Thursday, August 29, 2024

Some Republicans Like PLAs This shouldn’t shock faithful readers, but a handful of Republicans in the State Assembly joined their Democratic colleagues in passing Senate Bill 984 (Wahab) back to its Senate home. As a reminder to readers who haven’t memorized all the critical legislation emanating out of the state orifice, AKA the State Capitol, SB 984 bill requires the Judicial Council and the California State University (CSU), by January 1, 2027, to identify and select a minimum of three major construction projects and subject those projects to a Project Labor Agreement (PLA). Here’s how the Republicans in the Assembly voted. If you are a constituent of any of the AYE votes, feel free to share your opinions politely.

AYES:

Alanis, Juan

Modesto

209-521-2201

Chen, Phillip

Brea

714-529-5502

Davies, Laurie

Oceanside

760-433-7400

Flora, Heath

Ripon

209-599-2112

Wallis, Greg

Rancho Mirage

760-346-6342

NOES: 

Dahle, Megan

Redding

530-223-6300

Essayli, Bill

Corona

951-277-3639

Waldron, Marie

San Diego

858-566-7538

ABSTAIN/ABSENT:

Dixon, Diane

Newport Beach

949-798-7221

Gallagher, James

Chico

530-895-4217

Hoover, Josh

Folsom

916-294-9774

Lackey, Tom

Palmdale

661-267-7636

Mathis, Devon

Visalia

559-636-3440
 

Patterson, Jim

Fresno

559-446-2029

Patterson, Joe

Rocklin

916-435-0501

Sanchez, Kate

Rancho Santa Margarita

949-459-7170

Ta, Tri

Westminster

714-379-0970
 

We’ll report on the Senate vote next time.

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Presto Chango For the last seven months, SB 1162 (Cortese) was a modest bill requiring contractors and subcontractors on public works projects to include a worker's date of birth in public works payroll records and in monthly compliance reports made to the public entity or awarding body for projects with a skilled and trained workforce requirement. It also would have required DLSE to accept and investigate a complaint submitted by a joint labor-management committee (JLMC) alleging a contractor (or subcontractor) did not follow skilled and trained workforce (STWF) requirements.

The bill is sponsored by the California State Association of Electrical Workers, the California State Pipe Trades Council, and the Western States Council of Sheet Metal Workers – all construction union members of the State Building and Construction Trades Council.

Cortese amended SB 1162 last week. The amendments strike the DOB change in the labor code, replacing it with new STWF requirements in PCC §2602 and adding a new §2604.

2602 (2) The contractor, bidder, or other entity will provide to the public entity or other awarding body, on a monthly basis while the project or contract is being performed, a report demonstrating compliance with this chapter. The required monthly report demonstrating compliance with this chapter shall include the full name of, and identify the apprenticeship program name, location, and graduation date of, each worker relied upon to satisfy the apprenticeship graduation percentage requirements of paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 2601.

2604. On or before July 1, 2025, the Division of Apprenticeship Standards shall create and maintain a public online database to verify that a worker graduated from a California apprenticeship program. The database shall be searchable by using the first name, last name, and graduation date of the worker.

One possible explanation for the change is the estimated cost of the investigation mandate. The Assembly Appropriations Committee identified costs of approximately $1.23 million in the first year and $1.16 million annually for the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement to investigate every skilled and trained workforce complaint submitted by a JLMC. The Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) would also incur additional costs to update database systems to reflect the DOB requirement for CPRs and skilled and trained compliance reports.

In a budget year of continued state deficits, Cortese could have been forced to drop the investigation provision and go with the DOB, which was considered to have minor state costs. But this might have failed to satisfy the sponsors.

However, adding §2604 creates a similar programming cost, possibly higher than just the DOB addition.

The bill was re-referred to Assembly Labor and must be heard this week, the final week of the session.

The legislature's rules state that this week is reserved for floor sessions only. However, there are a couple of exceptions, and SB 1162 qualifies for one of them.

The chances of derailing the bill are slim. But knowledge is power.

