Author: Thorn West

Issue No. 113 – June 17, 2022

City Politics

• As mail-in ballots continue to arrive in Los Angeles County, the updates from this week have been delightful almost across the board. The big news is that DSA-LA–endorsed candidate for city council Eunisses Hernandez took the lead over incumbent Gil Cedillo on Tuesday. That lead has widened with today’s update; she would win the seat outright if the lead holds. DSA-LA’s other endorsed candidate for City Council, Hugo Soto-Martinez, has widened his lead heading into a runoff with incumbent Mitch O’Farrell. Progressive candidates Kenneth Mejia, Faisal Gill, and Karen Bass have also widened their leads in their respective races. Live results here include additional little morsels of good news.

Housing Rights

• Los Angeles City Council passed a motion, plainly targeted at the unhoused, that prohibits the number of bicycles and bicycle parts that can be stored on public property. The motion’s supposed intention is to break up bicycle “chop shops,” though as Councilmember Nithya Raman pointed out while opposing the motion, stealing bicycles is already illegal. The new motion empowers the police to harass people by criminalizing normal activity that proponents have asserted correlates with bike theft. The motion passed 13-3 (with the unsurprising support of Cedillo and O’Farrell), and will receive one final vote next week.

Labor

• An 8-1 Supreme Court ruling has curtailed a legal work-around, unique to California, that allowed employees to sue their employers even when they had waived those rights and agreed to resolve disputes solely through private arbitration as part of the terms of their employment.

• Smithfield Foods is closing its pork processing plant in the city of Vernon, citing “the escalating cost of doing business in California,” without further clarification. Smithfield was fined $100,000 following large-scale COVID outbreaks at the Vernon facility in 2020.

NOlympics

• Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE) pushes back on Olympics boosterism in the LA Times, arguing that the public transportation projects that have been tied to the Olympics schedule are more likely to be privatized and rushed.

• Relatedly, SoFi stadium in Inglewood has just been approved as a site for the 2026 World Cup. Think Outside the Ball details the “human and moral cost.”

Environmental Justice

• A coalition of tribal, environmental, and community groups has withdrawn its support for the Los Angeles River Master Plan, approved by the LA County Board of Supervisors this week. The group called for more naturalization of the river, with less concrete, and criticized the county plan as, in the words of one spokesperson, “nothing more than a flood control channel.”

• The “net metering” debate has reopened to the public, following outcry in reaction to a California Public Utilities Commission proposal to lower subsidies for customers who install solar panels, who tend to already be higher-income. Utility Dive explains the different issues that remain unresolved.

• CalMatters reports on the “unaddressed epidemic of PTSD and suicidal thoughts” among the firefighters who are dealing a steadily intensifying wildfire season.

Thorn West: Issue No. 112

Elections

• A significant number of ballots remain to be counted from the June 7 primary, with ballot count updates scheduled into next week.

• In CD1, the race between DSA-LA-endorsed Eunisses Hernandez and incumbent Councilmember Gil Cedillo, which will be decided in this primary, remains too close to call, with today’s update cutting Cedillo’s lead to 720 votes.

• In CD13, today’s update puts DSA-LA-endorsed candidate Hugo Soto-Martinez ahead of incumbent Mitch O’Farrell! The two will head to a runoff election, but a first-place finish against an incumbent would already be a rare accomplishment.

• Progressive candidates in other city races have fared well (all current results here). Erin Darling in CD11 and Faisal Gill, who is running for city attorney, are currently leading their races, with Darling more certain to finish in the top two for a runoff. In the controller race, Kenneth Mejia heads to a runoff having cruised to first place. DSA-LA-endorsed Fatima Iqbal-Zubair will head to the runoff of her State Assembly race. All four members of the Defenders of Justice slate are also currently in the top two of their respective races for judgeships. Knock LA recaps a promising result for “grassroots progressives and socialist organizers.”

