From CalMatters Capitol reporter Jeanne Kuang:

The California Senate voted this week to reverse course on the state’s calls for a constitutional convention, one of which many Democrats supported just two years ago at Gov. Gavin Newsom’s urging. 

With the President Donald Trump administration at the helm and Republicans running Congress, Sen. Scott Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat, said the state should err on the side of caution by revoking its past seven calls for a session to rewrite the Constitution. 

Congress can convene such a session if 34 states call for one — though it’s never actually happened before. California is one of 28 states with pending calls for a convention on the books, according to the nonpartisan Common Cause, and some Republicans nationally have pushed for one. Constitutional amendments require 38 states to ratify.

As currently written, the Constitution guarantees such bedrock American rights as free speech, equal protection of the laws and birthright citizenship. 

• Wiener: “I shudder to think what (the Trump administration) would do to Californians’ basic rights if given the chance to rewrite the Constitution itself. There are no guardrails once a constitutional convention has been triggered … California must do its part to prevent this chaos.”

His resolution to revoke California’s calls passed the Senate on Monday with 27 votes in favor, including one Republican and 15 of the Democrats who previously supported holding a convention. The resolution heads next to the Assembly. If passed, it would rescind the seven pending calls from California, dating back to 1911, to amend the constitution on issues ranging from labor laws to campaign finance.

But to actually rescind the calls, lawmakers will need the support of Newsom — who pushed for the last constitutional rewrite resolution in 2023 as he positioned himself as a national leader on gun control. In 2023 he proposed a constitutional amendment to require a federal minimum age of 21 for firearm purchases, universal background checks, a waiting period between purchasing and receiving a gun and a ban on selling assault weapons. As CalMatters reported last year, those efforts have gone nowhere, with not a single other state having joined the call. 

Newsom’s office did not respond when asked whether he still supports a convention under the current presidential administration and Congress. 

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals began its hearing Tuesday to determine whether to allow California National Guard troops to stay in L.A. under Trump’s command. In court the federal administration argued that the president, under certain conditions, has the power to commandeer the troops, and that the court does not have the authority to overrule him. One of his lawyers called the president’s deployment “unreviewable” by courts.

Before the proceedings kicked off, Newsom spoke with independent journalist Aaron Parnas, and said that the hearing was essentially “about federalism,” and that if the state is successful in its lawsuit, it “will be a big day in the rule of law.” 

• Newsom: “This is about our Constitution. … That’s what ultimately is being tested here, and that’s the theory that Donald Trump can unilaterally decide to militarize the streets of America. Happens to be in L.A. now, will be in your city next.”

This past week California Republican lawmakers made use of the situation in L.A. as an opportunity to slam Democrats on immigration and crime, writes CalMatters’ Yue Stella Yu. Stella asked all 29 GOP lawmakers — who are typically opposed to government overreach — whether they supported Trump’s mobilization of troops. Only six replied, all in support of Trump.

• Assemblymember Jeff Gonzalez of Coachella: “When you have leaders that don’t step up, someone needs to step up, and that’s what took place.”

Read more here.

A month after Newsom said he wanted concessions from public employee unions to help balance the state budget, the union representing California prison guards struck a new labor agreement that gives the governor some relief in the short-term, in exchange for some perks down the road.

As CalMatters’ Nigel Duara explains, the labor deal for the California Correctional Peace Officers Association includes a combination of raises and bonuses, such as two, 3% raises that take effect next month and July 2027, and a $10,000 retention bonus for officers at three prisons.

But the contract also saves the state money in some ways. The raise next month will be offset by a personal leave program that is expected to reduce pay by 3% in the coming year. It also defers the state’s contribution toward the health care coverage used in retirement.

In total, the agreement — which still needs legislative approval — is anticipated to cost the state $600 million over the next three years. 

Read more here.

To combat financial aid fraud, the U.S. Department of Education said it would begin a new screening process for applicants this fall. But this policy change would place a unique burden on California’s community colleges, which say that fraud represents less than 1% of the billions in aid that go to its students each year. Find out more from CalMatters’ Adam Echelman.

California Voices

CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: The Legislature is considering a bill that would generate $500 million a year for Bay Area transit systems, but critics question why payments to transit employees are rising, even though ridership has declined.