a special election for Nov. 4, 2025, to approve a constitutional amendment for redrawing the state's congressional districts through 2030. In the Utah ruling, Judge Dianna M. Gibson stated that the Utah Legislature violated voters’ right to reform their government by overriding voters’ chosen redistricting rules. Story

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Trump’s War on Wind Has This Construction Crew Stuck 15 Miles Out at Sea

Connor Walcutt is among the workers caught in the crossfire of President Trump’s war on the offshore wind industry, which recently culminated when officials halted the $5 billion Revolution Wind project. The administration’s stop-work order surprised even the shellshocked clean-energy sector because the development’s skyscraper-sized turbines are largely complete.

Story

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Out with the Old

Democrat Eric Jones, a wealthy former venture capitalist, is launching a primary challenge against longtime incumbent Rep. Mike Thompson. The upheaval in California’s 4th Congressional District highlights an ongoing intergenerational divide within the Democratic Party as first-time candidates nationwide seek to unseat older lawmakers. Thompson, 74, has represented the Napa Valley area in Congress for over 25 years.

Jones’ first ad highlights this issue as he criticizes Trump’s cuts to safety-net programs. “Trump is cutting Medicaid to give tax cuts to billionaires,” Jones, 34, says in the spot, which shows him driving down a rural dirt road in a Jeep with his dog at his side. “And too many Democrats have been in Washington so long they’re not up to the fight.”

Jones also discusses growing up in Maine as the son of a nurse and a disabled veteran who did not finish high school. He mentions that his family sometimes depended on food stamps and disability checks. He also commits in the same ad not to accept campaign contributions from corporate PACs and lobbyists or to trade stocks as a member of Congress. Jones’ campaign said the spot will air on broadcast and cable TV in the Bay Area and Sacramento media markets.

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Encinitas Councilmember Charged with Felony Assault

Encinitas Councilmember Luke Shaffer appeared in a courtroom for his criminal arraignment, where he heard about his charges in front of a judge. The charges include one count of felony assault and two misdemeanor counts of hit-and-run driving and willful omission to perform duty, which basically means that a public official knowingly failed to do something they were legally required to do as part of their job. Details of the incident that led to the charges haven’t been made public yet. Still, court documents indicate that Shaffer made threats to a member of the public, “did unlawfully commit an assault upon” a person, and was “the driver of a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in damage to property.”

Story

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Everything Old is New Again

On Aug. 26, California Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher (R-3) introduced Assembly Joint Resolution 23 (AJR 23). The resolution would “express the consent of the Legislature for specified counties to form a new state from within the current boundaries of the State of California and would urge Congress to accept and embrace that consent.”

Gallagher said the proposal was a response to the Legislature’s approval of Proposition 50 for the Nov. 4, 2025 ballot. Proposition 50 is a constitutional amendment that would allow the state to use a new, legislature-drawn congressional district map for 2026 through 2030. Here’s a brief history of past attempts to divide California into two or more states.

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California Supreme Court Eases Employer Risks in Arbitration Fee Rule

The California Supreme Court’s decision in Hohenshelt v. Superior Court might seem unfavorable to employers at first. After all, the Court declined to find that Code of Civil Procedure section 1281.98—California’s “pay arbitration fees on time or lose arbitration” rule—was preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA). However, a closer look reveals a critical silver lining: the Court has softened the strict interpretations that had been emerging from the Courts of Appeal.

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Revised Guidance for National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program Released by DOT

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, on August 11^th, unveiled updated guidance aimed at increasing the flexibility and efficiency of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program. Created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the NEVI program allocates $5 billion over five years to states for the deployment of electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure. The revised guidance removes a requirement that charging stations be placed every 50 miles along major highways, a provision some states with sparse populations had objected to. If a state determines (and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) certifies) that its Alternative Fuel Corridors for EVs are “fully built out,” the state may use NEVI funds for charging infrastructure on any public road.

The updated guidance was issued approximately six months after the Department of Transportation (DOT) rescinded the initial NEVI guidance, allowing the agency to review and revise it. The rescinded rules included language directing states to develop their EV infrastructure deployment plans through engagement with rural and disadvantaged communities, as well as guidance on how the plans address evacuation needs and resilience strategies.

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Legislators Hold Cal/OSHA’s Feet to the Fire

Two things became clear during yesterday’s joint legislative hearing in the wake of a state audit questioning Cal/OSHA’s performance: lawmakers don’t see the agency’s problems as purely a function of personnel shortages, but also as one of leadership. They fully intend to keep it in their crosshairs.

The hearing of the Joint Legislative Audit, Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement, and Assembly Labor and Employment (L&E) committees followed up on the July report by State Auditor Grant Parks. L&E Chair Liz Ortega (D-Hayward) called for the audit after hearing workplace safety complaints from farmworkers.

“The audit has made it very clear what I have known for some time, and that is that Cal/OSHA is not working,” she says. “The scale of Cal/OSHA’s tasks, the lives lost, and the duration of the problem calls for an approach beyond just staffing. What we really need to focus on is structural change.”

Added Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles), “The results of this audit were stunning.” Story

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Watch Your Legislators

Sign up for beta access to My Legislator, your weekly report on what your state legislators said, voted on, introduced, and more. The beta version will run weekly until the regular legislative session adjourns on September 18, and they’d love your feedback on what works, what doesn’t, and what you would like to see.

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California State Minimum Wage for 2026 Announced

California’s Department of Finance recently announced the minimum wage increase for 2026. The minimum wage in California will increase from $16.50 per hour to $16.90 per hour on January 1, 2026. This increase applies to all employers, regardless of size. This increase is based on the state’s annual cost-of-living adjustment tied to the U.S. Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), subject to a cap of 3.5% or the actual CPI-W increase, whichever is lower, as provided under Labor Code §1182.12(c).

