Faith XLVII’s mural, ‘The Heart of the World,’ reflects the afternoon light at the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center on July 11, 2025. Photo by Jungho Kim for CalMatters
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About a month after I earned my parole and was released from High Desert State Prison in 2024, my buddy Kai Bannon called me from San Quentin through the institutional phone portal. My eyes welled with emotion at being on the other side of these monitored calls for the first time as a free person.
Kai co-founded San Quentin SkunkWorks — a nonprofit social innovation lab focused on introducing and testing moonshot reform ideas, and he and his inside team embarked on a series of community-oriented projects within the prison.
Now Kai wanted my help to realize a bold new vision — to rehabilitate the 19th century architectural landscape of San Quentin by infusing it with light, color, beauty and art.
But it doesn’t include changing the drab beige and brown exteriors that surround residents whenever they leave their tiny dark cells, which were built in the late 1800s. The physical environment still signifies oppression, confinement, punishment.
With so much attention focused on the new buildings set to open in early 2026, Kai began to envision SkunkWorks as a platform that might aesthetically elevate the older, less glamorous parts of the facility.
He christened the project Chiaroscuro: Light Within the Shadows. An Italian term of art, chiaroscuro describes the graphic interplay between light and dark highlights. Metaphorically, it underscores the bright juxtapositions of humanity that live deep within our prisons.
We needed to meet two objectives simultaneously: 1) reach out to global artists to see who’d be interested in working inside an incarcerated community; and 2) figure out how to convince prison administrators that our project had merit.
From Dubai to the U.K. to California, world renowned muralists responded. The concept intrigued them, and they wanted to find out more about San Quentin. They wanted to understand the community they might soon visit and hope to inspire through art. The Skunks collected stories of the individuals living inside San Quentin — including officers and staff who spend large chunks of their days working alongside residents.
Much to our amazement, prison officials agreed we were on the right path. With their support, we gained approval for photos and design layouts of the facility to be shared with prospective artists.
“The murals aren’t just about making the place look better. They change the mood out here,” said San Quentin Correctional Sgt. Freddy Brenes. “A calmer yard means a safer yard — for staff and for the people living here.”
We soon felt an immediate connection with Faith XLVII, a South African artist known for creating community-inspired street murals on public wall spaces and buildings.
“My personal view is just that art has been and is, in all traditional societies, very much a part of the cultural fabric of life and the processes of life,” Faith said. “It’s cathartic; it’s therapeutic; it’s psychological. It speaks in a visual language that negates words and can speak directly to the heart through metaphors and symbols.”
Faith XLVII, a South African artist, outside of San Quentin Rehabilitation Center on July 11, 2025. Photo by Jungho Kim for CalMatters
Faith already had a planned trip to San Francisco in June for a gallery exhibit, so talks quickly evolved. Would it be possible to create a mural on a San Quentin wall in July? We’d need clearcut approval by the administration. We’d also need to raise funds to cover materials and costs.
Kai and his team launched a grassroots social media campaign asking for donations. Because it was the debut installment of Chiaroscuro, we felt an added pressure to pull it off without much hitch.
SkunkWorks raised thousands of dollars by June. A percentage of that came from dozens of residents who filled out donation slips inside the facility for money to be deducted from their institutional trust accounts.
“It’s actually kind of cool,” Kai told me. “A number of people came by and said they gave five bucks or 10 bucks. Those are small amounts for people on the outside. But you and I both know how much five or 10 bucks means in here.”
In addition to Faith, we partnered with Shannon Riley, one of the co-founders of Building 180 — an art production and consulting agency responsible for coordinating public art installations all around the world.
With Riley’s outreach, Dunn-Edwards Paints sponsored most of the paint for the mural. Their local distributors mixed and prepared custom colors along with a UV protective finishing coat.
“I think placing art in public spaces can really help connect people in meaningful ways,” said Riley. “It sparks conversation and dialogue, curiosity and confidence — all really important for healing and rehabilitation.”
Faith’s son, Keya Tama, came from New York to help paint. One of the SkunkWorks outside volunteers who was traveling abroad donated her Sausalito residence for them to stay in comfortable accommodations close to San Quentin.
Barbed wire casts shadows on a mural painted by Keya Tama at the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center on July 11, 2025. Photo by Jungho Kim for CalMatters
An artist himself, Keya felt compelled to install his own mural after speaking about the project with residents and staff.
