What’s next for California?
The state’s new governor will face challenges on many fronts. Here’s what the candidates say.
The November election will usher in a new governor, and with him the beginning of a new chapter in the California story. As Democrat Gavin Newsom and Republican John Cox close out the final weeks of their campaigns, the Los Angeles Times looked at the issues the state’s next governor will have to address.
In the Next California project, The Times identified key challenges facing the next governor: the potential of an economic recession and how the state’s volatile tax structure makes us vulnerable during downturns; the inevitability of natural disaster and what the next governor can do to prepare for wildfire and other calamities; the swell of California’s senior population and the corresponding demands on state programs; and how automation and the gig economy will redefine the nature of work.
We asked the candidates to respond to these specific issues raised in this series. A condensed version of their responses is below. You can read their full responses to these and other questions — and the stories exploring the issues — at latimes.com/ nextcalifornia.
The economy Do you believe California’s tax system needs to be changed? If so, what specifically would you seek to change? And if you don’t see the need for change, can you tell us why?
John Cox (R): California’s sales and gas taxes are among the highest in the nation, and hit those with the lowest income hardest. Now the political class in Sacramento has piled on a whopping $52-billion gas tax increase, both on every gallon of gas as well as with higher vehicle license fees.
This is where I would start and where we need change. What many fail to realize, and what the politicians refuse to acknowledge, is that their fuel and energy tax increases have a direct impact on higher transportation costs, which means higher food costs. Californians are already paying far more for many food products than people in other states.
Politicians love to talk about the future, but we need to act in the present to help the millions of forgotten Californians that my opponent and the politicians in Sacramento have been ignoring for years. Let’s start by repealing the new gas and vehicle license fee increases.
Additionally, I’d quadruple the renter’s tax credit so people don’t lose the roofs over their heads. This is a reform that needs to be passed immediately. The reality everyone in California knows is that while the politicians in Sacramento love to pass lofty goals that take effect in 20, 30 or 40 years, people need help now — and that’s my immediate concern.
Gavin Newsom (D): Our fiscal volatility has long been the Achilles heel for our state’s financial health. California is long overdue for a conversation about reforming our tax code for the 21st century. And after the passage of Donald Trump’s disastrous tax bill that raised taxes on millions of California families, our state’s tax code is in dire need of comprehensive reform.
Let’s modernize our tax code. Let’s tax the economy that exists today, not one that existed decades ago. I believe California can create a tax system that greatly reduces the volatility of our annual budget process, helps working California families hurt by Trump’s bill, fosters a more competitive business environment and generates the revenue we need to pay for the progressive priorities we hold dear like cradle-to-career education, healthcare and public safety. And we should start that conversation with everything on the table.
Ultimately, we can only grow — not tax — our way to prosperity. Creating sustainable, long-term economic growth that lifts families at every income level is my passion and will be my top economic priority as governor.
Natural disasters What as governor would you do to reduce f ire risk in the state? Specifically, what policies would you pursue to address risk in the wildland-urban interface where many communities are built?
Cox: First and foremost, legislation should not be driven by the big utility companies, or any other special interests. On my watch, California will always have the necessary firefighters, pilots, helicopters, airplanes and equipment needed to respond immediately and effectively when lightning literally strikes.
I will expedite grants to local governments and nonprofits that can and will take immediate action in our most fire-prone and vulnerable areas. I will support additional urgency legislation that will protect the environment while allowing long-overdue efforts to remove dead brush and trees and restore habitat to occur.
We must call for additional federal forestry assistance, and make certain the federal government provides better management of all forest lands under its jurisdiction. As California will require federal assistance when disasters strike — whether it’s earthquakes, flood or fires — it’s critical that our governor have a constructive relationship with any federal administration.
We can and must protect our lives, property and communities, while also protecting the environment. We must take decisive action now to avert more tragedies in the future.
Newsom: Fires are becoming more frequent and more intense, and fire season is getting longer — sometimes stretching for most of the year. This has to be a top priority for the next governor, and our state needs a comprehensive strategy to protect Californians.
That starts with more resources to address this crisis — more prevention and better planning. We all can agree that fire crews should have the resources they need to fight the growing number of fires each season, and I will build on the work currently underway between the governor and the Legislature reexamining lands and vegetation management strategies.
As we look to increase the state’s housing supply, we must also convene stakeholders to design the future of urban planning. And I support taking active steps to reduce the risk of fire in forests, including the removal of dead trees when appropriate, that threaten communities, wildlife and property.
But those are all short- and medium-term solutions. Addressing climate change and reducing global greenhouse gas emissions provides the only long-term fix for this problem.