Additionally, the minimum salary for full-time exempt employees will increase from $68,640 to $70,304 per year on January 1, 2026, in accordance with California’s requirement that exempt employees must earn at least twice the state minimum wage for full-time work (40 hours per week, 52 weeks per year). More

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Schwarzenegger’s Hall of Fame Induction Delayed by Newsom?

Former Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s name was conspicuously absent from the list Governor Gavin Newsom read off during a reception previewing the incoming class, according to an attendee, who was granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive situation. This seeming omission raised questions about whether Schwarzenegger’s vocal opposition to Newsom’s gerrymandering push was a factor in the delay, according to Politico.

Newsom spokesperson Bob Salladay declined to confirm who is on the list but said a planned unveiling of the full class has been delayed, likely until November, which would almost certainly mean after a Nov. 4 special election on a new House map drawn to exclude Republicans.

“Nobody’s being snubbed,” Salladay said. “The list remains the same, and we’re going to have a public announcement in a few months.”

But the development stunned people in Schwarzenegger’s orbit, some of whom had been invited to the event with the understanding that the former governor was going to be announced as an inductee.

His spokesperson, Daniel Ketchell, said Schwarzenegger had been notified of his planned induction but was not participating in the lead-up, including the Monday evening event. Ketchell mentioned he did not know why the former governor’s name was not announced but emphasized that politics never influenced their Hall of Fame decisions, noting that Schwarzenegger, who created the Hall of Fame when he was in office, enshrined liberal icon Jane Fonda.

As governor, Schwarzenegger championed efforts to strip line-drawing power from the Legislature and give it to an independent commission, work that will be effectively overridden if voters pass Newsom’s ballot measure.

While Newsom and his allies have portrayed the plan as a necessary response to Texas Republicans redrawing their map at President Donald Trump’s request, Schwarzenegger has promised to “terminate” the ballot initiative. He could be a powerful messenger given his widespread name recognition and credibility with many California voters as an anti-Trump voice. He also has the wealth to significantly support the opposition campaign.

Schwarzenegger has shared few details so far about how he plans to get involved in what is shaping up to be an enormously costly campaign. But he offered a glimpse this week: He announced he’s selling a “f*** the politicians, terminate gerrymandering” T-shirt and donating the proceeds to the League of Women Voters, an opponent of partisan redistricting.

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Republicans’ Plan to Split California Revealed

The latest Republican-led effort to allow rural parts of California to split off and form their own state highlights a new reality in California politics. While previous plans to divide the state focused on letting the rural north separate, sometimes in combination with parts of southern Oregon or Idaho, Assemblyman Gallagher’s plan would divide the state between east and west. This reflects how influential the Inland Empire region, around Riverside and San Bernardino, has become in shaping California’s Republican priorities. Story

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Arizona Can't Afford L.A.-Style Dysfunction

By Danny Seiden, the president and CEO of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry

A recent headline in Politico asks, “Is anyone in charge of Los Angeles?” It’s a good question. The article charts the march of labor union Unite Here Local 11 through the city’s policymaking apparatus and the bruising fights the union has picked with the city’s job creators, especially those in the hospitality industry.

Meanwhile, some members of the city council express occasional concern about the damage that’s been done to the city’s reputation and whether it will be able to host a Super Bowl, World Cup, and Summer Olympic Games in successive years, but not enough, apparently, to do anything to broker a lasting truce between the union and the private businesses that are now looking for more welcoming environments.

Instead of disputes being settled at the negotiating table with the help of elected officials, the voting booth is increasingly where Big Labor and job creators square off. 

We’re fortunate that in Arizona we don’t have city governments that are as openly hostile to job creation and a competitive business environment as L.A. 

Not yet, anyway. We can’t get too comfortable. 

That’s because Unite Here Local 11’s territory not only includes Southern California, but Arizona, too. The union is growing its presence here, organizing job-killing ballot measures, targeting specific businesses, throwing up roadblocks to development, and backing candidates for city council positions.

In Glendale, the union was the driving force behind Proposition 499 in 2024, a measure that would have burdened the city’s hospitality sector and taxpayers with costly new mandates. A year later, the union was back at it again, organizing Propositions 401 and 402, which attempted to block the development of a critical phase of what is slated to be the state’s largest resort, employing more than 2,000 Arizonans. In each case, the business community rallied to stop the union.

The pattern has been clear: if you’re a business that dares to succeed, you’re a target. Take Scottsdale, where Unite Here operatives helped circulate the petitions aimed at freezing the new Axon corporate headquarters development, an investment promising thousands of high-paying jobs. Stopping job creators in their tracks seems to be part of the union’s playbook. Like it did in Glendale, the business community came together to stand up for Scottsdale jobs. So did a bipartisan coalition of state lawmakers and Gov. Katie Hobbs.

The union isn’t content to restrict its influence to ballot measures and development fights. Unite Here is increasingly active in Arizona municipal politics, lining up behind city council candidates in Tucson, Phoenix, and Glendale who share their agenda. Their candidates may speak in platitudes about fairness and equity, but what they really offer is a city government more hostile to employers, less friendly to entrepreneurs, and far more willing to use public policy as a cudgel against job creation.

We’re also seeing a similar playbook from other California-based unions. The Service Employees International Union just announced a ballot initiative to cap the salaries of Arizona hospital executives, regardless of the size or complexity of the health system they lead, never mind that the proposal tramples any semblance of the right to contract.

Supporters may say the measure is about fairness, but it would just make it harder to recruit and retain the kind of medical leadership our state needs to ensure access to lifesaving care. It’s obvious that this isn’t about strengthening health care in Arizona; it’s about importing California’s labor fights to our ballot.

Arizona can’t afford to import Los Angeles-style dysfunction. We’ve built a reputation as a state where job creators are welcomed, where investment is encouraged, and where opportunity is still available for those willing to work hard and take risks. That reputation is one of our greatest competitive advantages, but it won’t endure if we ignore the encroachment of those who would rather grind our economy to a halt in service of their narrow political agenda.

