Gov. Gavin Newsom is surrounded by lawmakers as he signs into law his oil profit penalty plan in Sacramento on March 28, 2023. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters
Cal MattersSpecial to the Valley NewsIt’s California’s most diverse Legislature ever, and one-fourth of lawmakers are new. But some things never change: Legislators wait until the last days of the session to pass a lot of bills.In the final push, they sent Gov. Gavin Newsom some significant legislation — to tax guns and ammunition, ban caste discrimination and decriminalize some psychedelic drugs. And before they finished nearly seven months of lawmaking late Sept. 14, legislators approved many more bills. Of the more than 2,600 introduced, the most in a decade, about 900 are on Newsom’s desk.He has until Oct. 14 to sign or veto the final batch. Last year, he vetoed 169, or about 14%, while signing 997, including some very significant ones. The Legislature can overr