“As soon as I saw the wall, I kind of just had a feeling,” he said. “Much more like finding something that needed to be there — or had always needed to be there.”
‘Like a piece of freedom’
The Faith XLVII mural stands on the outside of West Block, where more than half the population passes back and forth on any normal day.
George Mesro Coles-El has lived in San Quentin for 13 years, and in all that time, the large blank walls seemed to represent only institutionalization and despair.
“To be able to come out over these last few days and see a mural on the wall in front of me — like when I come and get that first fresh breath of air in the morning, it’s really impactful for me,” said Coles-El. “I never thought I would see a mural like that in a dismal place like prison.”
Coles-El, Tony Haro and Luis Maya all worked with Faith XLVII and Keya Tama. They helped organize and prepare the paint, maintained the brushes and rollers and got a chance to color different segments.
“You get to see something just so different, like a piece of freedom,” said Haro. “We’re going back and forth looking at this beautiful mural that has a quote that’s saying ‘the heart of the world,’ you know? The other day, somebody asked me what does that mean?
“And I said listen to what they’re saying, bro — wherever you’re at, you’re the heart of the world. We’re the heart of the world. You carry that with you.”
More than simply transforming the physical surroundings, the mural also helped shift cultural perceptions.
“I honestly have a newfound respect for staff,” said Maya. “A lot of them took extra efforts to see the project through — just being able to be flexible, being receptive of communication. And then seeing how officers need a new change of scenery as much as us.”
A goodbye through a gate
On July 11, San Quentin Rehabilitation Center planned a media event to celebrate the murals. Faith and a news photographer waited outside but were told no guests would be allowed in that day because of an unexpected modified lockdown.
Assistant Warden Yaser Samara and Faith XLVII stand in front of the artist’s mural at the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center on July 11, 2025. Photo by Jungho Kim for CalMatters
But Associate Warden Yaser Samara called and asked them to come back. Despite the lockdown, he was ready to help Faith get photos and commemorate her art before she returned to South Africa.
“I’m sure there’s many perspectives on this, but at least in my experience with the warden, assistant warden and guards — I met some pretty special people who seemed to want to also bring changes to the system,” said Faith. “And that was very inspiring to me to see that.”
But because of the modified lockdown, Kai was not allowed to be outside when photos were taken. He saw Faith through a locked gate, and she came over to say goodbye and shake his hand through the thick iron bars.
“It’s not how I imagined this ending,” he told me. “But maybe it said everything — that like even in this place that’s built to separate us, we’ve still found a way to connect.
“And I think that the handshake said more than words ever could. It’s gratitude. It’s grief. It’s a whole project in a single gesture reaching across boundaries and trying to create something beautiful, even when the system tries to keep you apart.”
Jason Haas, owner of Tablas Creek Vineyard, stands amongst rows of grape vines at his vineyard in Paso Robles on July 30, 2025. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local
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Tariffs on European wine could be good or bad for California wine producers, depending on whom you ask.
Some American winemakers, restaurateurs and others are urging President Donald Trump to exclude wine from tariffs on goods from Europe, saying European wines are important to the health of domestic wines.
But not all California wine producers are on board. They argue that European winemakers are already subsidized, so American companies having to bear tariffs on just about everything else — including imported corks, barrels and other supplies — puts wine producers in high-cost California at an even bigger disadvantage.
For some wine growers, “it’s certainly hard to hear” about other U.S. wine and hospitality industry players pushing for “zero-for-zero” tariffs on European wines, said Natalie Collins, president of the California Association of Winegrape Growers, which has 650 members. She said it’s tough for California winemakers to price their products to compete with those from Europe.
Trump recently said that he had reached a tariff agreement with the European Union, but some details have yet to be released, including possible exceptions. For now, the EU says the 15% tariffs that went into effect at the beginning of August apply to wine, though negotiations reportedly continue. The U.S. wine industry, which has been facing myriad challenges including new studies that say alcohol is bad for people’s health, falling demand and growing costs, is taking this opportunity to ask for help.