Arizona’s job creators are resilient, but they need policymakers at all levels of government to stand firm and defend our pro-jobs environment, and call out efforts, no matter how cleverly disguised, that would weaken it. 

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California Supreme Court Issues Decision on Good-Faith Defense for Minimum Wage Violations and Enforcement of Paid Leave Obligations under HWHFA

In Iloff v. LaPaille, the California Supreme Court addressed when “liquidated” or double damages may be avoided by an employer for minimum wage violations and how employees can pursue paid leave claims under California’s Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act (HWHFA), the statewide paid sick and safe time law. Story

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Off-the-Clock Cannabis Use in California: What Employers Need to Know Before Testing Employees

Since January 1, 2024, California law has protected employees and job applicants from discrimination based on their off-duty cannabis use. Employers can still enforce drug-free workplace policies, but AB 2188 added Government Code section 12954 to limit how and when cannabis testing can be used and what kind of tests are permissible. More

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Bechtel Teams on Construction Suicide-Mental Health Initiative

• Construction giant Bechtel and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) have launched “Hard Hat Courage,” an initiative to address the industry’s high suicide rate and prioritize mental health alongside physical safety.
• The initiative aims to provide construction firms of all sizes with mental health and suicide prevention resources and education, focused on the building industry.
• AFSP has developed “toolbox talks” that contractors can bring to the jobsite, offering guidelines for conversations to challenge the stigma surrounding suicide and mental health.

READ MORE

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California Civil Rights Department (CRD) Ramps Up Enforcement of the California Fair Chance Act (CFCA)

Evaluating candidates with known criminal records in compliance with the California Fair Chance Act (CFCA) poses a challenge for covered employers because the CFCA limits the discretion employers have to rely on such records when making hiring decisions. To make matters worse, the state agency that oversees and enforces the CFCA, the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), has been requiring strict compliance with the CFCA’s requirements. The CRD also interprets the CFCA’s requirements liberally in favor of applicants and, arguably, beyond what the statute requires. With the increasing number of administrative charges and lawsuits alleging CFCA violations, employers can proactively fortify their CFCA compliance. Read More

Democrat Assemblyman Visits 

Assemblyman Corey Jackson toured WECA Riverside this week for a discussion about workforce development and how beneficial it is for young adults to begin adulthood debt-free. On the tour, Assemblyman Jackson heard from a fourth-year WECA electrical apprentice about the great opportunity that apprenticeships are for students. Joined by Dave Everett with WECA’s Government Affairs team, Jackson sat down to learn more about WECA’s commitment to apprenticeship, training, and safety. Thank you, Assemblyman Corey Jackson, for taking time out of your busy schedule in the California State Legislature to learn more about our members and students!

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California’s Lawmakers Love to Talk, But These Eight Barely Say a Word

Since the legislative session began in December, the average lawmaker has spoken for 6.3 hours. But eight lawmakers have talked for around an hour or less – six of them Republicans, who are a superminority in the Legislature, according to a CalMatters Digital Democracy analysis.

Quiet Republicans include a trio of assemblymembers from Orange County and a north state senator. Two other quiet Republicans represent competitive Assembly swing districts in the Inland Empire. A pair of Democratic assemblymembers – one from the San Joaquin Valley, the other representing the Chino area – also have been keeping their thoughts mostly to themselves this year. Story

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Truck Makers Sue California Regulators

According to POLITICO, a group of truck makers sued California regulators on Monday to block an industry agreement on zero-emission sales targets, arguing that the state no longer has authority to enforce its pollution regulations for heavy-duty vehicles.

The suit, filed in U.S. district court for the Eastern District of California, argues that truck manufacturers shouldn't have to abide by the state's sales targets for zero-emission trucks, or a separate voluntary agreement that the truck makers signed with California in 2023, because Congress overturned California’s Advanced Clean Truck rule in June through the Congressional Review Act.

The U.S. Justice Department sent cease-and-desist letters to the California Air Resources Board, but the state agency has continued to try enforcing the rules, the suit says. A CARB spokesperson said the agency doesn't comment on pending litigation.

“Plaintiffs are caught in the crossfire: California demands that [original equipment manufacturers] follow preempted laws; the United States maintains such laws are illegal and orders OEMs to disregard them,” lawyers for Daimler Truck North America LLC, International Motors LLC, Paccar Inc. and Volvo North America LLC wrote. “This situation is not tenable.”

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A Deceptive Ballot Game

John Fleishman recently wrote about AB 699. “Picture this: you’re at the ballot box, scanning a measure called “Better Schools and Roads.” It sounds like a win for the community, but the fine print, tucked away in a voter guide you might never read, reveals a costly tax hike for decades. California’s Assembly Bill 699, racing through Sacramento, wants to make this sleight-of-hand standard. Former State Senator and fiscal watchdog John Moorlach, in an Orange County Register column, puts it bluntly: ‘Assembly Bill 699 makes it easier to pass feel-good tax measures that sound great on the surface but hit your wallet later.’ This isn’t about clarity; it’s about masking costs to sway voters.

AB 699 reflects a deeper issue: the progressive left’s relentless drive for wealth redistribution through ever-higher taxes. Current law, shaped by bipartisan reforms in 2015 and 2017, demands ballot measures disclose tax rates, duration, and revenue. AB 699 would let proponents swap that transparency for vague phrases like “See voter guide for details,” which is the intent. This bill would move critical fiscal impact information from the ballot itself (which everyone reads) over to the voter pamphlet that is mailed out. It’s a deliberate move to obscure the financial impact of bonds and taxes, making it easier to fund sprawling government programs by hiding their true price from voters.

This isn’t Sacramento’s first attempt to dilute ballot transparency. Dan Walters, in a CalMatters column, calls AB 699 part of a ‘political Whack-A-Mole’ game, noting a similar 2019 bill was vetoed by Governor Newsom for reducing openness. Backers, including low-income housing advocates, claim AB 699 helps pass bonds, but its effects stretch to all bond measures, potentially hiding tax hikes. The assumption seems to be that voters are too distracted to dig into voter guides or websites. It’s a tactic that doesn’t just undermine informed choices: it erodes trust in the democratic process.