• These local results are important, as the story receiving the most nationwide attention is the successful recall in San Francisco of reformer District Attorney Chesa Boudin. CalMatters is already deflating the heavily-promoted myth that the recall, extremely well-funded though it was, represents a popular rebellion against humane criminal justice reform. The LA Times confronts this as well.

• As expected, the Los Angeles mayoral race heads to a runoff between Rick Caruso and Representative Karen Bass. The Los Angeles Times editorial board notes that, thus far, both campaigns have been defined by making impossible promises to reactionaries.

• Sheriff Alex Villanueva, plagued with scandals throughout his first term in office, will face a runoff election. His opponent will likely be Robert Luna, who was endorsed by the LA Times; Luna’s own scandals as chief of the Long Beach Police Department were reported on by Knock LA. State law requires a law enforcement background for all candidates for sheriff, making it difficult for a left candidate to emerge. LASD Lieutenant Eric Strong, who most clearly identified as a reformer, finished solidly in third place in a crowded field.

• Though voter turnout in the statewide primary election was widely reported as low, UnrigLA argues that this was not the case in Los Angeles County.

Environmental Justice

• CNN reports on how the failure of California cities to curb water usage is impacting rural areas, with some having their groundwater supply near being tapped out. On Wednesday, California’s Water Resources Control Board announced cutbacks that will affect about 4,500 water rights in the Delta watershed, including 400 or more held by 212 public water systems.

• The California Air Resources Board continues to agonize over the feasibility of instituting a ban of gas-powered vehicles by 2035.

Thorn West: Issue No. 111

State Politics

• California’s reparations task force released a 500-page report detailing the state’s history of racism and its lingering effects and recommending several methods by which reparations could be made to Black Californians. Full report here. On page 19 are the preliminary recommendations that are expected to be expounded upon in a second report in 2023, following multiple community listening sessions.

City Politics

• Voting in the statewide primary election closes June 7. You can register to vote same-day at your local polling place. DSA-LA is making a big weekend push to get out the vote for endorsed candidates Eunisses Hernandez (CD1), Fatima Iqbal-Zubair (AD65), and Hugo Soto-Martinez (CD13). And of course, the DSA voting guide is here.

• Los Angeles County is on a trajectory to cross the threshold into “high” COVID-19 community transition level within a few weeks, which would mean the current outbreak has begun to put stress on hospitals.

Housing Rights

• The city council voted 13–2 to request a law be drafted banning any encampments within 500 feet of any school or daycare facility in the city. Last year’s revision to 41.18 provided a mechanism through which a 500’ enforcement zone could be requested; it would now be automatic. As has become typical with the city’s actions against the unhoused, the council violated democratic norms in the process. The motion was not agendized for discussion, in violation of the Brown Act. It also did not pass through the Homelessness and Poverty committee, and instead was brought directly to the floor by Council President Nury Martinez, with the direct involvement of newly appointed school Superintendent Albert Carvalho.

Police Violence and Community Resistance

• Struggling to meet signature requirements, backers of the effort to recall District Attorney George Gascon have poured money into directly mailing recall petitions countywide.

• A UCLA study of ten years of autopsy records found that more than half of the people who died in LA. County jails and had their deaths classified as “natural” showed evidence of physical harm.

Environmental Justice

• New water restrictions limiting outdoor watering to twice a week went into effect on June 1 across Los Angeles. The new regulation, first of its kind, is a response to unprecedented drought conditions.

Thorn West: Issue No. 110

City Politics

• In-person voting centers will be open from tomorrow, May 28, through the June 7 primary. Same-day registration can be completed in person. Bring your DSA voter guide!

• A mayoral debate last week focused on homelessness — and demonstrated the value of Gina Viola’s participation, as she persistently advocated for housing policy shaped by the input of unhoused people. Available to watch here.

• Incumbent Councilmember Gil Cedillo conducted his first debate with his opponent this week, only after online pressure threatened his ability to collect matching funds from the city. He packed the audience with his own staffers. Likewise, staff for incumbent Councilmember Mitch O’Farrell disrupted a candidate forum for CD 13.

