Legislature in Final Two Weeks

Last week, the Senate and Assembly Appropriations Committees voted on 830 bills on the Suspense File. Of these bills with significant fiscal impacts on the General Fund, 559 (67%) were passed onto the full Senate or Assembly for consideration, while 267 were held in Committee (33%).

With the state facing a budget deficit of approximately $50 billion, the Governor will have many hard choices to make, and most budget experts agree that he will be forced to veto many of the bills being sent to him by the Legislature.

The last days of the session are also times when last-minute efforts are made to resuscitate old bills and introduce new ones by stripping language out of inactive bills and inserting new language.  So far, this process has not resulted in any efforts to bring back bills like statewide rent control or right of first refusal legislation that WMA successfully stopped this year.

However, WMA continues monitoring bills being removed from the Inactive File and tracking amendments daily to ensure our interests are protected. Tomorrow is the last day bills can be amended unless a rule waiver is granted.

The Legislature was initially scheduled to meet daily this week and next week due to the large number of bills that still must be acted on by August 31, but the Assembly did not meet Wednesday, and both the Senate and Assembly adjourned until Monday. 

The reason for this is the large number of absences due to the Democrat National Committee Convention in Chicago this week, where you could find 15 Assembly Democrats and six Senate Democrats.

Lawmakers can expect nearly 1,000 bills waiting for action when the Legislature convenes on Monday. Since the California Constitution requires the Legislature to conclude its business by August 31, lawmakers will work daily until late that Saturday.

To view a list of priority bills WMA is actively tracking, click here.

Legislative Elections Compete for Attention

Election Day this year is technically November 5 (74 days away), but California allows for early voting beginning October 8 – only 48 days away.  With nearly all of the media attention focused on the Presidential Election and partisan control of the House of Representatives, candidates for state and local office are busily working to figure out how best to spread their messages to voters in their respective districts.

WMA is closely monitoring state and local elections, and our WMA PAC has been active in numerous local campaigns, as well as 45 state legislative races in the General Election. This would not happen without the help of our members who contribute to the WMA PAC, and we will make sure to report on the election results once they are known – which may be awhile after Election Day.

To learn more about the WMA PAC and how to become involved, please click here.

Ballots received by mail must be postmarked on or before November 5, but they may continue to arrive at county registrar offices until November 12 to be counted.  Since California is an all-mail ballot state, close elections for federal, state, and local elections (as well as ballot initiatives) may not be known until the middle of November, and may even extend into December because of the timeline to count ballots and certify election results.

To learn more about the election calendar in California, please click here.

WMA Holding Final 2024 MCM Webinars on August 27 and September 17, 2024

WMA is excited to conclude the 2024 MCM series with two can’t-miss webinars. As a special offer, we are introducing a discounted bundled package designed to provide our members with a comprehensive learning experience of great value. Members must initially sign up for both webinars to receive the discounted rate. 

This year’s final topics are:

• Reviewing and Implementing Rules and Regulations: EnsuringCompliance with MRL Section 798.25
• Comprehensive Utilities Update; System Upgrades; Electric Rates and Fixed Charges; Conversion Update; Submeter Discounts; Water Billing Mandates; Solar Energy Systems

To learn more about these last two webinars, please click here.

WMA Convention & Expo Coming Soon

The 2024 WMA Convention & Expo is right around the corner, and registration for this exciting event is now open.  This year’s Convention & Expo will be held at the M Resort Spa Casino in Henderson, Nevada (just outside Las Vegas).

The event starts with a golf tournament benefiting the Frank J. Evans Charitable Foundation’s scholarship fund on the morning of October 14. The convention continues through the President’s Dinner Dance on October 17. To learn more about the upcoming convention and fill out your registration form, please click here.

It is an honor to serve WMA. Please feel free to reach me directly at chris@wma.org or on my direct line at the office at 916.288.4026 if I may be of assistance or if you need additional information.