If lawmakers believe new taxes or bonds are vital, they should make the case openly, rather than rely on vague ballot labels to nudge voters along. AB 699 bets on apathy, assuming people won’t notice they’re signing up for heavier tax burdens. Hiding costs to push an agenda isn’t leadership: it’s manipulation. Transparency isn’t a hurdle to overcome; it’s the foundation of fair governance.

What will Gavin Newsom do? This bill sailed through the State Assembly on the strength of Democratic votes and has gone through a couple of State Senate committees on partisan-line votes. Undoubtedly it will pass out of the liberal upper chamber and head to Newsom’s desk. AB 699 is a test of his priorities as he eyes a future beyond Sacramento, with whispers of presidential ambitions growing louder. In 2019, he vetoed a similar bill, citing the need for transparency. Will he hold that line, appealing to moderate swing voters who handed Trump the presidency over Harris by demanding clarity and accountability? Or will he bend to the progressive delegates who dominate Democratic nominating conventions, eager to fund expansive programs through obscured tax hikes?

Newsom’s decision on AB 699 will be one of many signals as to whether Newsom is playing to the far-left base or betting on the broader electorate’s demand for honesty. Californians deserve a governor who values truth and transparency, not one enabling Sacramento’s tax tricks.

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DOT Restarts EV Charger Funding After Court Blocked Halt

Key provisions from a program designed to develop a national network of electric vehicle charging stations were recently updated by the Trump administration.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Aug. 11 announced a series of modifications and updates meant to reform the Biden-era National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program. The Department of Transportation’s aim is to further facilitate state agencies’ access to resources for building new EV charging stations.

A federal court blocked an earlier move by the Trump administration to freeze the program, ruling that DOT overstepped its authority and attempted to override the will of Congress. Story

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Valley Candidates Boast Booming War Chests Ahead of 2026 Battles for Legislative Seats

Candidates for the California Legislature have submitted their fundraising reports for the first half of the year, spanning Jan. 1 through June 30.

Senate District 12

Three Republicans are vying for Senate District 12, currently held by Sen. Shannon Grove (R–Bakersfield), who will be termed out of office next year.

·      Fresno County Supervisor Nathan Magsig ($446,322.25)

·      Navy veteran and former Congressional candidate Michael Maher ($17,315.77)

·      Kern County Supervisor David Couch ($7,500)

Senate District 14

·      Asm. Esmeralda Soria (D–Fresno) ($338,886.51)

·      Fresno City Councilmember Nelson Esparza ($206,081.25)

Senate District 16

·      Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D–Bakersfield) is the lone candidate to have filed paperwork for the race so far ($136,748.74)

Assembly District 31

The race to succeed Asm. Joaquin Arambula (D–Fresno) includes the following three candidates:

·      Fresno Building Healthy Communities CEO Sandra Celedon ($94,599.02)

·      Fresno City Council member Annalisa Perea ($256,666.29)

·      Republican James Polsgrove ($22,047.69)

Assembly District 27

Soria (D–Fresno) is leaving her spot in the Assembly to run for the State Senate, making it a two-person race so far:

·      Merced Mayor Mike Murphy ($191,417.32)

·      Merced City school board member Priya Lakireddy ($100,050)

Story

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California Supreme Court Backs Solar Companies in Rooftop Payments Fight

The California Supreme Court sided with rooftop solar advocates Thursday in ruling that a lower court gave too much deference to state utility regulators in a legal fight over solar incentives.

The California Supreme Court sent the case back to the Court of Appeals, First Appellate District to reconsider on the merits, agreeing with rooftop solar advocates who argued that the lower court should have applied a 1998 state law that reduced the level of deference the court owed to the California Public Utilities Commission to interpret its own statutory authority.

Thursday's decision also disapproved three other instances when lower courts applied high deference to the regulators in decades-old rulings involving ratepayer advocates and Southern California Edison.

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Acting NLRB General Counsel Issues Guidance for Salting Cases

On July 24, National Labor Relations Board Acting General Counsel (AGC) William B. Cowen issued Memorandum GC 25-08 (the “Salting Memo”), which provides case processing guidance to the Regions for investigating refusal-to-hire and refusal-to-consider-for-hire cases that arise in the “salting” context. Read More

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ICE Raids Leave the Future of Construction Labor in Limbo

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raided an Alabama elementary school construction site on July 23, WKRG5 reported, resulting in the arrest of 11 people.

It’s one of the latest examples of ICE cracking down on jobsites believed to be employing immigrants unauthorized to work in the U.S.

During the 2024 presidential campaign, President Donald Trump used heavy anti-immigration rhetoric, but it was tough to know how much the administration would follow through once in control in the White House. That lack of clarity has cleared somewhat, said Anirban Basu, chief economist for Associated Builders and Contractors.

Story

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California Approves Landmark AI Employment Regulations

On June 30, 2025, the California Civil Rights Council (“CRC” or “Council”) secured final approval for revisions to Title 2 of the California Code of Regulations, which governs administration of the California Civil Rights Department (CRD). These regulations interpret California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act’s (FEHA) prohibitions against discrimination in recruitment, hiring, promotion, training and termination, specifically inserting requirements and expectations when using “artificial intelligence, machine-learning, algorithms, statistics, and/or other data processing” to facilitate human decision-making. These revisions take effect on October 1, 2025, hence creating some urgent compliance needs for employers using AI-based tools in the Golden State. Read More

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More States Grant Unemployment Benefits to Striking Workers

In the span of just 36 days this spring and summer, the number of states offering unemployment benefits to striking workers doubled, to four.

New Jersey was the first to offer such benefits, beginning in 2018. New York followed in 2020.

Then Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson (D) signed SB 5041 by Sen. Marcus Riccelli (D) on May 19, establishing unemployment insurance benefits for striking workers in the Evergreen State.