• If protest actions directed at Brett Kavanugh and Texas Governor Gregg Abbott were at least somewhat heartening reminders that you aren’t the only person who feels anger about recent events, a reminder: in Los Angeles many politicians and media think you shouldn’t be able to do that sort of thing.

Housing Rights

• A major victory today was secured by the Hillside Villa Tenants Association! The city council voted unanimously to approve a funding mechanism for the city to purchase Hillside Villa Apartments and maintain affordable rent. Today’s vote follows years of tenant organization following the expiration of the building’s affordable housing covenant, and the current landlord’s attempt to impose massive rent hikes. Capital & Main covered that effort earlier in the week.

Transportation

• Metro Los Angeles has officially canceled plans to widen the 710 freeway, a plan that would have destroyed homes and increased pollution in South LA County communities. Even in an election day issue, there are many victories for direct action strategies to report!

• Drafted by Streets 4 All, Healthy Streets LA is a public ballot measure that would compel the city to follow the guidelines of its own long-ignored mobility plan. Now, the Los Angeles City Council is following along, and introduced its own similar motion this week.

Police Violence and Community Resistance

• A series of hearings began this week on the subject of deputy gangs operating within the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The hearings are being conducted by the Civilian Oversight Commission.

Labor

• California’s street vendors have won significant protections from state-level legislation, but a new bill that passed in the state Senate today would move things backwards by imposing stricter fines against vendors in “high-tourist areas.” L.A. Taco covers.

Thorn 109 – May 20, 2022

State Politics

• California finishes the year with a staggering $97.5 billion budget surplus, driven by stock market gains making the wealthy even wealthier. Surplus spending in California is arbitrarily constrained by a 50-year-old law known as the Gann limit; CalMatters analyzes Governor Gavin Newsom’s draft budget attempts to work around those constraints.

City Politics

• After several weeks of hearings, Los Angeles City Council voted to approve a budget for the 2022-2023 fiscal year which includes an $87 million increase for the LAPD. Councilmember Mike Bonin voted against the budget, noting that the city had yet to make the “big pivot” on public safety rhetorically committed to after the George Floyd protests, and was the only no vote.

• City Attorney Mike Feuer has dropped out of the mayor race, endorsing Karen Bass. He is the second candidate featured heavily at mayoral debates — to the exclusion of more progressive candidates — to drop out before primary day. 

• This evening, remaining candidates Bass, Gina Viola, and Councilmember Kevin DeLeón will appear at a debate focusing on housing and homelessness, hosted by KCRW. Submit questions here. Billionaire candidate Rick Caruso will not show up.

• Speaking of no-shows, Gil Cedillo, whom DSA-LA-endorsed candidate Eunisses Hernandez is challenging for the council seat in CD1, has yet to appear at a debate. On Twitter, @UnrigLA, has noted that Cedillo’s campaign has nevertheless received over $100,000 in matching funds from the city, which requires at least one debate appearance from all recipients. Follow the story here.

Housing Rights

• L.A. Taco spoke to Eunisses Hernandez this week about how, as a city councilmember, she plans to combat gentrification.

• Relatedly, Knock LA documents the obscene amount of money being poured into Los Angeles elections by the California Apartments Association, or landlord lobby, to defeat progressive candidates. You may have seen the mailers they paid for this week.

Transportation

• Los Angeles Metro is also going through their budget process, and inexplicably continuing to increase funding for freeway expansions at the expense of public transportation. Streets For All is encouraging Angelenos to weigh in.

Environmental Justice

• The number of California properties facing severe wildfire risk will grow sixfold over the next 30 years, according to data from First Street Foundation.

• Amid worsening drought conditions, Southern California’s Metropolitan Water Board has voted to impose water usage restrictions. In Los Angeles, those restrictions will be implemented on June 1. Meanwhile, the biggest corporate water abusers continue to get a pass.

Issue No. 108 – May 13, 2022

City Politics

• DSA-LA has released its voter guide for the June 7 primary! Knock-LA’s voter guide is also available, and takes a cursory look at elections in the smaller cities of LA County. Ballots have already begun being mailed to registered voters county-wide.

