California remains great, Sacramento is the problem
SD METRO Associate Editor Douglas Page spoke with state Sen. Brian Jones, (R-San Diego), the minority leader, recently to discuss issues facing California and San Diego. This is an edited transcript of that interview. It was edited for brevity and clarity.
SD METRO: California has a lot to offer. Great beaches and great skiing. But despite its charms, it’s seen a sizable outflow of its citizens – about 500,000 according to a Los Angeles Times story earlier this year. How do you suggest the state retain its citizens?
Sen. Jones: Everything that was great about California is still great about California. The mountains, the deserts, the beaches, Disneyland. All the natural resources are still here. The only thing that’s messing it up are the policies coming from Sacramento that have raised our taxes too high. We decriminalized crime to where people don’t feel safe on the streets. The cost of living is too high, and our education system, which was number one in 1978, is close to the bottom.
We can turn this around. It’s just going to take some fortitude from the legislators to reduce taxes, reduce the cost of living, reform our criminal justice system back to where crime is illegal, and update our education system.
SD METRO: You’ve got seven colleagues in the state senate. The numbers work against you in the State Assembly as well. How do you go about pushing these issues so your legislation becomes palatable for Democrats?
Jones: Every Republican bill that’s signed by the governor is a bipartisan bill. Because we have to get Democrats to vote for our bills. My Republican colleagues in the Senate are working in a bipartisan manner in a way that we’re developing policies in a cooperation with our Democratic colleagues to get these bills passed and signed.
I’ll give you a couple of examples. SB14, which dealt with human trafficking. Up until this year, human trafficking of a minor for the sex trade was not a felony. And a Republican senator, Shannon Grove, from Bakersfield, introduced that bill. It was co-authored by many Republican and Democratic senators, was passed unanimously and sent to the Assembly. It was signed by the governor. In my case, securing funding for Sweetwater Authority, securing funding for the sheriff here in town, and working on other legislation that I’ve gotten passed. We’re having conversations in a bipartisan manner and building a coalition to get stuff through.
SD METRO: Californians are going to Texas and Florida. Are your constituents asking you why they should remain here?
Jones: I get that question all the time, and it’s disheartening.
SD METRO: How do you answer it?
Jones: I still believe in California. It’s the best state in the country. We just need to change the policies that are controlling the state.
The pendulum swings and the pendulum’s going to swing back eventually. I think we’re going to be able to get California on the right track within, hopefully, this year. But if not this year, maybe in the next two to three years.
SD METRO: The Hoover Institution did a report that came out September of last year that says about 352 California companies have moved their headquarters out of the state. Two questions. How could it be stopped? And what sort of impact does it have for California when somebody ups and moves their headquarters to another state?
Jones: California policymakers, my colleagues in Sacramento and the governor, need to realize we’re competing against 49 other states. We’ve got to come up with incentives that help these companies stay here. If they want to expand, we’ve got to come up with financial incentives or property incentives or regulation incentives that help them stay here. We’ve got to lower the cost of living and we’ve got to go through our entire regulatory process and look for reforms where we can expedite the process for these companies to build and get their permits to get their construction completed.
SD METRO: California’s already lost a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. There’s a report from Decision Desk, cited by the Census Project, suggesting if the outflow continues at the current rate, by 2030 California could lose five congressional seats. Is this something you campaign on to give your party a stronger voice in Sacramento?
Jones: I’ve been campaigning on this since 2010, which was the first census reapportionment when California did not pick up a congressional seat. Every prior reapportionment, every 10 years since 1850, California has picked up at least one congressional seat, and in some decades, two or three or more. 2010 was the first year that we stayed even. 2020 was the first year we went backwards. One of the arguments I’ve been making to my Democratic colleagues is that if you look at the states in the Rust Belt – Michigan, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Ohio – they started losing congressional seats in the 1980s due to their policies and continued to lose influence at the national level, while Texas, Arizona, and Florida and Colorado are picking up congressional seats and increasing their stature nationally.
California’s on the same trajectory. If we don’t turn it around, we are going to lose those five seats. We have seven years to go before the next reapportionment, and people are already predicting that that’s how big the loss is going to be.
SD METRO: Is California at risk of becoming less relevant?
Jones: We could be eclipsed by Texas. If we’re eclipsed by Texas and they become the most populated state in the country, they become the most powerful state in Washington. I believe California still holds that stature now, but we are risking losing that.