“This bill levels the playing field for workers who are fighting for fair wages and working conditions,” Ferguson said in a press release. “Strikes are a last resort, and while they are an important tool for workers, they can be financially debilitating. This bill ensures workers have the resources they need to effectively bargain with their employers.”

Less than a month and a half later, on June 24, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D) signed SB 916 by Sen. Kathleen Taylor (D), providing unemployment benefits for striking workers in the Beaver State.

Story

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News of an Employee’s Arrest or Pending Criminal Charges Poses a Dilemma for California Employers

Every day, the press reports on arrests for one reason or another in California and other states. Many of those arrested have jobs. In turn, the employers of the arrestees in California are confronted with a dilemma: on the one hand, the fact of the arrest may raise concerns about an employee’s suitability for continued employment (e.g., if the employee stands accused of violent, threatening, destructive, or other serious misconduct); on the other hand, state law affords the employee certain rights. Navigating between these competing risks requires careful consideration of the specific circumstances. Read More

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And Finally: Jellyfish Jam Up a Nuclear Power Plant

A jellyfish invasion has taken a French nuclear power plant offline, reports POLITICO. The French company EDF recently announced that jellyfish had entered the cooling system of a plant in Gravelines over the weekend, disabling three of its reactors (no word on who gave them the key). A fourth reactor shut down (the plant’s six reactors each generate 5.4 gigawatts of power). An EDF spokesperson said that the jellyfish only swarmed the “non-nuclear part of the installations” (that’s reassuring, who’d want a swarm of massive radioactive jellyfish?) and that the company is conducting diagnostics and repairs to resume operations. EDF uses water from the North Sea for cooling, where rising temperatures and the overfishing of jellyfish predators have led to an increase in jellyfish populations. Cue the Roger Corman movie.

Arizona Will Get a New Representative Adelita Grijalva won decisively in a special Democratic primary on Tuesday, making it almost certain she will win the heavily Democratic 7th District in the September general election. Support from Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez boosted her progressive credentials. Her previous experience as a county supervisor also helped her campaign. But perhaps most importantly, name recognition played a key role: She shared the last name of her father, Democratic Rep. Raúl Grijalva, who held the seat for over 20 years before passing away in March due to cancer. [Politico]

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Trump Likes Apprentices Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer has visited several training facilities on a 50-state tour since being sworn in in March, and signed a deal in April to launch a national apprentice program for firefighters and emergency responders at the DOL’s D.C. headquarters. “We know that we’re not going to see four-year universities deliver all of that workforce,” Chavez-DeRemer said during a keynote speech at the Western Governors’ Association conference last month.

Trump aims to have at least 1 million active apprentices, and Chavez-DeRemer told WGA attendees that she hopes to surpass that target and reach 1.2 million apprentices to “really deliver on this.” Since Trump returned to the White House earlier this year, more than 145,000 people have joined apprenticeship programs, and nearly 700,000 registered apprentices are nationwide, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

But the high-stakes bet is happening at an awkward moment. The Trump administration has spent months hobbling labor regulators, rolling back worker-friendly rules, antagonizing unions, slashing jobs across the federal government, and cutting funding for other workforce development programs. “People talk a good game about, ‘Oh, we need more [apprentices],’” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in an interview. “But if you're not willing to invest in the infrastructure around that, it's meaningless.”

Some employers that heavily rely on apprenticeships are cautious about relying on them as the sole solution to meet the need for skilled workers. “We see Registered Apprenticeships as one of many different workforce development solutions," said Michael Altman, senior manager of federal regulatory affairs at the Associated Builders and Contractors. “There are many construction contractors that have their kind of on-the-job training that do not align with Registered Apprenticeships.”

Trump spoke confidently about apprenticeships during his first term. Still, DOL spent most of those four years developing a separate apprenticeship model that would give employer groups more control in designing and overseeing training programs. The Biden administration later weakened these efforts. As a result, the emphasis on Registered Apprenticeships, which unions and Democrats also support, marks a significant shift for Trump this time around. [Politico]


 

California Voter ID? Senator Tony Strickland and Assemblyman Carl DeMaio announce the filing of language for a VOTER ID initiative. This is the first step toward ultimately gathering signatures to get this on the November 2026 ballot. (Photo credit: @EytanWallace)

In a related story, CDM was picked as the Biggest Troublemaker and Most Duplicitous in a poll by Capitol Weekly, a publication of Open California, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 2012 to inform, enlighten and educate Californians about public policy and state governance, and to provide a platform for engagement with public officials, advocates and political interests.

In their latest survey, conducted in partnership with Paul Mitchell of Political Data Inc., thousands of Capitol denizens were polled on their favorite and least favorite legislators.

“The bombastic Republican who has a long history of fighting with labor and generally not playing well in the policy sandbox took this category with 31.6 percent of the vote, by far the widest margin of victory of anything polled in this survey. Wiener and Sen. Aisha Wahab (D-Hayward) tied for second with 9.2 percent each. DeMaio seems to relish a fight, with his opponents on the left as well as with his presumed allies on the right. We could recount his greatest hits, but is there a point? Just about a year into his first term in the Assembly, the community seems to know what he’s about or at least has formed a strong opinion.”

I like Carl a lot. There is no more vigorous advocate for Fair and Open Competition in Sacramento than Carl.

