Governor Gavin Newsom is discovering, in the twilight of his time in Sacramento, that the political muscle he once flexed so freely over the Legislature is fading fast.
For nearly eight years, Newsom has governed alongside a Legislature controlled almost entirely by members of his own party. Yet rather than build consensus through open negotiation, he has frequently preferred a more secretive approach — withholding details of his priorities until deadlines loomed, then pressuring lawmakers into fast, high-stakes votes with little chance for public scrutiny.
The annual budget deadline of June 15 has often served as Newsom’s leverage point. Time and again, he has pushed lawmakers to tuck unrelated policy proposals into so-called budget trailer bills — measures technically meant to implement the budget but frequently used to push through broader initiatives with minimal debate.
This tactic has deep roots in California politics. In 2010, voters approved Proposition 25, a measure backed by Democratic lawmakers and labor groups that lowered the vote threshold for passing the state budget from two-thirds to a simple majority. Supporters said it would end drawn-out budget standoffs, but critics noted its real effect: stripping Republicans of leverage they once used to negotiate changes to spending bills.
That same measure extended to trailer bills, allowing them to pass with simple majorities, take effect immediately upon the governor’s signature, and dodge the threat of a public referendum. The result was a legislative shortcut that has, over the years, allowed major policy shifts to slip through with little public awareness — often accompanied by only symbolic budget allocations.
The pattern became so troubling that voters intervened again in 2016, passing a measure — opposed by many Democrats — requiring that bills be publicly available for 72 hours before a vote.
Even with those safeguards, Newsom has continued to spring last-minute proposals on lawmakers, forcing them to act swiftly and with limited public input. Legislators have grumbled about the approach behind closed doors and, occasionally, in public settings — but they had little choice but to go along, given the governor’s influence over bill signings and other legislative outcomes.
That dynamic appears to be shifting.
With only a few months left in his tenure, Newsom’s sway over the Capitol has noticeably diminished. Two recent defeats, coming in the final hours of this year’s legislative session, illustrate just how much his influence has slipped.
The most significant involved his push to overhaul how financial liability for wildfires is assigned — a change that would have made it harder for fire victims to seek compensation from utility companies when power lines are found responsible for igniting blazes. Critics say the proposal, largely negotiated in private, was aimed at protecting utility companies’ financial stability. But when word got out, it triggered fierce backlash from wildfire survivors, their attorneys and insurance companies, who argued the change would undercut their ability to recover costs from utilities.
Facing mounting opposition, Newsom retreated. Lawmakers instead passed a scaled-back version, Senate Bill 492, which includes modest penalties for utilities and creates a “fast pay” system to speed compensation to fire victims while preserving their right to pursue lawsuits.
Newsom also quietly attempted to help a major political donor sidestep California Coastal Commission oversight for a development project in Santa Monica. That effort came to light through CalMatters reporting, which identified the developer as Jeff Worthe, whose family has contributed more than $274,000 to Newsom’s campaigns and inaugural committee.
Once the maneuver became public, opposition in the Legislature mounted swiftly, and Newsom again backed away from the plan.
Taken together, the episodes suggest a governor whose once-formidable grip on Sacramento politics is loosening as his final months in office tick away — a reminder that even the most powerful executives eventually lose their leverage once their time in power nears its end.
Original source: CalMatters
