THE BUZZ: PRISON BREAK — Democratic leaders in Sacramento are hoping to finally get their way in drastically slashing prison spending with a major deficit offering leverage over Gov. Gavin Newsom. But it comes at an awkward time politically. As the Legislature works this week to pass some form of budget ahead of a June 15 deadline (or forego their paychecks), prison spending cuts have emerged as a central point of disagreement with Newsom. Lawmakers reckon they can push the governor further than in previous years to fulfill a longtime progressive goal of cutting spending on California’s massive prison system. But the arm wrestle over the corrections budget is also happening as both the governor and those Democratic leaders are looking to increase penalties for some types of crime, including for selling fentanyl and engaging in serial retail theft — meaning more people could land in prison for longer. Democratic lawmakers argue that the $14.5 billion budget of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has long been bloated, noting that the agency is expected to have nearly 15,000 empty beds in the next fiscal year, according to a recent report from the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office. Newsom and prior governors have, for many years, bucked the requests of liberal lawmakers who want to slash how much money the state spends on incarcerating people, arguing they are instead focused on using the corrections budget to improve prison conditions and reentry programs for former inmates. This year, Newsom is on board with reducing funding, but has only proposed $80.6 million in cuts for corrections, compared with the $1 billion that Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire floated in their joint legislative plan. Lawmakers think they have an advantage this year because the state’s shortfall has forced California leaders to pick from a painful menu of budget cuts. The legislators argue deeper cuts to prisons could help alleviate the pain in other areas, such as homelessness programs and other safety-net services for the most vulnerable Californians. “This should have happened before, but no time like the present to right-size CDCR’s budget,” Senate Budget Chair Scott Wiener told Playbook. “We know that our prison population is down, but the budget keeps going up.” H.D. Palmer, a spokesperson for Newsom’s Department of Finance, declined to discuss details of the Legislature’s counter-proposal amid ongoing negotiations. Palmer said, however, that Newsom’s proposed $80.6 million cut for CDCR — the result of axing 4,600 prison beds or 46 housing units across 13 prisons — will decrease the number of inmates per prison so facilities can focus more on rehabilitation programs to better prepare inmates to “successfully rejoin their communities” after their sentence is served. There’s also Newsom’s close alliance with the California Correctional Peace Officers Association, the union for prison guards. The association has long backed Newsom and has contributed heavily to his campaigns in the past. Last year, his administration backed a new contract for the state’s roughly 26,000 correctional officers that includes a host of perks, including $10,000 bonuses. Assemblymember Mia Bonta, who previously chaired the Budget Subcommittee on Public Safety, has been among the most vocal lawmakers demanding prison cuts. She said it’s paradoxical that CDCR’s budget has often grown in past years while the prison population has fallen: There are about 93,000 people in state prisons today, compared with 165,000 nearly two decades ago. Bonta said she and other lawmakers are frustrated by what she called the state’s “prison industrial complex” and a reluctance to close more prisons. She added, “It signals to me, and I’m sure makes other Californians wonder, whether we care more about buildings than people.” GOOD MORNING. Happy Monday. Thanks for waking up with Playbook. You can text us at 916-562-0685 — save it as “CA Playbook” in your contacts. Or drop us a line at lkorte@politico.com and dgardiner@politico.com, or on X — @DustinGardiner and @Lara_Korte. WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced.
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