Jason Haas, owner of Tablas Creek Vineyard, inspects the grapes growing on vines at his vineyard in Paso Robles on July 30, 2025. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local
“We’ve seen two years in a row of declining wine consumption in the United States for the first time in two generations,” said Jason Haas, co-owner of Tablas Creek Vineyard in Paso Robles. “It shows up in less tourism, fewer people visiting wineries, fewer people ordering over e-commerce, less sales through wholesalers, both restaurant and retail,” Haas added.
That’s the ecosystem the U.S. Wine Trade Alliance and other industry groups are saying will feel the pain if European wine prices rise because of tariffs: thousands of wine importers and distributors, tens of thousands of wine retailers and hundreds of thousands of restaurants. California, the nation’s leader in wine-related tourism and exports, could be most affected. WineAmerica, an industry group, said California’s wine industry generated about $88 billion in economic impact in 2022. The state’s wine exports in 2022 totaled $1.3 billion, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
Katie Lazar co-manages the 45-year-old Cain Vineyard & Winery in St. Helena in the Napa Valley.
“We’re a long-term business,” Lazar said during a recent media briefing, echoing what other winemakers said about how growing grapes and making wine takes years. “It takes (the wine industry) so long to react and be able to change that the chaos that is present now is an existential threat to the world that we live in.”
Winemakers like Lazar say the distributors they rely on to sell their wines need revenue from selling European wines as well. Their ability to distribute domestic wine is tied to how much other wine they have coming in, she said in an interview with CalMatters.
Most of the U.S. alcohol industry has a three-tier structure that dates back to the repeal of Prohibition. Winemakers and producers are the first tier, followed by distributors and retailers. All three are facing the uncertainty brought about by tariffs: Some wine imports are on hold, meaning less revenue for distributors and retailers.
An aerial view of rows of grape vines at Tablas Creek Vineyard in Paso Robles on July 30, 2025. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local
“I’ve never felt so interconnected like I feel now, even with competitors,” said Matt Licklider, proprietor of LIOCO in Healdsburg, a winemaker that sources its grapes from various small vineyards in California. He said his winery sells to 40 distributors, some of which didn’t know whether they would have revenue coming in from imports because of the unknowns around tariffs. So some of those distributors are ordering less from him. “It has put distributors in a more conservative mindset, which doesn’t benefit anyone here,” Licklider said.
For restaurants that have very thin margins, marking up certain items such as wine can help them survive. Licklider said over the years, he has seen restaurant markups go from two to three times to as high as five times a wine bottle’s price.
Paul Einbund, owner of two restaurants in the Bay Area, said “a lot of my diners just won’t drink domestic (wine).” But he does list some American wines alongside European wines at The Morris, his restaurant in San Francisco, and Sirene, his new restaurant in Oakland.
Not knowing what’s going to happen next is the worst part, Einblund said, especially for small businesses that depend on trying to buy their products at the lowest possible prices.
“People up and down the supply chain are in trouble,” he said. “We were getting emails saying pre-tariff pricing, but that’s dried up now. European producers are not selling to Americans right now. European buyers are not buying American wines right now.”
But Richard Samra, who has been growing grapes in the Sacramento Delta and Lodi for 40 years, said he is more worried about selling his grapes to domestic wineries. He said it’s “amazing” that some in the wine industry are asking for no tariffs on the competition.
He said that competition gets plenty of help. The European Commission recently approved $5.6 billion to support exports of French wines and spirits to the U.S. The European Union spends more than 1 billion euros a year to help boost European wine, and some countries have their own subsidy programs.
“U.S. wine grape growers don’t have that,” Samra said.
“We want to level the playing field. We have plenty of grapes and wine available for sale,” Samra added. He said tens of thousands of acres of vines have been pulled out in California as supply outstrips demand, and he expects that to keep growing. He said imports are a major factor: “Profit margins for people are greater when they purchase a product from outside the U.S. and sell it here.”
Jason Haas, owner of Tablas Creek Vineyard, stands amongst rows of grape vines at his vineyard in Paso Robles on July 30, 2025. Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local
Yet, vintners like Haas, in Paso Robles, said he also worries about the relationships that he has cultivated for years and how they’re being affected by the tariffs. Tablas, his winery, has lost all business in Canada this year.
“There’s certainly spillover effects in terms of other countries just being less wanting to support American products, because they feel like they’re being bullied,” Haas said.
Tablas only exports about 5% of what it produces, but Haas wanted to grow that this year. “We did a lot of investment last year, and building up export markets,” he said. “And so to have it be down this year instead of up has certainly been a hit to us.”