• The Los Angeles Times editorial board aligned with DSA-LA on some races this week, endorsing Erin Darling in Council District 11 and Eunisses Hernandez in Council District 1.

• Councilmember Joe Buscaino dropped out of the Los Angeles mayoral race on Thursday, following polls which had him at 1%. The announcement was made at a joint event with fellow candidate Rick Caruso, whom Buscaino immediately endorsed.

Coronavirus and Relief

• COVID infections continue to rise in Los Angeles County, placing it on track to hit “medium” levels of community transmission for the first time since the CDC instituted more lax benchmarks at the end of February. People ages 12–17 currently have the highest infection rates.

• The LAUSD voted unanimously to delay adding the COVID vaccine to the list of vaccines required for K–12 students. The mandate was scheduled to go into effect for the fall but has been delayed until July 1, 2023. This follows a corresponding delay at the state level, hinged on waiting for full FDA approval for a youth vaccine.

Labor

• Today, two Starbucks stores, in Lakewood and Long Beach, have become the first in Southern California to unionize!

Housing Rights

• Article 34 — a 70-year-old amendment to California’s constitution designed to enforce racial segregation, which prohibits the building of any public housing without a public ballot measure — may be on the way out. An amendment to repeal has just advanced out of the Assembly Housing Committee, having already cleared the Senate unanimously. The charter amendment will still need to be approved by statewide ballot, and it is unclear where the money for that campaign would come from.

• Every eight years, all California municipalities must release their Housing Element, a plan to meet the housing needs of their residents, at least on paper. The Los Angeles Daily News looks at how some cities game that system.

Environmental Justice

• Governor Gavin Newsom called for the California Air Resources Board, the state’s top climate regulator, to “evaluate pathways” for the state to become carbon neutral by 2035. But CARB’s newly released draft plan for meeting the state’s emissions targets rejects that goal as too expensive, arguing instead for backing off to a 2045 target.

• CalMatters provides additional analysis on the CARB draft plan, noting that while it scales back reliance on “cap-and-trade” incentive programs to reduce emissions relative to its 2017 plan, it does not account for the intervening years’ revelation that these programs might not have any significant effect and does not explain how or why these programs are expected to work.

• California regulators are about to take another crack at reforming the state’s contentious solar net-metering policies. In December, it was proposed that compensation paid to new rooftop solar owners for power they send to the grid would be reduced, but following a massive public backlash, the California Public Utilities Commission issued a ruling reopening public comment until June 24, after which the CPUC will revise its proposal. That pushes the timeline for the release of a new policy into July at the earliest.

Issue No. 107 – May 06, 2022

State Politics

• A leaked draft of a Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, later authenticated, represents an existential threat to reproductive freedom in the United States. At a rally in front of a Planned Parenthood, Governor Newsom vowed to enshrine the right to an abortion in the state constitution.

City Politics

• On Tuesday the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors had already agendized a motion to support AB 1245, approving $20 million in state funding for a pilot program that would endeavor to make the county a “safe haven” for anyone seeking an abortion, regardless of where they live. According to some estimates, if Roe were to be overturned, California would become the nearest abortion provider for over a million Arizonans.

• The news has also renewed focus on mayoral candidate Rick Caruso’s past donations to anti-choice politicians. Though Caruso, who switched from the Republican to Democratic party in advance of his mayoral run, announced his current support for Roe v. Wade, Planned Parenthood released an open letter calling on him to apologize for his past positions.

• Black Lives Matters – LA co-founder Melina Abdullah was forcibly removed from a mayoral debate held at Cal State LA, where she teaches. Though none of the debate candidates objected to Abdullah being carried out by campus security at the time, Kevin DeLeon and Karen Bass have since joined the chorus condemning Abdullah’s treatment.

• City Hall reopened to the public for the first time since the pandemic began. Courthouse News narrates day one, which concluded with housing activists from Hillside Villa being forcibly removed by police. Though in-person public comment is once again permitted, dial-in public comment has been correspondingly suspended.

