Last week’s election raises many questions about the ability of business to work with a state government that will be dominated by Democrats. Here is a rundown on some of the hot-button issues:
? Labor Bills to restore overtime pay after eight hours of work a day, and to raise the minimum wage over $5.75, are likely to be introduced. Gov.-elect Gray Davis said he supports raising the minimum wage and restoring daily overtime pay moves vehemently opposed by business groups.
Still, business leaders are hoping that Davis will walk the middle line.
“He said he planned to run a moderate administration,” said Allan Zaremberg, president of the California Chamber of Commerce. “I have to tell you I am not viewing this with alarm. The reason there is some concern is that some major contributors (labor unions and trial lawyers) have sponsored legislation we call job killers. We hope the Legislature and governor will exercise caution here.”
Union representatives say they definitely have a friendlier ear in the new governor, but the coming years will by no means be a slam dunk.
? Environment Many reforms vetoed during the Wilson regime are likely to get better treatment from Davis, say environmental advocates. Also, Davis will appoint new members to many key environmental regulatory commissions and boards, like the California Air Resources Board, Water Quality Control Board and Coastal Commission.
“The California Environmental Quality Act has been chipped away by the resource agency for years,” said Jan Chatten-Brown, an environmental attorney in West Los Angeles. “We may be able to get some of those issues reexamined. He (Davis) realizes you can’t have a healthy economy without a healthy environment.”
? Regulatory Reform A major concern of business interests is regulatory reform, something that Republican candidate Dan Lungren had promised to make a top priority. Under Davis, it may not be a top agenda item, but business interests are convinced the issue will be addressed.
“I think Democrats are interested in regulatory reform as long as it doesn’t remove environmental standards,” said Rick Zbur, an attorney at Latham & Watkins, who represents corporate interests in many regulatory disputes. “There are opportunities for businesses with the new governor. There are many regulations that conflict and overlap. We need to make all of the regulations consistent with each other.”
? Tort Reform Business groups had also looked to Lungren to pass some serious tort reform, but people on both sides of the issue say that is not on Davis’ radar screen, especially considering that trial lawyers were among his major donors.
John Sullivan, president of the Association for California Tort Reform, said the fight to reform the legal system is definitely not over.
“It is definitely going to be a fight,” he said. “But (trial lawyers) have a problem, because none of the moderates are going to want the public to think they are controlled by the trial lawyers. There will be a lot of proposals made, but what actually gets to the governor remains to be seen. ”
