Pub. 3 2021-2022 Issue 3

21 abuse. (While the bill aimed to protect vulnerable populations from being taken advantage of, the only evidence needed to show economic abuse under the bill was slight.) We know we will see SB 346 again, and we will likely see Canoo introduce another bill as well. This year, many other bills we engaged in were outlined during our New Laws seminars. Issues covered included changes to the following: • COVID-19 • Fees & taxes • Employment laws • Privacy • Consumer protection • Commercial & hazardous waste • Autonomous & electric vehicles • Retail theft • Repossession rules • Career technical education • Truck issues • 2022 legislative preview Political Musical Chairs Many political pundits believe Governor Newsom was cautious at the end of this year’s legislative session due to the recall election. However, after beating the recall 62% to 38% percent with 12.9 million votes cast, Governor Newsom is in a strong political position heading into the 2022 legislative session. In the meantime, the California Republican Party is spending time on strategic planning and figuring out how to increase the number of Republican statewide elected officials. Some legislators are terming out in 2022, including the following: • SD 4 - Jim Nielsen (R) • SD 6 - Richard Pan (D) • SD 10 - Bob Wieckowski (D) • SD 18 - Bob Hertzberg (D) • SD 36 - Pat Bates (R) • SD 40 - Ben Hueso (D) In southern California, all eyes will be on the Los Angeles Mayoral race. Congressional Representative Karen Bass announced her plans to run for mayor instead of seeking reelection to her congressional seat. Other major declared candidates for the mayoral seat include Joe Buscaino, Kevin de León, and Mike Feuer (all current or former politicians at the city and state level). For Karen Bass’ Congressional seat, Culver City Vice Mayor Daniel Wayne Lee filed FEC paperwork to run – he finished a distant second (by 55 points) behind Sydney Kamlager in the SD 30 special election earlier this year. In Assembly District 17, Assembly Member David Chiu was recently appointed to fill the vacant San Francisco City Attorney position, creating a vacancy in the assembly that will cause a special election to fill his seat. The primary is likely to occur in Dec. 2021, with a runoff (if no candidate receives 50% plus one) in Feb. Redistricting Update Redistricting is the once-per-decade process where political boundaries for elective offices are updated and redrawn after completion of the U.S. Census. Based on information from the U.S. Census, the Citizens Redistricting Commission redraws the boundaries of California’s Congressional, State Senate, State Assembly, and State Board of Equalization districts. Those with a political eye will be waiting with bated breath for the end of this process, with final maps scheduled to be approved Dec. 27, 2021. The end result of redistricting is likely to have a sizable effect on California politics as district lines are redrawn, and district makeups change. We may see some districts change their Democrat v. Republican breakdown, including some blue and red districts that may change or at least become purple. 2022 Legislative Session The last day for Governor Newsom to sign or veto bills was Oct. 10, and the legislature will not reconvene until Jan. 3, 2022. Fall and winter recess is an excellent time to reflect, regroup, and plan our priorities for the next year’s legislative session. We did just that with our CNCDA Legislative Committee this fall during the Los Angeles International Auto Show. 3 You can always contact CNCDA Director of Government Affairs Alisa Reinhardt at 916-441-2599 or areinhardt@cncda.org if you have any questions or would like to discuss any of CNCDA’s policy priorities in more detail. The end result of redistricting is likely to have a sizable effect on California politics as district lines are redrawn, and district makeups change.