Police Violence and Community Resistance

• In downtown LA, a spontaneous rally in defense of reproductive freedom was declared an unlawful assembly, following repeated aggression against protesters. Violence was instigated by both the LAPD and the Department of Homeland Security, whose presence at the march has yet to be officially explained.

Housing Rights

• An accelerated timeline requiring all California cities and counties to meet their housing capability quotas by October 15 has proven nearly impossible to meet. Only five cities and counties in Southern California are on track, with millions in state funding at stake.

Environmental Justice

• Facing possible electricity shortages, Governor Newsom suggested that the state’s sole remaining nuclear power plant might continue operating beyond a planned closing by 2025.

• Last week, the seven states that rely on the Colorado River, which includes California, agreed to forfeit their water from Lake Powell in order to ensure that the reservoir can still generate hydroelectric power.

• California’s Air Resources Board, the state’s clean-air regulators, unveiled a proposal requiring a ramp-up in sales of zero-emission cars, culminating in a ban on new gasoline-powered cars by 2035. If adopted, the regulations would be the first in the world and could pave the way for nationwide standards.

Issue No. 106 – April 22, 2022

City Politics

• Nice surprise: the Los Angeles Times editorial board endorsed Kenneth Mejia for Los Angeles city controller, citing the work he has already accomplished with the Mejia campaign to make the city’s budget transparent.

• Councilmember Nithya Raman endorsed Hugo Soto-Martínez for councilmember in District 13. She also endorsed Karen Bass for mayor, drawing criticism for ignoring candidates running as progressives in favor of the “lesser of two evils” candidate.

• Knock LA spoke with three candidates for City Council in District 15: Tim McOsker, Danielle Sandoval, and Bryant Odega.

Police Violence and Community Resistance

• Sheriff Alex Villanueva became a national story after an unhinged press conference on Tuesday, during which he threatened to investigate Los Angeles Times reporter Alene Tchekmedyian for reporting on footage, leaked by a whistleblower, of a sheriff’s deputy abusing an inmate. Villanueva is facing several lawsuits connected to the incident, which allege that he saw the video and directed attempts to cover it up.

• The state auditor investigated the social media profiles of officers with five law enforcement departments across the state — including the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department — and found a pattern of racial and ethnic bias. Report here.

Transportation

• The Metro Board has approved the Bus Rapid Transit Corridor between North Hollywood and Pasadena. Traffic lanes will be transformed to bus-only along much of the route. The project now heads into the design stage. More detail on implementation here.

• A new plan from Democrats in the state Senate proposes $200 rebates to all Californians, regardless of car ownership. CalMatters catalogs the numerous proposals to address rising gas prices, none of which seem particularly close to implementation.

Environmental Justice

• The Metropolitan Water District’s board voted unanimously today to require six major water providers and the dozens of cities and local districts they supply to impose one of two options: limit residents to outdoor watering once a week or reduce total water use below a certain target.

• On Thursday, Rob Bonta, California’s attorney general, opened an investigation into the role oil and gas companies played in promoting the idea that plastics could be recycled in an effort to manipulate the public to buy more of it.

Issue No. 105 – April 15, 2022

City Politics

• Several candidates for Los Angeles mayor, including Gina Viola and Alex Gruenenfelder, held a rally to protest their exclusion from a May 1 debate being held at Cal State LA. The exclusion is especially egregious given that the most recent poll, released this week, has Viola favored over Councilmember Joe Buscaino.

Labor

• In March, workers at a Starbucks location in Little Tokyo became the latest to announce their intent to unionize. This Saturday, DSA-LA Labor Committee and Central Branch are rallying members to show up in support.

• Two weeks after voting to authorize a strike, Southern California members of United Food and Commercial Workers have voted to authorize a new contract with Kroger and Albertsons. The new contract wins workers at these stores the largest wages they’ve seen in decades, and is more than double what the chains were offering before the strike vote.

• The assistant chief counsel for California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing resigned in protest this week, alleging that Governor Newsom’s office had improperly interfered with a discrimination suit against Activision Blizzard Inc.

