2023 Legislative Report

If you got into a time machine in 2018 and emerged today outside the state Capitol you might be forgiven for wondering if you traveled forward at all. Lawmakers are pushing piecemeal approaches to the housing crisis, concerns about public safety are abound, and wealthy corporations are trying to hamstring cities’ ability to fund basic services.

Like in 2018 — and every year since 1898 — the League of California Cities is protecting cities’ interests in the Legislature, ballot box, and courts. And this year was a very productive year for cities. Cal Cities supported 51 measures sent to the Governor. He signed 82% of them. Cal Cities opposed 14 measures sent to the Governor. He vetoed 42% of them — far more than his overall veto rate of 14%.

Cal Cities also teamed up with Legislators to sponsor nine bills, five of which were signed by the Governor — a 55% signature rate. And thanks to your advocacy, we’re much closer to securing a permanent source of funding to address homelessness and increase the production of affordable housing.

Looming over all this was California’s boom-bust economy. No boom was ever bigger than the one we experienced in 2022. The state went from an eye-popping $97.5 billion budget surplus to a $31.5 billion budget deficit. Tax receipts trickled in late this year thanks to back-to-back disasters, meaning the full scope of the deficit is still unknown.

As a result, Gov. Gavin Newsom promised to veto bills without dedicated funding sources. However, lawmakers still introduced over 2,600 measures in the first few months of the session — the most in over a decade. Whenever there’s a budget deficit, there’s a temptation to rob Peter (cities) to pay Paul (the state). Legislators resisted that urge for the most part, perhaps because of their time in local government. This year's Legislature was not just one of the most diverse: Many new members have ties to local government.

Read the full 2023 Legislative Report below.