When you lose population, you lose state budget, you lose state income. You also lose apportionment from Washington on the federal budget. All of those numbers equal a reduced state budget, which means less infrastructure, less services for our citizens, less help for those that are left here.
SD METRO: Have you spoken with your Democratic colleagues in the state Senate about this issue?
Jones: These conversations started in 2012. A newly elected assembly member approached me when I was in the assembly, and he was from San Francisco, saying, “Why are you Republicans always lying about people leaving the state?”
At that time, San Francisco was still hot. People were still moving to San Francisco. I can tell you Bay Area legislators are feeling the pinch from people leaving because San Francisco’s got a high vacancy rate, lots of commercial real estate, and lots of offices that are no longer occupied. People have left and they’re not returning. So these conversations are moving along. My Democratic colleagues are coming around and accepting the reality that people are leaving. I think we’re still a year or two away from them changing their mind on their policies, but at least we’re having productive conversations.
SD METRO: Are they seeing it the same way as you, with the issues being crime, taxes, housing, and affordability?
Jones: They know that those are the top issues. Unfortunately, their solutions and my solutions are not the same. A lot of my Democratic colleagues, and I would say on the liberal side of the Democratic Party in Sacramento, are still doubling down on their government control ideas: higher taxes and more intrusion of the government into our daily lives. The ones that are being thoughtful are realizing those ideas didn’t work for the last three decades. I think we might see from Sacramento a movement to restore local control on a lot of these ideas and move the decision making to the local level.
SD METRO: When you talk about local control, what are you talking about?
Jones: Taxation, infrastructure, education, crime as far as enforcement and jail time. Over the last several decades, Sacramento has said, “We know better than anybody else. We’re going to do it our way or no way.” And I think that concept is starting to break down and we’re going to start to see more decision processes happen at the local level.
SD METRO: The mayor of San Francisco certainly has come under fire recently because of all the crime issues that have made television. How bad does it have to become before someone says it’s time to put somebody else in office?
Jones: It starts with the voters. And the voters are putting these decision makers in office, so it’s up to the voters to make a change. And I think we’re starting to see that, even in San Francisco. In the last two years, they recalled three of their school board members. They recalled their D.A. So even people in San Francisco are saying, “Enough is enough.” Now we just need, statewide, for people to do that. And that’s why, as minority leader, I’ve worked very hard to get a responsible Republican on the ballot in every Senate seat, I think we only missed one. We’re going to have people on the ballot that voters can choose if they want to move California in a better direction.
SD METRO: The last Republican governor was Arnold Schwarzenegger. He left office in 2011. Among Republicans who are active in state politics, who do you think could win the governor’s office? And I ask this question because, as I’m sure you’re aware, there was a column that appeared recently which talked about potential successors for Gov. Newsom but didn’t mention a Republican. Is the Republican party relevant when it comes to holding the governor’s mansion in California?
Jones: I don’t think we’re irrelevant. State Sen. Brian Dahle, who ran for governor last time, in 2022, is a farmer from the northern part of the state. With very little money, he put a lot of pressure on Gavin Newsom. If he had a funded campaign, I think he could have won.
I think we’ve got a pretty good bench with some of the mayors. Obviously (former San Diego Mayor) Kevin Faulconer comes up quite a bit. Lanhee Chen, who ran for controller last time, obviously did a very good job and could be a contender, too.
SD METRO: What about (former U.S. House Speaker) Kevin McCarthy?
Jones: He’d be very formidable either for governor or for the U.S. Senate. He’s got a very good base. He’s got a political machine that’s top-notch, and he comes from a very wealthy part of the state, Bakersfield. He’s a very good fundraiser in Orange County and in the Bay Area. He’d be very formidable. I have no indication that he’s interested.
SD METRO: Who is going to be the Republican governor or Republican candidate for governor? What sort of policy positions do they have to hold to be palatable in a state which is left-leaning?
Jones: They need a different demeanor than the Republicans in Congress. You cannot be a bomb thrower and just shout from the corners. You have to dig in to get something done and work to move the ball to get policy passed and through the legislature. We’re going to need somebody with that type of attitude. You’re also going to need somebody who’s able to deliver a message that isn’t contrary to the national Republicans but delivers it in a different tone and manner than national Republicans. California Republicans are different. They expect bipartisan solutions. They expect the legislature to work together. And we would need somebody who’s running for governor that’s going to focus on California’s problems and indicate and convince the voters that they’re going to focus on California problems and not get caught up in the drama of Washington.