It is with great sadness in our hearts that we announce the passing of a dear member of
our community, Sonny Ray Hawk or Sunny Ray.
Sonny was born and raised in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and after traveling a
while, spent most of his adult life in Humboldt County, California. He affectionately
talked about his childhood with great reverence for the natural environment, the
mountains, rivers and valleys, the wildlife and the rural culture, all of which he also
appreciated greatly about his second home of Humboldt County.
He is survived by his son Galaxy, his mother and father Ana and Noel Halker, sisters;
Angela Shirey, Natalie Aldieri and Cora Cloud, a loving family of aunts, uncles and
cousins back in Virginia and elsewhere and a large community of friends here in
Humboldt who loved and appreciated Sonny’s friendship, music, moonshine, cooking
and company on adventures.
Sonny was a dedicated father. Persevering at times through hardship he strove endlessly
to express his love for his son. Inspired to create connection and share the great joys of
his own childhood he took him out on fun adventures, camping, kayaking, mushroom
hunting, crabbing and fishing.
He had a special connection and sensitivity to nature. One time in his youth he was out
coon hunting with his cousins and was caught trying to direct them away from the poor
animal. Later on in adulthood, helping a friend harvest a flock of home-raised ducks he
is remembered as praying over every single one of them in respect and gratitude for
their life.
Sonny was somewhat of a jack of all trades, skilled in many things including but not
limited to being a trained HVAC technician, farming, carpentry, animal husbandry,
cooking and home brewing. He had a deep thirst for knowledge and was constantly
learning and adding to his skillset.
His stand out achievement in life however was his gift of music which he shared freely
and with all his heart and soul. From epic songwriting to captivating performances
Sonny was renowned as a creative genius and master craftsman when it came to his
chosen art form.
In his teenage years he played guitar and banjo on the front porch of a neighbor’s house,
a bluegrass man Tommy Bledsoe. He was also fortunate to learn the fine art of
moonshine-making from his neighbor, a skill which he perfected to such a degree that
he gained much admiration and appreciation for it throughout his life. In fact, he
acquired his well-loved National Resonator guitar by trading some of this famous
moonshine.Later he picked up the harmonica, taking after his mother who played as well, and
mastered the instrument playing it like a true bluesman.
Perhaps what he is most well known for though was his phenomenal voice. Sonny’s
mother said he sang his heart out throughout childhood, particularly in church where he
learned harmonizing and singing with deep soul. One time, at the tender age of 2 1/2 he
was coming home with his Daddy from a day of bailing hay (Sonny rode in the wagon)
and started singing a song from church. According to his father he sang that entire 37
mile trip home.
Playing around Humboldt County for the past 19 years in his beloved bands, Kindred
Spirits, White Deer and Thurston Hawk, as well as with many other groups of musician
friends, Sonny always had an open heart and mind to include all musicians. Despite his
giant talent he developed and maintained a humble attitude around music making, a
true folk musician who didn’t seem to discriminate about playing ability or styles. He
was constantly inspired by all forms of music, modern and traditional and across all
genres though he was well known for his bluegrass, blues, folk, country and southern
rock styles of playing.
What stood out profoundly about Sonnys playing was his spirit. Every song sung like a
gospel song, a large and glorious energy emanating from him that captivated all who
heard him. He had the ability to move people on a deep level. Not just his audience but
also his fellow musicians who he lifted up, encouraged and inspired to reach within and
be the best they could be.
The light in his heart and his spirited enthusiasm extended out to friends and strangers
alike. Known as a true friend to many he was always ready to lend a hand when needed,
to come help you fix something, encourage and emotionally support you, cook food, play
some songs or do a fun adventure with you. He was a give-the-shirt-off-his-back kind of
friend.
Sonny was deeply loved and will be missed dearly. May we find peace in the words of his
song: “Maybe somewhere over the rainbow I will have a sunny day.”
There will be a memorial to honor and celebrate Sonny’s life on Saturday September
13th at the Fieldbrook Country Kitchen (formally the Fieldbrook Market) from 2-4pm
with more music to follow.
There is also a Gofundme account set up to support the grieving process of his son if
you would like to contribute and support his family.
The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Noel Halker’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.