Police Violence and Community Resistance

• A study commissioned by the Board of Supervisors indicates that the county policy of zero-dollar cash bail, instituted as a pandemic measure, has not had any impact on crime rates, and, per Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, may “safely remain in place.” Knock LA covers.

• Citing poor recruitment numbers, Los Angeles Police Commissioner Michel Moore has floated the idea of officially requesting landlords provide free or subsidized apartments to cadets.

Environmental Justice

• Pacific Gas & Electric has agreed to pay more than $55 million to avoid criminal prosecution for last year’s Dixie Fire and the 2019 Kincade Fire. 

• Two years ago, Governor Newsom launched the California Vegetation Treatment Program to fast-track wildfire mitigation efforts. CapRadio investigates the reasons that program hasn’t yet been able to complete a single project.

• California’s Air Resources Board, the state’s clean-air regulators, unveiled a proposal requiring a ramp-up in sales of zero-emission cars, culminating in a ban on new gasoline-powered cars by 2035. If adopted, the regulations would be the first in the world and could pave the way for nationwide standards.

Thorn West: Issue No. 104

City Politics

• Los Angeles City Hall will finally reopen to the public, starting May 4. This announcement comes one week after City Council President Nury Martinez acknowledged that the delay in reopening was due to anxiety over an “angry electorate.”

Housing Rights

• The City of Los Angeles has settled a lawsuit brought by LA Alliance, a coalition of downtown LA businesses and landlords that seeks to compel the city and county to conduct encampment sweeps in Skid Row. The city agreed to commit approximately $3 billion to produce enough shelter beds or housing units for 60% of the city’s unhoused population, while maintaining that the county is responsible for the other 40%. The county has pulled out of settlement negotiations.

• Last Friday, Los Angeles City Council passed a motion authored by Councilmember Mitch O’Farrell calling for a report back on the city’s contract with the County Department of Health. The motion calls for more oversight of the county’s provision of medical services to unhoused Angelenos.

• Long-term tenants of the homes in the abandoned 710 corridor in El Sereno are demanding to be prioritized as purchasers now that Caltrans is selling the properties. Tenants are being prioritized where the corridor passes through Pasadena and South Pasadena.

Police Violence and Community Resistance

• A superior court judge has ruled that Sheriff Alex Villanueva must comply with a subpoena issued by Inspector General Max Huntsman compelling him to testify about deputy gangs within his department.

• Knock LA held a forum for candidates for Los Angeles County Sheriff. Villanueva did not attend, but those who did answered serious questions about deputy gangs and deputy violence. Video here.

• Also in Knock LA: coverage of a political battle in West Hollywood, where concerns over fraud and waste in the city’s contract with the Sheriff’s Department have fueled a movement to divert a significant portion of the city’s law enforcement budget to social services.

Labor

• Last week, members of United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, which represents 48,000 workers in Southern California and is renegotiating its contract with Albertsons, Vons, Pavilions and Ralphs, voted to authorize a strike. This week they have appeared to come to a tentative agreement. Details will not be released until after the contract authorization vote. The union was seeking wage increases.

• Did you know there’s a Thorn in NYC? And that it’s actually the original Thorn? Food for thought if you are interested in tracking the historic vote to unionize at an Amazon fulfillment center in Staten Island.

Environmental Justice

• On a day of record-breaking temperatures, four members of a scientist-led organized day of worldwide protest chained themselves to a downtown JP Morgan Chase bank on Wednesday, demanding the bank divest from the fossil fuel industry. They were met with an overwhelming force of LAPD officers in riot gear.

• California’s Legislative Analyst’s Office released a series of reports detailing the devastating impact climate change will have on California: “Climate change could alter everything, and spare no one in California, so legislators should consider preparing for sweeping impacts.” Reports collected here.

• The city plans to expand its pilot program for curbside food scrap collection to 40,000 households this summer — and 750,000 households next year — putting their food scraps in green bins instead of the trash so they can be composted instead of sent to a landfill.