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New CEQA Exemptions in 2025: Streamlining Housing & Infrastructure Development in California. On Monday, June 30, 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law two bills, AB 130 and SB 131, which provide new exemptions from and streamline the process under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). AB 130 creates a statutory exemption for qualifying infill housing projects, simplifies the CEQA review process for residential projects in the coastal zone, and provides procedural changes to the administrative review process to prevent unnecessary delays for new development projects. SB 131 focuses on accelerating public interest projects, such as clean water infrastructure, park and trail projects, and community support facility projects, by creating new exemption categories and streamlining processes for projects that would otherwise be CEQA-exempt but for a single condition. Both bills also include non-CEQA-related provisions that seek to support infill and public interest development further. More

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Why One Union Became One of the Most Pro-Housing Voices in California. When Gov. Gavin Newsom last week signed the biggest effort in years to undo red tape for housing development, he singled out one group for credit. “This is the third of the last four years we’ve been together signing landmark housing reforms, and it simply would not have happened without the Carpenters,” Newsom said. The California Conference of Carpenters has emerged in recent years as one of the most influential voices on housing in Sacramento. The new law rolls back California’s landmark environmental review law to exempt urban apartment developments, an idea once considered a legislative third rail. It’s the most significant yet in a string of bills intended to boost housing production that lawmakers have passed with the union’s help. Story


 

America’s broken construction industry is a big problem for Trump

The Empire State Building, finished in 1931, was erected in just 410 days. That same year, construction on the Hoover Dam began. It was meant to take seven years, but was built in five. Such feats now seem almost unimaginable. Last year, half of America’s construction firms reported that commercial projects they were working on had been delayed or abandoned. In 2008, California voters approved a high-speed rail line connecting Los Angeles to San Francisco, with completion scheduled for 2020. It will be at least a decade late. America’s inability to build is a problem for Donald Trump. Although he has again delayed levying “reciprocal” tariffs until August 1st, the president’s commitment to reviving American manufacturing through protectionism is as strong as ever. But can the country build the factories, warehouses, and bridges needed to reindustrialize, and do so quickly enough? And if the administration is to achieve its ambition of winning the artificial-intelligence race, it will have to ramp up the construction of data centers and electrical infrastructure as well. Story

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New Challenger for Valadao Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains is running for Congress. The Bakersfield Democrat and physician announced today that she is running to replace Republican Rep. David Valadao next November, reports CalMatters’ Maya C. Miller. Bains was elected to the Assembly in 2022 and has garnered a reputation as a moderate who sometimes breaks ranks with her party. As the lone Democrat who voted against a 2023 law backed by Gov. Gavin Newsom to penalize oil companies for alleged price gouging, Bains was temporarily stripped of a committee post by the Assembly speaker at the time. She will challenge an incumbent who has represented the San Joaquin Valley in Congress for 10 of the last 12 years. A first-time congressional candidate, she is running to the right of fellow Democrat Randy Villegas, a progressive school board member in nearby Visalia who has run on an economic populist, anti-Trump platform. Before Trump signed the federal budget bill, Valadao repeatedly pledged that he would not support any measure that would harm Medi-Cal recipients. But each time the measure came before him, Valadao voted to advance the bill. More than two-thirds of Valadao’s district, which includes parts of Kings, Tulare, and Kern counties, are on Medi-Cal. Together with his eight other California GOP colleagues in the House, they represent 2.5 million Medi-Cal enrollees.

Valadao has proven incredibly difficult to unseat. He won his race last fall by more than three percentage points and has nearly $1.4 million on hand after raising over $870,000 in the previous quarter. Additionally, most of the Medicaid spending cuts won’t take effect until after the midterms, as Republicans have delayed work requirements until 2027 and financing changes until 2028. More

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California’s Wind and Solar Projects Face New Federal Hurdles California’s drive to run its electric grid entirely on wind, solar, and other clean sources of energy just got harder after President Donald Trump signed a sweeping new budget law. The changes in federal tax incentives could affect the feasibility of new solar and wind projects, as the state is counting on them to provide more electricity for Californians. A state law requires 100% of electricity to be powered by renewable, carbon-free sources by 2045, while also moving to electrify cars and trucks. Incentives championed by former President Joe Biden were rolled back, shortening the timeline for the industry to obtain tax credits. Developers of wind and solar projects now face a new, shorter deadline for receiving tax credits, most of which now expire at the end of 2027 instead of no sooner than 2032. Story

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Rooftop Reprieve Assemblymember Lisa Calderon agreed Tuesday to remove language from a bill that would have cut subsidies for many rooftop solar customers. The Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications committee eliminated a provision in AB 942 that aimed to reduce payments to homeowners who installed solar panels before 2023 for selling surplus energy back to the electric grid through a process called “net metering”. One group of customers, homeowners whose annual electric bills are under $300, would still be affected under the proposed law. They would no longer receive a credit funded with cap-and-trade auction revenues. This change enables California to better support households in need of additional assistance with their energy bills, the committee stated in its analysis. The amendments also removed a requirement that new homeowners receive fewer subsidies than previous owners when buying homes that received net-metering credits. The California Public Utilities Commission voted in 2022 to end net metering for new solar customers, deciding instead to lower payouts. [Politico]

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Rule Breakers Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer kickstarted an “aggressive deregulatory” effort this week that would slash more than 60 department regulations, including eliminating overtime and minimum wage protections for home health care workers and union organizing rights for migrant farmworkers. The deregulation push comes after Trump’s January executive order mandated “agency leaders to cut 10 existing rules, regulations or guidance documents for every new one created.” Also on the chopping block: “affirmative action requirements for registered apprenticeships.”

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Top 10 CNBC rated states for overall quality of life, taking into account several factors:

1.     Vermont

2.     Maine

3.     New Jersey

4.     Minnesota or Maine, I always get them confused, one has maple syrup, I believe

5.     Connecticut

6.     Hawaii

7.     North Dakota

8.     tied among Massachusetts, Nebraska, Virginia

The bottom states for overall quality of life:

