Why isn’t Gavin Newsom Signing Senate Bills? – Pasadena Now

Gov. Gavin Newsom holds a press conference at a Home Depot in San Jose to sign retail crime legislation into law on Aug. 16, 2024. Photo by Florence Middleton, CalMatters

With each batch of bill signings and vetoes by Gov. Gavin Newsom, it’s becoming more and more noticeable: He isn’t approving many bills authored by state senators.

Is he holding their legislation hostage to get the Senate to play ball on his special session on gas prices?

His office says “no.”

• Newsom spokesperson Izzy Gardon: “We generally announce bills in the order in which the Governor reviews them. The timing of his actions is not tied to any broader legislative dynamics.”

Still, here are the numbers since the regular session ended Aug. 31: Newsom has signed 50 Assembly bills and vetoed six. He has signed just one Senate bill and vetoed another. Monday, the governor signed only one measure: Assembly Bill 2867, which is aimed at helping California residents recover art and other personal property stolen during the Holocaust.

Newsom called the special session just hours before lawmakers were supposed to adjourn for the year so he could push an energy bill package that failed to pass in the regular session. While the Assembly gaveled into session, Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire balked at the call and declined to convene his members, but later added he would only answer the call if the Assembly agreed on the bills first. The Assembly could vote on bills on Oct. 1.

When asked for comment on Newsom’s lack of action on Senate bills, McGuire spokesperson Kerrie Lindecker replied: “This question is best directed to the Governor’s Office.”

Sen. Scott Wiener has a couple of high-profile bills on Newsom’s desk, and he’s holding events to try to persuade the governor to sign them. Monday, the San Francisco Democrat joined doctors, pharmacists and patients in support of his bill that would tighten regulations on pharmacy benefit managers — intermediaries between drug manufacturers and insurance companies — in hopes of reducing prescription drug prices. And today, Wiener plans to gather with the National Organization for Women, youth groups and others to push his legislation on artificial intelligence safety that has drawn national attention and is strongly opposed by Big Tech.

Reminder: Newsom has hundreds of bills left to decide before his Sept. 30 deadline. CalMatters is tracking some of the most noteworthy.

CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.