HR DISASTER: Alarm bells are ringing today inside the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services — the state’s top disaster responders. First, a former employee of the department, Steven Larson, sued Cal OES in late 2020, claiming Deputy Director Ryan Buras sexually harassed at least four women. Today, another former employee of Cal OES, Kendra Bowyer, filed a lawsuit against the department alleging she was sexually harassed by Buras for more than one year. Bowyer claims Buras’ behavior was ignored and condoned by agency brass. And when she ultimately refused Buras’ advancements, she was retaliated against and forced to resign her position. Brian Ferguson, a Cal OES spokesperson, said the department does not comment on personnel matters and active litigation. “Sexual harassment in the workplace is an affront to our values as an organization. It has no place in Cal OES and it will not be tolerated in any form,” he said. Taken together, the lawsuits are a troubling development for the department that itself is in charge of mitigating disasters. And it seems to mirror the troubles Americans saw playing out inside the state department’s federal sibling, FEMA, where sexual harassment claims proliferated. Bowyer, who worked on recovery efforts, says Buras went to great lengths to pursue her — at one point climbing into her bed — and calling her at all hours of the night to vent about his personal life. Bowyer says she met Buras, an appointee of Gov. Gavin Newsom, in January 2020 during a disaster response that winter. Buras was married to the state’s former Labor Secretary Natalie Palugyai, had two children, and Bowyer claims he was overly friendly with her, including asking her to dine alone with him. He made a comment to her about a coworker, identified in the lawsuit as Tom, believing that the two were “sleeping together.” After Buras asked her to go on a surprise Christmas holiday with him, and said she would need her passport, Bowyer cut it off permanently. That’s when Buras made her job impossible, Bowyer alleged. She says Buras icing her out slowed Cal OES’ ability to deliver relief and put Californians in danger. Asked why she didn’t sever ties with Buras sooner, Bowyer said he has issued a warning of sorts in earlier conversations. She said Buras made it “very clear” that he had what he referred to as a “DTM list” — a directory of names he said stood for work subordinates and colleagues who were “dead to me.” Bowyer said she knew two colleagues who were on Buras’ DTM list. “I saw how he had completely cut them off from everything. Both of those individuals had to end up leaving because of the repercussions of being on that list,” she said. IT’S TUESDAY AFTERNOON. This is California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check of California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to sgtaylor@politico.com or send a shout on X. DMs are open. WE WANT YOUR HELP — POLITICO is co-hosting the first debate for California's Senate race on Monday, Jan. 22. All four major candidates have accepted our invite to appear onstage: Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff, Katie Porter and Barbara Lee and Republican and former Dodgers player Steve Garvey. | 