50.  Tennessee

49.  Texas

48.  Indiana

47.  Utah

46.  Louisiana

45.  Georgia

44.  Alabama

43.  Arkansas

42.  Oklahoma

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Newsom Signs Budget, Highlights Tax Reduction for Veterans Governor Gavin Newsom (henceforth GGN) signed the 2025-26 state budget on June 27^th. He issued a press release with the headline: “Governor Newsom signs balanced state budget that cuts taxes for vets, fully funds free school meals, builds more housing & creates jobs.” The governor signed the main budget bill (AB 102, Gabriel) and numerous trailer bills the same day they were approved by the Assembly and Senate. Newsom’s approval was expected, as he and the Democratic leaders of the Legislature had negotiated the budget privately and unveiled it three days before the votes. The new budget, which replaced the placeholder approved by the Legislature in mid-June to meet lawmakers’ constitutional deadline to approve a budget or forfeit their pay, includes $321 billion in total spending from all funds, up from $298 billion in the budget for the current fiscal year. The tax relief for some veterans is a relatively small part of the budget, estimated to reduce revenue by $85 million. The relief will come in the form of an income exclusion for up to $20,000 in federal military retirement benefits for veterans who have other income that doesn’t exceed $125,000 (or $250,000 for joint filers). The exclusion is retroactive to January 1 and will expire in 2030. The Legislative Analyst’s Office estimated this will result in a tax reduction for 130,000 veterans. “The maximum benefit available under the proposal equates to a $600 tax reduction for the average military retiree,” the analyst added. [CalTax]

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How Did the Santa Ana Streetcar Construction End Up Costing Over $150 Million Per Mile? Orange County’s grand jury is seeking answers about what went wrong with the Orange County Transportation Authority’s Santa Ana Streetcar, highlighting that the project is now six years behind schedule, nearly $400 million over budget, and has no clear ridership plan for a four-mile rail line. The streetcar has long been one of the county’s most contested projects, with the original idea first proposed in 2006 when Santa Ana officials presented the plan. Story

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And if you’re Not Livid Already, Grand Jury Finds 'Lavish Spending' by Stanislaus County Agency The executive director of the Stanislaus Council of Governments, Rosa De Leon Park, was placed on paid leave after a grand jury report criticized “rampant and lavish spending” at the agency, which works on city and county transportation issues. The grand jury questioned approximately $150,000 in spending. “The grand jury accuses the StanCOG Executive Director of using taxpayer dollars on rental cars, luxury hotels, meals, and first-class flights,” KCRA News reported June 27. “The grand jury report says the Executive Director drove in rental cars virtually nonstop for three and a half years, totaling more than $100,000. The report says a lot of the rentals were ‘elite, premium, and luxury vehicles.’ The Executive Director claimed the cars had been ‘free upgrades and not at her request,’ according to the report. However, the jury claims that internal documents … contradict that.”

Additionally, the grand jury flagged 39 nights spent at Ritz-Carlton hotels in five cities, costing over $33,000 in total. “The same credit card was used at other luxury hotels such as the Hotel del Coronado and Vespera on Ocean,” the report stated. The grand jury also questioned charges for a $560 suitcase, more than $1,900 paid to scammers without challenge, and over $400 for a pontoon boat rental. Over seven months, the grand jury found $10,000 worth of purchases with no receipts. “What the civil grand jury found is deeply troubling,” the Stanislaus Council of Governments said in a written statement. “We are a public agency that is trusted to safeguard taxpayer dollars and deliver results for our community. This alleged level of waste and mismanagement demands immediate action. We are deeply disturbed by the supposed waste, mismanagement, and lack of accountability within StanCOG’s management. If true, these actions are unacceptable.” [KCRA]

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Kevin Faulconer has a New Job Former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer is now the CEO of the Lincoln Club. “… and he’s ready to protect jobs and push back against policies that make San Diego more expensive,” the Club wrote. Since leaving office in 2020, Faulconer has run for governor and county supervisor. He has also worked as a lobbyist. Fun fact: The last two elected Republicans in San Diego now lead the Chamber of Commerce (Chris Cate) and the Lincoln Club. [VOSD]

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White House Announces NLRB Nominations On July 17, 2025, the White House announced the nominations of Scott Mayer, Chief Labor Counsel at The Boeing Company, and James Murphy, a former career official with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), to serve as members of the NLRB. The Board has been without a quorum since the termination of former Board Member Gwynne Wilcox. The appointment of two new Republican members will enable the NLRB to issue new decisions and regulations once again. CDW’s statement on the nominations can be read here.

 

2025-26 State Budget Approved

On Friday, June 27, the Legislature passed, and the Governor signed, the 2025 Budget Act along with several related bills (including numerous trailer bills that implement policy changes tied to the budget). The package represented a final agreement among three parties (the Governor and the Democratic leaders of both houses; Republicans are no longer included as their votes are not necessary to enact a budget) for the 2025-26 state budget. The budget deal advances many of the Legislature’s priorities, such as reducing the Governor’s proposed cuts to the Medi-Cal program. It relies more on reserves and internal borrowing than what was proposed in the May Revision. In a notable, and probably unprecedented move, the entire budget deal was made contingent on the Legislature’s approval and the Governor’s signature on SB 131, a budget trailer bill that authorized a new CEQA exemption for infill housing projects and other environmentally-beneficial initiatives, as well as providing an extra $500 million appropriation to local governments through the Homeless Housing and Assistance Program (HHAP) in FY 2026-27.

Despite contentious hearings on a related housing trailer bill, AB 130, and significant opposition from the environmental community to SB 131’s changes to CEQA, the Legislature came together to pass both bills, which Governor Newsom signed on June 30. While all components of the final budget deal have been approved, action will continue on additional trailer bills throughout the rest of the 2025 legislative session, and modifications to the budget are entirely possible given the considerable uncertainty of fiscal policy at the federal level.

What wasn’t widely discussed in the media but was noted by several bloggers was the concessions made to construction unions.

John Fleishman wrote:

“Media outlets around the state are heralding this as a triumph for housing reform, praising streamlined permits, CEQA exemptions, and such. Yet behind this carefully crafted narrative lies a troubling truth: these bills represent yet another extreme expansion of pro-union labor mandates, but you would not know it because it is largely unreported by the media. With a liberal in Governor Newsom who has made no secret of his progressive agenda and a legislature that has received millions in union campaign contributions, such government overreach was predictable. The public gets promises of housing relief while powerful union interests secure unprecedented control over California’s construction industry. It is time to examine what these politicians are delivering to their constituents.

