Newsletter: Opinion: A Sacramento state of mind
Good morning, everyone. This is Matthew Fleischer, web editor of The Times' Opinion section, in my last week filling in for Paul Thornton.
While the shallow spectacle of the 2016 presidential election continues to draw the lion’s share of media attention, here in California, we’re seeing actual, life-changing legislation pass. From the right to die, to automatic voter registration, to ending the state’s controversial school exit exams, California legislators have been doing what their counterparts in Washington seem to have forgotten how to do: actually passing important bills.
Amid this flurry of activity, The Times Opinion page is bringing back its #gradeyourgov series — this time with an eye on Sacramento. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be issuing report cards to Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León and Gov. Jerry Brown.
Up first, however, is Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins.
Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins talks with Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)
The budgeting process was one place where state lawmakers, including Atkins, deserve credit. Gov. Brown continued emphasizing frugality, and lawmakers had to be judicious when deciding which programs to push for inclusion. Atkins wisely fought for, and got, an earned income tax credit that will help lift the state’s poorest people out of poverty and off state assistance.
But after passing a decent budget, the priorities of the Assembly seemed to go off a cliff. Few of the state’s pressing issues were dealt with, and the final weeks were chaotic as Assembly members were preoccupied with slowing a Senate climate-change bill and speculating about who would succeed Atkins as speaker.
In some ways, the speaker has a more difficult task leading her chamber than the president of the state Senate does. The Assembly has twice as many members, so there are more egos to manage, and typically it has been the first stop for new, inexperienced legislators. This means it requires a leader who can find the right balance between being supportive and effectively managing the troops. The goal is to motivate this less-seasoned group while also ensuring that the body as a whole is productive — stepping in if things start to go sideways in a committee or with important legislation.
Atkins’ emphasis on empowerment meant she didn’t do enough of that. The results were seen in public eruptions among her members, such as the childish feud between Democrats Marc Levine of San Rafael and Adam Gray of Merced that played out in committee hearings and affected legislation, and in the embarrassing display of partisanship when Assemblyman Roger Hernandez (D-West Covina) petulantly turned off the microphone on a Republican colleague during a hearing.
The California high school exit exam is dead. Good riddance. Its short, purposeless life could not have ended sooner. L.A. Times
Transit agencies across California are pushing dense development next to major rail and bus stops. While that sounds like a decent plan for ending urban car dependence, are these developments actually pricing out those most likely to ride public transit? Livable City
You’ve heard of the right to die, but California is also grappling with the admittedly less controversial right to dry. L.A. Times
Want to stop a development in your neighborhood? Patt Morrison speaks to the man you better have on speed dial if you expect to have a chance of succeeding. L.A. Times
For the first time since it was known as El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles, L.A.’s city center is actually the city's center. Livable City
That about does it for me. It’s been fun. I’m actually tearing up a little as I write this. If you want to make me feel better (or if you just want to explore ideas for making Los Angeles a better place to live), don’t forget to check out Opinion’s new quality-of-life series Livable City.
Words mean a lot to us, especially yours. Please send any feedback you have about this newsletter to letters@latimes.com or tweet us @latimesopinion.
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