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Money for You, and You, and You A first-in-the-nation California proposal could make undocumented immigrants eligible for up to $150,000 in state-supported home loans just as immigration has become an incendiary topic in the presidential election.

The California Dream for All program is run by the California Housing Finance Agency, which generates revenue through mortgage loans and not from taxpayers. The measure, AB 1840 (Arambula – D), would open up the program to illegal immigrants; it is likely to pass the California Legislature this week, where Democrats enjoy a supermajority and in a state with the largest share of undocumented immigrants in the country. Unsurprisingly, AB 1840 support has been split along party lines in the Legislature.

Newsom, a top surrogate for President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, declined to say whether he would sign the measure if it clears the statehouse by the August 31 deadline. He would likely decide while Republican nominee Donald Trump criticizes Harris over the influx of migrants at the U.S-Mexico border early on in Biden’s tenure and as Harris moves to the right on immigration.

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California’s Minimum Wage Will Increase Again in 2025 California's minimum wage will increase from $16.00 per hour to $16.50 per hour on January 1, 2025. This increase applies to all employers, regardless of size. The adjustment is based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which saw a 3.18% increase over the past year. Additionally, on January 1, 2025, the minimum salary for full-time exempt employees will increase from $66,560 to $68,640. Because of wage order 16, this change affects the threshold for employers to pay for hand tools. Story

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First-In-Nation Measure to Require Textile Recycling Clears California Assembly Because California is doing a bang-up job of recycling everything, including politicians, California is one step closer to having the nation's first state-level clothing recycling program after the state Assembly passed legislation on Wednesday. State Sen. Josh Newman's "Responsible Textile Recovery Act," SB 707, calls for clothing producers to create and fund an organization to help launch a textile recycling program overseen by CalRecycle. It passed the Assembly 46 to 5 on Wednesday. Newman's bill is meant to reduce textiles that end up in landfills every year. About 1.2 million tons of textiles were thrown out in California in 2021. Newman's office has said that while most of that material could be reused or recycled, only about 15 percent currently is. The bill excludes mattresses and carpets covered by existing take-back programs.

Introduced in 2023, the bill passed the Senate last spring before stalling in the Assembly amid opposition from textile industry groups. Newman negotiated with the groups and made changes to the bill, including excluding retailers with less than $1 million in sales, structuring the program after other "extended producer responsibility" programs, and addressing online marketplaces to clear key Assembly committees this year. The bill heads to a concurrence vote in the Senate. The legislative session ends Saturday. Newsom then has until Sept. 30 to sign the bill, veto it, or let it become law without his signature. If the legislation becomes law, it would still take several years for any clothing recycling program to be operational. It requires a plan to be approved by CalRecycle by July 1, 2030.

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Because California Gas Prices Aren’t High Enough Already Gov. Gavin Newsom wants lawmakers to hold a special session to deal with energy issues, according to four legislative sources. This is a signal that his end-of-session bid to rein in gasoline price spikes is facing opposition among Democrats. Newsom on Tuesday evening floated the idea of a special session to Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire, according to a legislative source who was granted anonymity to discuss confidential negotiations.

The move came after Newsom's office presented bill language to Assembly Democrats earlier to give the California Energy Commission more authority to oversee oil refiners' supplies, a move aimed at controlling gasoline price spikes. The proposal met skepticism from moderates in the Assembly, who were concerned the move risked increasing gas prices, per several sources. Assembly leadership was receptive to taking more time with it in a special session, while some senators balked.

Sen. Nancy Skinner, who authors the refiner proposal in SB 950, said she supports completing it in regular sessions. "I hope we would get it done now," she said. "Be smart, get it done now."

McGuire declined to say whether he supported the idea on Wednesday, but Sens. Lena Gonzalez and Scott Wiener also said they'd like to pass the refinery bill before the regular session ends Saturday. “We don’t need a special session, we should just do the work before recess,” said Wiener.

Several senators said the special session could also incorporate other hard-to-land energy proposals to reduce electricity bills and streamline permitting.

