How much would CA’s new redistricting plans cost?

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s effort to redraw California’s congressional maps is the marquee item on the state Legislature’s agenda, now that lawmakers are back today from summer recess and eyeing a frenetic schedule to decide the fate of hundreds of bills in the next few weeks.

As CalMatters’ Alexei Koseff explains, Democratic officials released new maps on Friday that would give the party a greater chance of picking up five more seats currently held by Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives during the 2026 midterm elections. The maps would also help shore up seats barely held by Democrats in five other districts.

Before the end of this week, state lawmakers plan to hold a vote that would place the new maps on the ballot in a statewide special election. If passed, California voters would then decide on Nov. 4 whether to approve or reject the maps.

Newsom’s plan — which is in direct response to Texas’ own redistricting efforts — is being slammed by Republicans as an illegal power grab by Democrats. The National Republican Congressional Committee said in a statement that it was prepared to fight Newsom in court.

An estimate by Assembly Republicans calculated that the special election would cost taxpayers more than $235 million. The last special election, in which voters rejected recalling Newsom in 2021, cost about $200 million. 

The state has pledged to cover the cost for counties for this election, and some early numbers have come in: Fresno and Riverside counties, for example, estimate it would cost them up to $4 million and $16 million, respectively.

Read more here.

Speaking of the maps: Alexei and CalMatters’ Jeremia Kimelman built a lookup tool that enables you to check if you could be affected by the redistricting plan. Though the new maps aim to give Democrats five more seats in the House, more districts could be altered. Check it out here.

Some news affecting California’s cost of living:

• Gas prices: Despite ambitions to wean the state from fossil fuels and a campaign last year cracking down on oil companies over alleged gas price gouging, Newsom and Democratic leaders now find themselves negotiating a plan with oil companies to boost in-state oil production. The move comes after two California fuel refineries said they were shutting down sooner than expected, which could lead to gas prices rising to more than $8 a gallon by the end of 2026, according to a hotly contested estimate by one professor at University of Southern California. Democratic leaders are facing increased pressure to make the state more affordable. Read more from CalMatters’ Alexei, Alejandro Lazo and Maya C. Miller.

• Health insurance: If you’re one of the nearly 2 million Californians covered by health insurance through Covered California, you will see your premiums increase by an average of 10.3% next year. This is the first time the marketplace’s rate will increase by double digits since 2018. While Covered California’s director cited a number of factors, including rising health care costs, about 2% of the rate increase is due to expiring federal aid that President Donald Trump did not extend in his federal budget bill. These enhanced subsidies were used by more than 90% of Affordable Care Act enrollees nationwide, and California stands to lose about $2.1 billion because of Trump’s changes. Read more from Kristen Hwang.

Federal officials last week said the country’s two largest reservoirs could see steep declines in water levels within the coming years — a prospect that would severely affect the water supply of seven states, including California, writes CalMatters’ Rachel Becker.

The Colorado River’s Lake Mead and Lake Powell are each only 31% full, and are projected to dip to levels that would further tensions among the states in the Colorado River basin that must agree on new river management standards after 2026, when current guidelines expire. 

Based on two-year projections by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, some states could see their total annual allotment of Colorado River water cut by 5% to 18%. Because California has senior rights to the water, it has been spared from mandatory conservation.

Still, the risk of overdrafting the reservoirs underscores California’s dependency on them: The state takes the biggest share of Colorado River water, which it uses to irrigate crops in the Imperial Valley and to supply water to Southern California. 

Officials have warned that states must reach a broad agreement by Nov. 11 or risk having the federal government step in.

Read more here.

After a 15-year rollout, all 4-year-olds in California are now eligible for free transitional kindergarten. While some policy experts say the milestone is “something to celebrate,” the rollout has had its share of hiccups. Learn more from CalMatters’ Carolyn Jones.