Blue Lake City Councilmembers (from left): Mayor Pro-Tem Elise Scafani, Mayor John Sawatzky and Councilmember Kat Napier.
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The folks working to recall three of Blue Lake’s five city councilmembers from office worked right up to Saturday’s deadline in their signature-gathering efforts. Their goal? To get autographs from at least 30 percent of the city’s registered voters — somewhere around 252 signatures — in support of recalling each of those officials: Councilmember Kat Napier, Mayor John Sawatzky and Mayor Pro-Tem Elise Scafani.
Did they succeed? Maybe just barely, but we won’t know for sure until after the petitions are reviewed and the signatures verified as valid by staff at the Humboldt County Elections Office.
Some of the pro-recall organizers brought their collected signatures in to City Hall shortly before noon today, according to recently appointed Interim City Manager Jill Duffy. Elissa Rosado, one of the main organizers of this three-pronged recall effort, then conducted a side-by-side count with Duffy, tallying the number of signatures for each of the three councilmembers.
The final tally: 268 signatures in favor of recalling Napier, 276 for Scafani and 266 for Sawatzky.
Will that be enough? Tough to say! When it comes to signature gathering, most folks suggest collecting a cushion of at least 15%-20% above the target amount, since some percentage will invariably be found invalid for one reason or another, whether it’s duplication, lapsed voter registration, failure to match the signature on file with the Elections Office or ineligibility due to, say, living outside city limits.
Here, the recall proponents have given themselves a buffer of less than 10 percent for each of the three officials. Maybe that will be enough in a community where most folks know each other personally.
As a reminder, each recall effort must take place independently from the others, per state law, though they can occur simultaneously. Duffy said she dropped the paperwork off at the county Elections Office this afternoon. Humboldt County Registrar of Voters Juan Pablo Cervantes must now work to verify the signatures, a process he expects to complete by the end of the week, according to Duffy.
“That will determine whether or not the special election will then proceed,” she said.
Since there is no countywide election this year, Blue Lake would need to conduct a special election on its own. Per state election code, if petitions are successful then Blue Lake’s City Council must call an election within 14 days. That election could then be scheduled between 88 and 125 days after it’s called. (The deadline is longer if it’s possible to sync up with a general election.)
If there are indeed enough signatures to trigger special elections for all three Blue Lake officials, and if those elections are successful in recalling them, it would put Blue Lake in uncharted legal territory, as recently reported by former North Coast Journal News Editor Thadeus Greenson. With only two councilmembers left, there would be no way to form the quorum necessary to make any binding decisions. Nobody’s quite sure how replacements would be chosen.
Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:
On August 1, 2025, Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) patrol deputies initiated an
investigation into a theft from a vehicle reported in the 200 block of F Street, Blue Lake, occurring the
previous night. The investigation revealed that three suspects used the victim’s stolen credit cards
at multiple businesses across Humboldt County.
Following a thorough investigation, HCSO deputies identified all three suspects involved. Two
individuals have been arrested and charged as follows:
Michael Dwayne Vanwert, 41, of Eureka, was arrested for violations of California Penal
Code sections 666.1 (petty theft with prior convictions), 484g (fraudulent use of a credit
card), 182(a)(1) (conspiracy), and 1203.2 (probation violation).
Crystle Dawn Angel, 35, of Eureka, was arrested for violations of California Penal Code
sections 487 (grand theft), 459.5 (shoplifting), and 182(a)(1) (conspiracy).
If these names sound familiar, it is because both individuals were previously arrested for similar
crimes just a few months ago. The third suspect has been identified, and efforts to apprehend them
are ongoing.
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office remains committed to pursuing all individuals involved in this
incident and protecting the rights and privacy of Humboldt County residents.
Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the
Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-
2539.
Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:
On July 26, 2025, Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) patrol deputies assisted numerous fire
agencies with the “RedFire” which occurred in a wooded area just northeast of the town of Redway.
Cal Fire investigators on scene determined that this fire was human caused and was directly related
to the large population of people who illegally live in the camps on this piece of private property.
Thanks to the swift and coordinated efforts of all fire agencies involved, the fire was contained,
preventing a larger-scale incident. However, as fire season progresses, such incidents pose an
increasing risk to rural communities like Redway.
