SACRAMENTO\u00a0\u2014\u00a0In his final State of the State address, Gov. Gavin Newsom shifted from the problem-solving posture that defined his early years in office to a more declarative accounting of California\u2019s achievements, casting the state as a counterweight to dysfunction in Washington.<\/p>\n
The address, which Newsom gave Thursday to a joint session of the Legislature, served as a capstone to his governorship, emphasizing policy results that included falling homelessness, lower crime rates and expanded education spending.<\/p>\n
Delivered in the state Capitol, which was teeming with staffers, reporters and lawmakers, the speech marked Newsom\u2019s first in-person address to the Legislature in five years \u2014 a return some lawmakers have vocally pressed for \u2014 and offered a glimpse of how he is positioning himself for a potential run for president.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn California, we\u2019re not silent,\u201d Newsom said. \u201cYou\u2019re not hunkering down. We\u2019re not retreating. We\u2019re a beacon. This state is providing a different narrative. An operational model, a policy blueprint for others to follow.\u201d<\/p>\n
But the confident tone of the address lands against conflicting fiscal forecasts for the state. In November, the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst\u2019s Office warned that California faces a nearly $18-billion budget shortfall. <\/p>\n
Although the governor\u2019s Department of Finance does not always agree with the legislative analyst\u2019s estimates, such a deep financial hole threatened to complicate Newsom\u2019s final year of major policy decisions and diminish his national political appeal. Newsom, however, said his administration expects revenues to be $42.3 billion higher over the next three fiscal years than was forecast last year. Part of that windfall will be used to increase per-pupil funding at public schools and also to pay down the state\u2019s pension obligations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy? Because our economy is growing, our population is growing,\u201d Newsom said of the revenue turnaround.<\/p>\n
Republicans were quick to question whether the address focused on the state\u2019s outlook for the year ahead, as intended, or served as a campaign warm-up, noting that Newsom made no mention of the legislative analyst\u2019s warning about a looming budget shortfall.<\/p>\n
State Sen. Tony Strickland (R-Huntington Beach) said Newsom\u2019s speech was \u201clargely directed at the Trump administration, largely directed at national issues.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was more of a campaign speech,\u201d Strickland said from outside the Assembly chambers. \u201cIf you\u2019re doing a state of state address, what are you doing about the [budget] crisis?\u201d<\/p>\n
Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) sidestepped questions about the potential budget deficit, saying it would be discussed in-depth when the governor unveils his budget proposal Friday. <\/p>\n
Newsom is not expected to attend the budget press conference, instead leaving his finance department to field reporters\u2019 questions.<\/p>\n
Newsom used the pulpit to announce an estimated 9% drop statewide in unsheltered homelessness last year, addressing a topic that has been a persistent political vulnerability<\/a> for the two-term governor. Despite some improvements, California has been home to nearly a quarter of the nation\u2019s homeless population, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. <\/a> <\/p>\n Homelessness remains a significant problem in Los Angeles, although it has declined somewhat in recent years, according to official numbers. Last year, there were about 72,000 people living on the streets or in shelters in L.A. County, 4.3% fewer than in 2023, according to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. Unsheltered homelessness \u2014 people living on the streets \u2014 dropped 14%.<\/p>\n Nonprofits and local Los Angeles officials have warned homelessness could start rising<\/a> again because of a variety of budget cuts.<\/p>\n Newsom also said two of his top priorities \u2014 the mental health program known as CARE Court<\/a> and Proposition 1, the statewide bond measure he championed to provide funding for mental health and homelessness<\/a> \u2014 are achieving results ahead of schedule, with counties now equipped with funding, authority and tools to combat the crisis. <\/p>\n Newsom said since 2021, the state has \u201cremoved more than 19,000 encampments and worked with providers to help more than 61,000 people get services.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo more excuses \u2014 it\u2019s time to bring people off the streets and out of encampments and into housing and treatment,\u201d Newsom said.<\/p>\n The governor also took a swipe at California\u2019s critics \u2014 President Trump and conservative commentators chief among them \u2014 who continually bash the state as a lawless hellscape where criminals prowl unabated. <\/p>\n That defies reality, Newsom said, furrowing his eyebrows and praising the Legislature for \u201cleaning into public safety\u201d that he said has had real impact: \u201cdouble-digit\u201d decreases in crime overall. Violent crime, burglary and robbery and car theft are all on the decline. Los Angeles, Oakland and San Francisco are seeing record-low homicide rates. In the city he once led as mayor, Newsom said that the homicide rate in San Francisco has dropped to its lowest level since 1954.