The science is clear — increased fire threat due to climate change is becoming a fact of life in our state. Drier, longer summers combined with unpredictable wet winters have created dangerous fire conditions. California is leading the nation in reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and fighting climate change. But we must demand that Washington does the same.
Demographics California’s aging population will increase demand for long-term care services. How will you address this demand? In particular, what would you do to support middle-income Californians who do not qualify for Medi-Cal?
Cox: With Californians living longer, healthier and more fulfilling lives comes both the challenge and commitment to maintain an adequate level of services to help them meet their needs and live lives of good health, dignity and a maximum of independence. I want everyone to have healthcare, and that includes everyone with a preexisting condition, and I want it to be affordable.
Our current system was designed by political insiders and healthcare corporate lobbyists to protect their monopoly profits, not to provide decent healthcare at a reasonable price. I want to break up the healthcare corporate monopolies, make insurance companies compete and turn patients into consumers with power over their healthcare dollars.
As we seek to improve and reform our current healthcare system, we must also place an increasing emphasis on healthy living programs, and establish greater accessibility and opportunities for individuals to make the lifestyle choices today that will allow them to live more active and healthy lives tomorrow, while reducing medical costs for themselves and our healthcare system.
Looking at the future, my goal is to also increase opportunities for individuals to save for retirement, so their healthcare costs comprise less of their total after-tax income. Increasing deductions for healthcare and retirement savings can help, but will be of little benefit if everyday
costs of living and taxes consume what little remaining income might be dedicated to savings.
Newsom: Older Californians are part of the rich fabric of our diverse state, and being able to age with dignity and a sense of purpose is part and parcel of the California dream. California must be prepared to meet the Golden Wave, the massive swath of Californians entering the later stages of their life, with compassion and intentionality.
We have a moral obligation to ensure these Californians can thrive. Older Californians face special challenges, especially when it comes to healthcare. And like so many others in this state, they too are feeling squeezed by the affordability crisis that makes it so expensive to live here.
I support the creation of a statewide master plan for aging, not just to tackle the unique challenges this Golden Wave presents for state and local governments but also to ensure California seniors have the chance to find meaning and a sense of belonging in their golden years.
Healthcare will be central to that plan. Seniors know firsthand how important high-quality healthcare is to their well-being. Healthcare is a human right — not just a privilege for those with means. That’s why I enacted the first municipal universal health care plan in America when I was mayor of San Francisco, and I strongly support moving the state toward universal healthcare and a single-payer financing strategy.
Critical to those efforts will be reinvesting in our long-term care system and the workers at the heart of it. Older Californians want to stay in their homes longer as they age — close to family, friends and the support networks they have spent a lifetime building.
Work Advancing technology could dramatically affect the types of jobs Californians will hold in the future. As governor, what would you do to prepare workers for a new labor landscape? Specifically, how will you address the needs of people currently in low-skill, low-wage jobs that are considered vulnerable to automation?
Cox: New technology, the impact of artificial intelligence, innovation and automation require us to prepare students for the reality that in their lifetime they may change careers two to four times — and must often compete in a new, international marketplace with workers from around the globe.
We must recognize and respect the dignity of all honest, hard work. Entry-level, lower-wage jobs are important — and teach essential skills and discipline. However, these jobs cannot become a dead end where hard workers who have not received the training or opportunity to learn the necessary skills to advance their careers become trapped — and become vulnerable to losing their job to modernization and technology.
As governor, I will work to expand STEM programs in all our schools, expand essential career tech education, and provide effective educational enrichment and enhancement opportunities, particularly through our community colleges. Nothing, however, is more important than improving our schools and making sure education money goes directly into the classroom.
Newsom: We find ourselves at a hinge moment in the history of California’s economy. With a rapidly changing labor landscape driven by globalization and emerging technology, the next governor has a responsibility, especially to middle-class working families and our next generation, to prepare the state for the future of work.
California must be ready to support displaced workers and empower them to acquire the skills to succeed in the 21st-century economy. That means encouraging a mind-set of careerlong learning, investing in retraining through our community colleges and expanding apprenticeship programs. Our state’s policy leaders must have a laser focus on workforce-level re-skilling. The state can also work to complement the federal wage insurance program so that Californians who have to change jobs can ensure a smooth transition as they invest their time and energy in re-training and job hunting.
I also support expanding the earned income tax credit for those out of work. This is one of the most wildly successful anti-poverty programs in the history of the United States, and California can improve it by expanding eligibility for working adults and having it disbursed to recipients in periodic refunds as opposed to one lump sum annually. This smoothing will help families struggling to get by with a more predictable cash flow, because in these economic times, every little bit helps.
We need a statewide strategy for workforce development, one that builds upon the unique economic strengths of each region while preparing our workforce to meet the demands of the future economy.