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Which of these 2025 bills will Gavin Newsom sign?
The fate of hundreds of bills recently approved by the Legislature now rests with Gov. Gavin Newsom. He has one month to sign or veto any measures passed in the final days before the session ended Sept. 13.
As his attention turns ever more toward national politics, how might Newsom’s approach change this year? What bill signings will he highlight to the public or bury in a late-night news dump? Could he veto more proposals as he tries to distance himself from contentious liberal policies and chart a more moderate image?
Last year, Newsom vetoed about 18% of nearly 1,000 bills passed in the final days (and nearly 16% of all 1,200 bills passed by the Legislature in 2024). That was already higher than his historical average.
Typically, the governor gives a few reasons for vetoing bills: He deems them bad policy or redundant or calculates that their potential cost threatens to worsen the state’s budget situation. But he also blocks bills because they’re controversial or opposed by powerful special interests.
While the Legislature can override vetoes, it takes a two-thirds vote in both the Assembly and Senate, which rarely happens. Governors can also allow bills to become law without their signature, but that doesn’t occur very often, either.
Here are some noteworthy bills CalMatters reporters are tracking. Bookmark this page for updates.
Immigration
Housing
Education
Law enforcement
Climate and environment
Technology
Reparations
Cannabis
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Forget the high-priced festivals. You can regularly see bands in L.A. for under $30, often for $10 or less.
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Talks between 14,000 workers and hotel operators in SoCal have fallen through.
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Marine mammal treatment centers are overwhelmed by sick sea lions, likely due to a toxic algal bloom off of the Southern California coast.
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The Titanic director made 33 dives to the shipwreck and visited ocean depths in a submersible he built himself. He compares OceanGate to the Titanic, in that both ignored safety warnings.
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Recent attacks by people who professed white nationalist and neo-Nazi sympathies but are not white themselves have raised a question: Why are some people of color drawn to white supremacist ideology? The answer is complicated.
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The last time one of the animals was seen in California was in 2008, and prior to that the most recent sighting occurred in 1922.