<\/p>\n \u201cTo those with that California derangement syndrome, I\u2019ll repeat, it\u2019s time to update your talking points,\u201d Newsom said.<\/p>\n A White House spokesperson, who referred to the governor as \u201cNewscum,\u201d dismissed the criticism, saying Newsom\u2019s policies \u201care an abject failure and have completely destroyed the great state of California.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cInstead of using his state-of-the-state to lie about the President in hopes of courting left wing voters ahead of his doomed-to-fail Presidential campaign, Newscum should\u2019ve talked about how he planned to undo the damage he\u2019s done to California. Lucky for him, it\u2019s unlikely anyone watched \u2013 we sure didn\u2019t,\u201d said spokesperson Abigail Jackson.<\/p>\n Calling affordability a multilayered crisis, Newsom signaled a tougher stance toward the buying spree of homes by private equity and institutional investors in California. That message is a rare point of rhetorical overlap with Trump, who has said the United States should bar such practices because they push prices beyond the reach of many Americans.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s shameful that we allow private equity firms in Manhattan to become some of the biggest landlords here in our cities in California,\u201d Newsom said. <\/p>\n Newsom offered a few previews of select budget priorities, with his office set to unveil the full proposed budget on Friday. The governor announced that his proposed spending plan would set a state record on per-student funding in public schools \u2014 at $27,418 per student \u2014 and fully fund universal transitional kindergarten. <\/p>\n That budget increase comes as California state tests are improving, but have not yet reached pre-pandemic levels. Despite high graduation rates, only 51.7% of California graduates met the state\u2019s college and career readiness standard. This has created a troubling disconnect: approximately 9 in 10 students receive diplomas, but only about half are deemed ready for college or career pathways.<\/p>\n Newsom unveiled a major shift in how the state oversees education<\/a>, unifying the policymaking State Board of Education with the California Department of Education, which is responsible for carrying out those policies.<\/p>\n Newsom said he believes the move is \u201clong overdue\u201d and will allow the state superintendent of instruction to \u201calign our educational policies more efficiently.\u201d<\/p>\n Sen. Suzette Valladares (R-Santa Clarita) hit back on the rosy image of California that Newsom painted.<\/p>\n \u201cThe reality is, costs are out of control, we have the highest gas prices in the nation, people can\u2019t afford rent or to buy housing, families are struggling, our children are failing in education and that is the real state of the state in California,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n One topic the governor said he had debated addressing was the state\u2019s high-speed rail, a project long criticized as a boondoggle and a political albatross for Newsom and former Gov. Jerry Brown because of its cost and delays. The project is slated to receive $1 billion a year in funding through the state\u2019s cap-and-trade program<\/a> through 2045, with the current priority completing a 171-mile portion from Merced to Bakersfield by 2033.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is one of the great economic investments in those regions of our state and will make commute times shorter and make life more affordable for the people of the Central Valley, and they deserve it,\u201d Newsom said.<\/p>\n The address marked the first time in five years that Newsom delivered a State of the State from the Assembly rostrum. His last in-person address came shortly before COVID-19 shut down the Capitol in early 2020. As he entered the green-carpeted Assembly chambers, lawmakers stood to applaud, a few shaking his hand. Newsom addressed his absence, noting his longstanding hesitance to deliver such remarks because of his struggles with dyslexia.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know, I\u2019m not shy or you know embarrassed about my 960 SAT score, but I am a little bit about my inability to read the written text and so it\u2019s always been something that I have to work through and I\u2019m confronting,\u201d Newsom said while ad-libbing at the start of his speech and at times veering far off his prepared remarks.<\/p>\n Despite Newsom expressing discomfort, state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) said he was struck at how at ease the governor seemed.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was incredibly articulate and passionate, but it was relaxed and humble,\u201d Wiener said. \u201cIt was a really effective presentation and a powerful speech.\u201d<\/p>\n Before Newsom\u2019s speech, the chamber held a moment of silence to honor Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old woman who was fatally shot by a federal immigration agent Wednesday in Minneapolis. Lawmakers also honored U.S. Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale), who died Monday.<\/p>\n