Thread by @CalMatters

What’s going on with @GavinNewsom this week? Gov. Newsom faces a recall election, state vaccinations, an unemployment claims backlog — and today, he’s presenting a new state budget. Let’s take a look at what’s happened over the past few days 🧵

On Monday, Newsom proposed an $11.9 billion budget that would send $600 checks to two-thirds of Californians and an additional $500 to families with kids. bit.ly/3w35IV7

Newsom also unrolled a slew of other funding proposals, including:
-$5.2B for low-income renters to stay housed
-$2B to pay water & utility bills
-$1B in college grants for people whose jobs were impacted by the pandemic
bit.ly/2QiXCss

Newsom unveiled a $20B proposal to “reimagine” public schools in California: "The reality is we are talking historic terms & transformational terms" bit.ly/33IbMq8

Newsom also announced an initiative to address homelessness in California: “What we’re doing here today is multiples of what any state in American history has committed to address this crisis of homelessness” bit.ly/3fhuvhx

To understand how Newsom, who faces a #RecallElection, now finds himself in the happy position of being able to dole out billions of dollars, here’s a quick primer on the 2021 California budget @FromBenC: bit.ly/3tMrpqY

Thanks to a lopsided COVID-19 recession and a tidal wave of relief money from the federal government, California is now sitting on $75.7 billion more than the state’s analysts had initially predicted bit.ly/3tMrpqY

This week California expanded its drought emergency to 39 additional counties, including most of the Central Valley and Klamath River area. bit.ly/33KsjKd

Newsom also said he envisions eliminating California’s mask mandate by June 15, the state’s target date for a full reopening amid news that the state’s #COVID19 positivity rate is at a record low of 1% bit.ly/3w7X7R0

But when it comes to masks, Newsom’s facing a dilemma. His own stance has changed twice in the past 2 days, and late last night, the state public health department released a statement: “The state is reviewing the new CDC guidance on masking requirements” bit.ly/3ymdNXc

https://twitter.com/CalMatters/status/1393256690670194689

Will the state require prison guards to get vaccines?

Newsom says he has "no new announcements" to make on this. Read @ByrhondaL's reporting on this here: bit.ly/3bqhzEW

https://twitter.com/FromBenC/status/1393280000598581249?s=20