SD METRO: The U.S. Supreme Court recently decided there’s no constitutional right for an abortion. Has that hurt California Republicans?
Jones: I don’t think so. It’s a settled situation. It’s not an issue that’s really facing California voters. They’ve wised up to it. California voters are focused on the four things I mentioned: cost of living, homelessness, crime, and education. They want solutions to those problems.
SD METRO: How do you mitigate this issue so people will listen to the other parts of your message?
Jones: California Republicans must focus on solving those issues that are top of mind for Californians. And in every poll that I’ve seen in the last four years, abortion, as far as importance of issues, ranks at the bottom. And so we’ve got to keep the focus on the issues that are affecting people.
SD METRO: There have been many stories about immigration. California is part of the southern border. How do you see this problem being solved?
Jones: I was on the border recently with the Border Patrol, and we have a disaster and a crisis based on the policies from the Biden administration. And I don’t care what the president says. I don’t care what the vice president says. I don’t care what any Democratic governor says. We have an open border. Twenty years ago, 30 years ago, most of the immigrants were poor and from Mexico and Central America, looking for the promise of freedom and a better way of life, to earn a living.
What the Border Patrol is seeing now are immigrants from as far away as Afghanistan and Pakistan, West Africa, China, the South Pacific. They’re flying to South America and coming up through Central America and Mexico. When they come across the border, they sit down and wait for the Border Patrol to pick them up, process them and release them into the United States. This is not sustainable and, eventually, will be a problem if we don’t stop it now.
SD METRO: What kind of impact is this having on California financially?
Jones: San Diego County has authorized an expenditure of $3 million twice, so $6 million, just to open a processing center so the Border Patrol has some place to take these people. So that’s a direct expense on the taxpayers in San Diego plus all the other law enforcement, medic, fire responses that we have because of the immigrants coming here. In California, it’s free services, Medi-Cal, Medicare, healthcare coverage and education. Those are expenses that California taxpayers are covering.
SD METRO: The U.S. Census Bureau in July reported that Asians make up about 16% of California’s population, and Latinos about 40%. That’s an entirety. It’s not talking about adults, those who are voting age. There have been stories suggesting Latino and Asian voters are somewhat ripe for at least considering voting for Republicans because they’re concerned about crime and safety issues and Asian voters tend to be concerned about education. How are you messaging to these groups?
Jones: The Senate Republican Caucus and the Assembly Republican Caucus are more diverse than ever, and I’ll give you some examples. Right now, running for reelection in the Inland Empires is Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, the first Latina Republican elected to the California legislature. Suzette Valladares, one of the first Latinas elected to the Assembly, is running for the state Senate. So we’ll have two Latinas in the Senate caucus. Janet Nguyen is an immigrant from Vietnam. She’s from Orange County. And so we have a great diversity in the Senate caucus. And the Republican Assembly Caucus has even greater diversity.
California Republicans are able to tell a story that should resonate with immigrants that we’re for freedom, for personal responsibility, for less government. We’re for public safety and creating an opportunity to make a living in California, expand their wealth and be safe at the same time.
SD METRO: Democrats have branded the Republican Party as racist, xenophobic, anti-women. A lot of people think the Republican Party is the party of former President Donald Trump. How do you get past this?
Jones: That’s something we need to be conscious of and realize that that thought is out there. Trump does not have his stranglehold on the Republican Party in California. There’s a great diversity of thought within the Republican Party here, and we’re going to keep moving with those messages that resonate with all Californians.
SD METRO: Gas is about $5 a gallon in California compared to Texas, where, apparently, it’s under three. The average price of a home in California is about $800,000, give or take a few thousand. The medium price of a house around the country is about $430,000. You’ve got the minimum wage in California going to $16 in January. In April, fast food workers go to $20. How do you make this state affordable?
Jones: Well, I’m hoping voters are catching on that we’re in a 12-year experiment on the minimum wage, recognizing that it’s not working. And what we need to do is not mandate wages across the board but create opportunities for people to grow and expand and earn more and make more based on their increased productivity or their increased value to the company or their own company that they’re working for.
On the housing prices, we’ve got a big problem with regulation. In some communities, the estimates are from 20% to 40% of the housing cost is regulation, time delays, and carrying costs on the land and on the production when there’s these delays through all these regulatory processes.
