Will last-minute bond issues make California ballot?

The most recent measure to let the state borrow billions barely passed in March. In a poll out this month, nearly two-thirds of Californians said it’s a bad time to issue more IOUs.

But that isn’t stopping supporters of climate action and school construction from trying to get bond issues on the November ballot — and they say by waiving state election law, they have a little more time than Thursday’s deadline for other ballot measures.

• Senate leader Mike McGuire, in a Monday statement: “We’ve been working like hell on the issue of bonds, and we’re in the home stretch. We do have a little bit of wiggle room — bond measures can be added to the November ballot until July 3. We are working with the Secretary of State and Legislative Counsel to ensure we meet the July 3 deadline.”

School backers are pushing a $14 billion bill that would be California’s largest school construction bond in decades. If voters approve, the bond would pay for new roofs, upgraded electrical systems and other repairs at long-neglected schools in mostly rural and low-income areas where passing local bond issues is nearly impossible.

The school bond may be competing for remaining state borrowing capacity, in part, with a proposed climate bond issue. This proposal started at $15.5 billion last year, but has been reduced significantly. Environmental advocates, disappointed by some cuts in the budget deal announced by Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders over the weekend, are now pinning their hopes on this bond issue.

• Katelyn Roedner Sutter, California state director for the Environmental Defense Fund, in a statement: “California needs a climate bond now to balance our investment in proven climate solutions with the scope of the threats we face from extreme heat, drought, wildfires, and pollution. It is imperative that ongoing negotiations result in a climate bond so Californians can vote to boost climate action.”

But Newsom, who championed Proposition 1, the mental health measure that included $6.4 billion in bonds, has acknowledged that the close call for Prop. 1 has “sobered” conversations about how much voters are willing to borrow.

“They deserve results and they demand results,” he told reporters in May. “And so when we’re out there promoting these bonds, we need to be mindful of that.”

In other ballot measure news:

• Public housing: Legislators voted Monday to formally withdraw from the Nov. 5 ballot a constitutional amendment to no longer require local voter approval for public housing.
  
  
• Health care: An initiative just qualified to expand a program for specialized medical care for children, but Politico reports that children’s hospitals could be close to a deal to pull it in exchange for a budget trailer bill to provide more state money instead. 

• Public safety: Legislative leaders aren’t talking about it publicly, but KCRA reports they may push through a measure to compete with one already on the Nov. 5 ballot to overhaul Prop. 47 (passed by voters in 2014) and increase punishments for retail theft and drug traffickers.

After the contentious 2020 presidential election when former President Donald Trump promoted baseless claims of widespread voter fraud, Shasta County has become embroiled in disputes over election integrity.

Last year, its Board of Supervisors canceled its contract with Dominion Voting for ballot-counting machines. In May, Cathy Darling Allen, Shasta County’s registrar, retired after 20 years, saying she faced threats, harassment and stress.

The anger among Republicans and Democrats has become so entrenched that some residents are concerned their community will be divided for good, explains Jessica Huseman of Votebeat, in partnership with CalMatters.

• Jenny O’Connell, resident: “We can’t just stop talking to each other. ‘Oh, gee, I’d love for my kid to go, but those other kids are there. I’d love to go to dinner, but the wrong people own that restaurant.’ It’s going to start breaking down our economy.”

The political divide is similar in other parts of the country, including deep-red Kerr County in Texas and Washoe County in Nevada, and could leave lasting damage to local institutions and civic life. Said one Stanford University political scientist: “Every minute you are spending working on a fake problem you are not working on a real one.”

Read more about Shasta County in Jessica’s story.

Speaking of voters: A federal judge heard arguments Monday in a lawsuit by the California Council of the Blind that seeks to require the Secretary of State’s office to allow voters with certain disabilities to return their ballots electronically, reports CalMatters’ Sameea Kamal.

Advocates say that voters with visual impairments are forced to rely on others to return their ballots. 

Secretary of State Shirley Weber opposed a 2022 bill that sought to allow electronic ballot returns for voters with disabilities, citing concerns about cybersecurity threats. 

U.S. District Judge Sallie Kim said she was concerned about the timing and implementation of a new voting process. She also questioned lawyers for the council about the impact of requiring the state to authorize a system, but not compel counties to comply. 

It’s unclear when she will issue a decision.

Gov. Newsom and lawmakers of both parties condemned a protest outside a Los Angeles synagogue that turned violent on Sunday.

• Newsom, in a social media post: “There is no excuse for targeting a house of worship. Such antisemitic hatred has no place in California.”

Fights broke out as more than 150 pro-Palestinian protesters and counter-protestors converged on the Adas Torah synagogue and the Los Angeles Police Department eventually deployed 60 officers to clear the area, according to the Los Angeles Times. The Times reported that the initial protesters showed up in response to an ad in the Jewish Journal that promised to provide information on “housing projects in all the best Anglo neighborhoods in Israel.”

Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco and Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel of Encino, co-chairpersons of the California Legislative Jewish Caucus, called the incident “reprehensible” and said “those who are responsible must be held fully accountable.”

They noted that the state budget agreement announced Saturday includes $160 million in grants over the next two years to protect houses of worship and other nonprofits that are at high risk of attacks or hate crimes. That amount is up from $100 million total in 2021 and 2022. 

• Wiener and Gabriel, in a Monday statement: “This funding is vital to protecting the Jewish community and others targeted by hate. We remain committed to doing everything in our power to protect the Jewish community and to ensuring that Californians of all faiths and backgrounds can live without fear of violence and harassment.”

David Bocarsly, executive director of the Jewish Political Affairs Committee of California, said security needs have escalated during protests across the state since the Gaza war started last October.

President Joe Biden also weighed in on Monday, issuing a statement that “intimidating Jewish congregants is dangerous, unconscionable, antisemitic, and un-American.”

A dispute between unions and nonprofit organizations over public sector jobs is flaring up again, and this time workers with disabilities and those recovering from addictions may be out of luck. Find out why from CalMatters news intern Shaanth Nanguneri.