The refinery bill would give the CEC authority to require refiners to provide advance notification of how they plan to make up for lost production during outages associated with maintenance at refineries. It would also authorize the state to require refiners to store more products and to impose penalties of up to $1 million per day for noncompliance. Refinery sources told WECA they would have to use tankers anchored offshore to store refined fuel to comply. #WCGW

Newsom spokesperson Izzy Gardon said Newsom, who was at home in Marin, was still focused on passing the bill during this session. "We're focused on this one," he said.

Newsom has been concerned about gas prices, which rose as high as $6.44 per gallon in the fall of 2022. He called a special session in December 2022 that resulted in SB 1 X-2. This bill directed the CEC to collect and analyze gasoline market data and decide whether to impose new regulations on oil refiners, including a potential profit cap. The CEC has focused on refiners’ inventories as a price driver, leading to the proposal to require more storage. The agency has also said it plans to announce whether to impose a profit cap this fall.

Republican Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo has raised concerns that Newsom's push could raise Nevada state's gas prices since the state gets most of its gasoline from California. Industry representatives from Arizona, which also gets gas from California, have raised concerns.

A range of energy proposals in the Legislature, including those on permit streamlining and electricity affordability, have also struggled to gain approval from the Senate, Assembly and governor’s office in the last days of the session.

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I Want to Be Your Governor. I know we haven’t picked which loser we want for President, and I am already talking about 2026, but…Conservative commentator Steve Hilton is seriously considering a run for governor and is already piquing the interests of Silicon Valley assholes.

Three people in close touch with him told POLITICO that Hilton, the former Fox News host and policy adviser to British Prime Minister David Cameron, is mulling a run to succeed California Gov. Gavin Newsom in two years.

While Hilton and his team did not comment when asked about the story, several prominent political figures in the state conveyed that the Silicon Valley entrepreneur, who has been increasing his public appearances and focus on California public policy, is already deep in discussions about a possible run as a Republican.

“He is thinking very seriously about running for governor, and he is doing it in a very organized way,” said Jim Brulte, former California Republican Party chairman and GOP leader of the state Senate. “I know he’s talking to a lot of the right people because I have heard from a lot of the right people that he’s talking to them.”

His candidacy would be a major test of voters’ appetites to challenge Democratic dogma and conventional wisdom in one of the nation’s most significant, bluest states. It also could help resolve whether deteriorating conditions on the ground — pockets of high crime, homelessness and soaring cost of living — will precipitate a fulsome conversation about alternative leadership that hasn’t happened in decades.

Word of Hilton’s interest has already caught the attention of Silicon Valley leaders, including figures pining for a political disruptor. In an interview, Chamath Palihapitiya, the billionaire tech venture capitalist who has increasingly waded into national and state politics, said Hilton’s emergence could jump-start conversations around various issues plaguing California.

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Andrew Who? GOP Rep. Michelle Steel appears to be distancing herself from longtime ally Andrew Do, an Orange County supervisor facing calls to resign amid a federal probe related to reports that he directed millions of taxpayer dollars to a nonprofit run by his daughter.

Do was previously listed among Steel’s endorsements on her campaign website but had removed his name from the roster as of Monday. Lance Trover, a spokesperson for her campaign, said in a statement that “public officials must be held accountable for their actions, but like any other American, they are entitled to due process of the law. Steel is fighting a close reelection battle this year against Democrat Derek Tran, who has been working to tie Steel to Do’s turmoil.

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I don’t usually comment on the specifics of my sausage-making, but this one caught my eye. FYI, I did not receive any PPP loans. Lobbyist Settlement The lobbying firm California Advisors LLC, including partner Delaney Hunter and former partner William Gonzalez, have agreed to pay $580,000 in damages and penalties over allegations they fraudulently sought a federal Paycheck Protection Program loan during the pandemic. The U.S. Attorney's Office announced the settlement on Monday, noting the loan program wasn’t open to firms that primarily lobby. Hunter and Gonzalez both signed the settlement agreement. They received a PPP loan for $144,340! Cue the tears.