AB 130 strikes at the heart of competitive free enterprise in California. The bill creates new CEQA exemptions for infill housing developments that meet local zoning and planning standards, but the devil lives in the details, which most media outlets ignore. Section 25 of the legislation exempts housing projects from environmental review while imposing minimum wage requirements and prevailing wage rates on developments that were never subject to these costly mandates—a costly mandate in a bill that purports to make it easier to build housing.

Most small-scale residential construction projects are not currently covered by prevailing wage requirements, making this a seismic shift in California’s construction landscape. For San Francisco projects exceeding 50 units, the legislation establishes labor standards that must be enforced by joint labor-management committees—entities dominated by union representation. Section 26 further rigs the system by manipulating prevailing wage calculations to exclude non-union data, guaranteeing that union-negotiated rates become the mandatory standard.

While SB 131’s CEQA exemptions appear less explicit in their union favoritism, they trigger prevailing wage laws that funnel construction work directly into union hands. This represents the government picking winners and losers in the marketplace, not genuine policy reform designed to benefit California families.

CEQA reform has long been a priority for Republicans and business advocates, who recognize that excessive environmental regulations strangle economic growth and housing development. Streamlining environmental review for appropriate projects represents sound policy that could benefit California families struggling with housing costs.

However, Newsom and the Democrats in the legislature have weaponized this reform to serve their union allies. By tying CEQA exemptions exclusively to projects that accept union labor mandates, they have transformed a pro-business reform into a tool for government favoritism. Only developments that surrender to these costly labor requirements receive regulatory relief, while projects seeking to operate competitively face the full burden of environmental bureaucracy.

This represents the worst kind of crony capitalism—government using its regulatory power to favor politically connected interests over fair competition. Rather than consistently applying CEQA reform across all qualifying projects, Sacramento politicians use regulatory relief as a carrot to force compliance with their union agenda.

I note that some Republicans voted for this, and I wonder if they slept soundly last night, knowing they used the coercive power of government this way.”

That’s not to say that Governor Gavin Newsom didn’t TRY to make these CEQA by-pass projects more affordable. An earlier proposal included some new language:

• California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) exemptions for housing projects of up to 25 units (10 units in San Francisco) without Labor Code prevailing wage/apprenticeship requirements.
• For projects exceeding 25 units (or 10 units in San Francisco), new construction labor standards may be used as an alternative to Labor Code prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements.
• In Los Angeles, Marin, Monterey, Napa, Orange, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, and Ventura counties, state law would require that 60% of the construction workers shall be paid at a wage rate of no less than $36 per hour and 100% at a wage rate of no less than $24 per hour.
• In Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties, and the City and County of San Francisco, 60% of the construction workers shall be paid at a wage rate of no less $40 per hour and 100% of the construction workers shall be paid at a wage rate of no less $27 per hour.
• For all other counties, 60% of the construction workers shall be paid at a wage rate of no less than $28 per hour and 100% of the construction workers shall be paid at a wage rate of no less than $20 per hour. 
• These new wage rates would be reduced by the hourly cost of health benefits.
• These new wage rates would be adjusted annually based on CPI.
• There would be no apprenticeship requirement.

This alternative was hit with a buzzsaw of opposition from Democrats and their union supporters and the language was quickly dropped.

Time will tell if these changes make a difference and increase the availability of new homes, or slow their inflationary increase.

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Litigation Financing Measure Becomes Law, Delivering Win for Ariz. Legal System Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs on Friday signed legislation establishing new requirements around third-party litigation financing, marking a win for the Arizona business community concerned about the increasing prevalence of outside funders driving up the costs of litigation. The measure, SB 1215, sponsored by Sen. Vince Leach (R-SaddleBrooke), sets the stage for continued reform of lawsuit lending practices. The new law targets a fast-growing industry that funds lawsuits in exchange for a share of potential settlements. While once viewed as a novel tool for legal access, critics argue that the practice has evolved into an opaque, unregulated sector that distorts the legal system and even invites foreign interference in U.S. court cases. Story

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Rule Breakers Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer kickstarted an “aggressive deregulatory” effort this week that would slash more than 60 department regulations, including eliminating overtime and minimum wage protections for home health care workers and union organizing rights for migrant farmworkers. The deregulation push comes after Trump’s January executive order mandated “agency leaders to cut 10 existing rules, regulations or guidance documents for every new one created.” Also on the chopping block: “affirmative action requirements for registered apprenticeships”.

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New Supervisor Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre coasted to an easy victory in a special election for an open seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. Votes are still being tabulated, but Chula Vista Mayor John McCann, down by about 6 points, conceded the race and said in a statement that he had called Aguirre to congratulate her on her win. Both Aguirre, a Democrat, and McCann, a Republican, issued statements that included pledges to address the sewage from Mexico that contaminates the Tijuana River and befouls south county beaches. That’s undoubtedly one of the most pressing issues in the district, one that has also attracted the attention of the Trump administration. Most of the attention outside the district, however, has been on how the results will break a partisan divide on the powerful Board of Supervisors. Aguirre’s win means the board will again have a 3-2 Democratic majority, which will matter as the county wrestles with changes to Medicaid in the Republican megabill and other looming challenges.

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OBBB Smackdown: Governor Newsom told reporters that Central Valley Rep. David Valadao “might as well resign early and I can call a special election” if he votes for Trump’s megabill, which is awaiting House approval. “If he votes for the bill, he should be voted out, period, full stop,” the governor said, calling the legislation “one of the most calamitous and devastating bills of our lifetime.” Newsom slammed Valadao, one of the state’s more vulnerable Republicans, at a Los Angeles news conference touting new film tax credits in the freshly-signed state budget. The governor said that any vote for the federal OBBB would be "the ultimate betrayal,” noting more than 60 percent of Valadao’s constituents rely on Medi-Cal, the state’s version of the federal Medicaid health insurance that covers the poorest Americans. The legislation could boot millions of Californians off the program to help Republicans fund tax cuts. [SV Sun]