Scheduling note: WhatMatters is celebrating the Fourth of July and will return to your inboxes on Monday.
Faced with steep budget cuts, phone lines that provide free mental health support to tens of thousands of residents across California have begun layoffs and the elimination of crucial services, reports CalMatters’ Jocelyn Wiener.
These so-called “warm lines” assist people during non-emergencies, offering emotional support and mental health resources. Parents Anonymous’ helpline, which serves about 24,000 people a year and is endorsed by First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, has already laid off staff. The organization requested $3 million a year from the state, but the budget deal Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers hammered out last week did not include funding.
Pomona resident Antonia Rios said she contacts the helpline as much as seven times a week. Rios is a mother of seven, and lives with anxiety, depression and other mental health afflictions. For Rios, “it breaks my heart they want to cut” the helpline.
- Rios: “The helpline was a safe haven for me. It saved my life on many occasions.”
In Orange County, the warm line for the National Alliance on Mental Illness fields 900 calls a day, according to its Chief Executive Amy Durham. The organization is now preparing to let go of 127 staffers, many of whom used the warm line themselves and later became peer counselors.
- Durham: “Now we’re going to wait until everyone’s in crisis. I can’t imagine it’s cost effective or humane.”
The nonprofit that oversees the California Peer Run Warm Line, which I reported about in June, requested $15 million a year in renewed funding. Because it received only $5 million this budget year, it will shut down its Spanish-speaking helpline that it also provides, writes Jocelyn.
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Other Stories You Should Know
Latino Caucus members slam Medi-Cal cuts
To save the state a projected $1 billion in the next few years, Newsom and the Legislature approved a state budget deal that also includes a provision, in the form of a trailer bill, to freeze new Medi-Cal enrollment for adult immigrants who do not have legal status.
The Legislature approved the budget mostly along party lines, but four Democrats who are part of the 35-member Latino Caucus voted against the Medi-Cal cuts or abstained from voting, writes CalMatters’ Kristen Hwang.
Their opposition shines a light on the fine line Latino Caucus members must walk between cutting state spending and expanding health care access for immigrants. The caucus is one of the most influential political blocs in California, and has historically championed bills related to health care, labor and education that support immigrants without legal status.
- Sen. Caroline Menjivar, a Van Nuys Democrat who voted against the Medi-Cal cuts: “It’s the ‘othering,’ … we’ve created a hierarchy of what human is eligible and what human is ineligible.”
Lawmakers shelve eviction relief bill
Underscoring how difficult it is to pass renters’ rights legislation in the face of big spending from business and landlord groups, a bill that would have given renters more time to pay past-due rent before being evicted failed to advance out of committee last week.
As CalMatters’ Ryan Sabalow explains, renters are currently allowed three days to pay their past rent before landlords can begin the eviction process. A proposal by Sen. Aisha Wahab, a Fremont Democrat, would have extended that to two weeks.
The measure didn’t get enough votes to pass through the Assembly’s judiciary committee — highlighting the rift between progressive Democrats who support more rental protections and those concerned with the rights of landlords.
Landlord associations, groups representing the building industry and business groups including the California Chamber of Commerce, opposed the measure. Since 2015 these groups have donated at least $13.7 million to state lawmakers since 2015.
And lastly: Shielded from public scrutiny
The Legislature on Tuesday tweaked a bill that would create a new nonprofit within the treasurer’s office — but only after good governance advocates raised concerns about how the proposed agency would be allowed to operate in secret. Find out what this nonprofit would do from CalMatters’ Yue Stella Yu.
California Voices
CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: Though it’s unlikely that Republicans will outnumber Democrats in California, a right-leaning shift among voters could signal a more unpredictable and healthier political dynamic in the state.
CalMatters contributor Robert Greene: As the Fourth of July approaches Friday, the atmosphere in Los Angeles — where federal troops are deployed to patrol the streets — feels wounded and anxious.
Other things worth your time:
LA immigration sweeps violate Constitution, lawsuit says // CalMatters
New bill in Congress would bar federal immigration agents from covering their faces // Los Angeles Times
CA lawmakers struggle to find ways to hit back against Trump immigration raids // Los Angeles Times
Trump administration says it’s pulling 150 members of the National Guard from LA // San Francisco Chronicle
Newsom to Trump: I wrote the executive order on fighting wildfires // San Francisco Chronicle
CA leads states in suing Trump administration for sharing health data with DHS // NPR
CA restores $11.5M for small performing arts venues // KQED
The latest strategy by SF neighborhoods to avoid development? Be ‘historic’ // The San Francisco Standard
Diocese of Fresno files for bankruptcy. What it means for abuse victims’ claims // The Fresno Bee
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