On gasoline, we need to increase productivity. We need to increase competition among the different companies in California, and we need to decrease the amount of taxes Californians are paying on gasoline. Every gallon of gas that you purchase, $1 goes to the state of California. That’s more than goes to anybody else. $1 goes to the state of California. We need to reduce those taxes as soon as possible here.
SD METRO: The state Republican chair is Jessica Patterson. She’s a Latina. What has she done to make the party more competitive among Latinos and Asians?
Jones: She’s done a great job with the Trailblazer program that she initiated before she was chair, which is our program of recruiting candidates. It started out as just recruiting Assembly and Senate candidates. And then when she became chair, was able to expand that to recruiting for city council races, school board races, local races. And I think she’s reporting that last year we had 1,500 people go through that training program. Obviously being a Latina herself, she’s able to communicate to that community and help spread the Republican message in those areas.
On our board of directors, we have many new board members that this might be their first time being involved in statewide Republican politics, and they’re bringing a fresh new voice to our statewide apparatus. And some of those voices are Asian and some of those voices are Iranian, some of those voices are from other parts around the world. And it’s really creating a more vibrant, robust Republican party in California.
SD METRO: Gov. Newsom’s approval rating, according to the Los Angeles Times, fell to 44% in the story that was published in November. Apparently that’s down from 55% earlier this year. What do you attribute this to?
Jones: Voters are finally getting wise to his shtick. He’s very good at coming out with a flashy announcement, coming up with some new program, grabbing the headlines. And then he walks away and moves on to the next thing with no follow-up, no solid plan of how he’s going to initiate any of these great plans he has, and I think the voters have just had it. They’re done with him. He promised 20 years ago that in 10 years he was going to solve homelessness. I think yesterday people were saying stuff on Twitter and Instagram that it’s the 20-year anniversary of his 10-year plan. People are seeing through the lack of substance and follow through.
SD METRO: What did you make of his trip to China?
Jones: It goes along with his complete thing: make a big splash, make a big announcement, get a headline, and then what did he deliver out of that? What did he come home with? Nothing. But he was in the headlines for a couple of days.
SD METRO: The homeowners’ insurance industry in California is not what it was. The big issue obviously is wildfires, which I’m sure you’re aware of. What’s the Republican solution?
Jones: We’ve been putting a lot of pressure on the Commissioner (Ricardo Lara) because he’s dropping the ball. And he’s elected to regulate the insurance industry, and he has failed to bring about common-sense regulations and reforms, to the point that multiple major carriers have pulled out or will be pulling out of California. That is not good for the market. That is not good for homeowners. That’s not good for renters. That’s not good for people trying to insure their cars. And so we’re going to continue having conversations with him. We both got elected to the assembly at the same time. He’s an Aztec. I’m an Aztec. We have a good working relationship, and I’m going to continue to put pressure on him to make the reforms he needs to make.
SD METRO: How do you get the insurance companies that fled California to come back? What I’m hearing is that homeowner’s insurance policies are costing people at least 100% more, in some cases 300% more than previously, because they need two policies depending on where they are. One from the FAIR Plan for wildfire risks and another from a private insurance company. This is causing affordability issues.
Jones: The Commissioner needs to look at the rates and where the fire prone areas have been cleaned up or there’s been proper infrastructure or proper forest thinning, where the insurance companies can give discounts where they want to. I’ve got a meeting set up with him early in 2024. He needs to modernize the fire risk mapping in California. I’m going to work with the insurance committee chair. And help the Insurance Commissioner come up with some ideas that are going to be helpful and work both for the market and for the companies to get them back in business in California and provide the products Californians need to protect their homes and themselves.
SD METRO: It was Proposition 103 that regulated the insurance industry. Do you see that being reversed?
Jones: One of the faulty parts of that proposition is the intervener process, and I think people need to understand that these interveners are actually paid by the state to, I guess, advocate for the rate payers against the insurance companies. But what’s happened is the insurance companies can’t even provide the products that Californians need, so we need some reform to Prop 103, and there’s a myriad of ideas that we can do on that, so I’m hoping we can move in that direction, but it’s a heavy lift.
SD METRO: Can you discuss the ideas?
Jones: Rate reform is one of them. The mapping is the other one. Removing some of the interference that the commissioner has on the insurance market, let the companies compete a little bit more directly than under a regulatory scheme.
SD METRO: Thank you, Senator.