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Third Circuit Holds Multiemployer Pension Fund Claim Cannot Be Enforced due to Unreasonable Delay in Providing Notice of Withdrawal Liability Assessment While California is in the Ninth Circuit, this story caught my eye. In July, the Third Circuit upheld a District of New Jersey decision to throw out a withdrawal liability assessment, finding the multiemployer pension fund was barred from pursuing its claim because the fund unreasonably delayed notification of a withdrawal liability assessment for 12 years.

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), as amended by the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980 (MPPA), sets minimum funding and other standards for multiemployer defined benefit pension plans. Under ERISA and MPPA, an employer that exits a multiemployer plan must pay “withdrawal liability” to the fund to cover the employer’s “share” of the fund’s unfunded vested liabilities.

This is relevant as some contractors who work on PLA projects could be hit with a withdrawal penalty. Story

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California Court Holds Mechanic's Lien Enforceable Despite Failure to Provide Preliminary Notice In a recent case, the California Court of Appeal held that a contractor could foreclose a mechanic's lien over the project owner's objection, even though the contractor had not provided a preliminary notice of lien to the project owner's construction lender. The court based its decision on the lack of prejudice to the lender.

As you all know, California law requires contractors to provide a preliminary notice of mechanic's lien to any lender on the project. The notice is a prerequisite to the lien's validity. In the case at issue, the contractor did not provide the lender with a preliminary notice. When the owner did not pay the contractor, the contractor sought to foreclose its lien. The owner opposed the foreclosure on the ground that the lien was invalid because the preliminary notice had not been given to the lender, who had a trust deed.

In a recent case, the California Court of Appeal held that a contractor could foreclose a mechanic's lien over the project owner's objection, even though the contractor had not provided a preliminary notice of lien to the project owner's construction lender. The court based its decision on the lack of prejudice to the lender. Story

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OSHA’s Walkaround Rule Raises Questions of Liability, Safety OSHA’s new employee walkaround rule has raised many questions. The final rule was enacted on May 31, allowing employees to select a third-party representative to be present during OSHA inspections. The agency has touted the change to improve inspections by increasing worker representation and making it easier for compliance officers to obtain more information about workplace safety. “Worker involvement in the inspection process is essential for thorough and effective inspections and making workplaces safer,” Doug Parker, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health, said in a press release. Story

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When Does Job-Hunting By CA Lawmakers Raise Questions? Like we need more lobbyists. CalMatters reports: At the end of this year’s legislative session, nearly a quarter of the 120 lawmakers will depart and collect their final state paycheck in late December.

Some hope to start in a new elected office next year, while others will return to their previous jobs. However, based on recent history, at least one in five will land a job at companies or organizations trying to influence California’s government.

And as CalMatters Digital Democracy reporter Ryan Sabalow explains, some may be job hunting while still voting on bills that could affect their prospective new bosses.

Outgoing Republican Assemblymember Devon Mathis of Visalia: “August is kind of … the interview period. You see people that are trying to shop, you know, for a third-house gig or something like that.”

While legislators are still in office, state ethics guidelines allow voting on bills that could benefit a “significant segment” of an industry as long as they don’t specifically affect their would-be employer. Mathis has started a public relations firm and agreed to work for an energy company, but he said he checked with state ethics officials to make sure he wasn’t violating any laws.

And lawmakers aren’t required to publicly disclose if they’re in job talks with an outside organization trying to influence state policy. Ethics experts and good governance advocates argue the rules should be updated so that the public can at least know if a lawmaker has a new job lined up while they’re still casting votes. When legislators abstain from voting, which is common, there’s also no way to know if it’s because of a conflict of interest.

After leaving office, a one-year “cooling off period” prevents lawmakers from directly lobbying their former colleagues. But they can still work for a company that’s lobbying the Legislature.

A CalMatters analysis of 180 lawmakers who left office in 2012 found that about 40 registered as lobbyists, worked as political consultants, or took executive-level jobs with companies or organizations actively lobbying at the Capitol. Story

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Does Construction Need More Access to Opioid Overdose Meds When people think about the potential dangers of working on a construction site, falling off scaffolding or being injured or killed by heavy machinery are typically the situations that come to mind. To be sure, these are all very real risks. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that construction workers already face the highest number of fatal work injuries compared to any other profession. Story