Since the fire, HCSO patrol deputies, in collaboration with the private property owner and Cal Fire
law enforcement personnel, have contacted numerous individuals residing on this property, advised
them that they were trespassing, and needed to vacate. These individuals were given time to vacate
prior to enforcement and offered information on available resources to assist with their transition.
On August 3, 2025, HCSO patrol deputies and Cal Fire law enforcement conducted a follow-up
inspection to ensure compliance with the vacate order. All encampments were found to be vacated,
with the exception of one individual. Eva Markowitz, 35, of Redway, was arrested for violating
California Penal Code 602(o) (Trespassing).
HCSO patrol deputies will continue to monitor these camps and make sure that public safety is
prioritized.
Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the
Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-
2539.
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Multiple fire agencies responded to a “human-caused” wildland fire at an illegal encampment north of Redway on July 26. | Photos: HCSO
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It’s late at night, and you badly need a ride. Your cellphone’s battery is dangerously low.
Should a ridehailing company such as Uber or Lyft be able to charge you more because its artificial intelligence programming thinks you’re desperate since it knows your phone is about to die?
Her Senate Bill 259 would prevent retailers from using artificial intelligence to jack up prices using the information stored on customers’ phones. That could include the phone’s battery life, whether it’s an older model, what apps are installed, what time of day it is, where its user is located and where they live.
“Our devices are being weaponized against us in order for large corporations to increase profits, and it has to stop,” Wahab told the Assembly Judiciary Committee last month.
Wahab’s bill to limit surveillance pricing that’s coasting through the Legislature is the latest example of California lawmakers trying to reign in the explosion of AI technology this year. Their 29 other legislative proposals this year include a ban on using algorithmic systems to set rent prices and a measure to protect people from automated discrimination by AI models that make critical decisions about a person’s employment, education, housing, health care, finance, criminal sentencing and access to government services.
Wahab’s measure has been an easier sell than some of the other AI proposals that have already failed thanks, in part, to it being billed as part of Democrats’ post-election pledges to cut costs for Californians.It also has the backing of the state’s influential labor unions, which tend to get their way in the Legislature.Its labor supporters include the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the California Labor Federation. In total, those labor groups have donated at least $8.5 million to lawmakers in the last 10 years, according to CalMatters Digital Democracy database.
‘A high-tech assault on working people’
The unions argue that using algorithms and AI to generate higher prices for customers is inherently discriminatory and should be illegal.
Ivan Fernandez, a lobbyist with the California Labor Federation, called the practice of surveillance pricing a “high-tech assault on working people” during a hearing before the Assembly privacy committee in June. He argued that people are already struggling to afford the high cost of living in California, and companies should not be able to “use our data to squeeze every cent they can.”
“Using data such as a person’s geolocation or their phone battery to determine how much to upcharge them for a good or service further exacerbates this issue of affordability for our affiliate members and for workers,” Fernandez said.
On the other side are business and tech groups that also have donated heavily to legislators but tend to get their way less often than labor does.
Opponents include the California Chamber of Commerce and the Silicon Valley lobbying organizations TechNet and Chamber of Progress. The 17 groups opposed to the measure have given at least $11.7 million to legislators since 2015, according to Digital Democracy.
The opposition argues that the bill is unnecessary under California’s existing data privacy laws, would stifle innovation, cut into tech company profits and lead to higher prices.
“The bill would unfairly cause companies to overhaul their pricing models and strategies at significant cost, to the detriment of both the businesses themselves and their consumers,” wrote Ronak Daylami, a policy analyst with CalChamber, in an opposition letter to the Assembly Judiciary Committee. That committee voted 10-4 to send the bill to the Assembly floor.
CalChamber spokesperson John Myers declined to comment further.
So far, the bill has faced little resistance from lawmakers. Only Republicans have voted against it as it easily passed the California Senate and as it made its way through the Assembly.
“This overregulation is impeding how we do business and how people want to do business,” said Assemblywoman Diane Dixon, a Republican who represents the Huntington Beach area, during an Assembly judiciary committee hearing. “I just believe that the market resolves these issues.”
A few Democrats, such as assemblymembers Chris Ward of San Diego and Lori Wilson of Suisun City, asked about enforcement and also some exceptions for “legitimate uses” of geolocation data, but Wahab has mostly received kudos.
“It’s modern-day redlining,” Assemblymember Liz Ortega, a Democrat who represents the Hayward area, told the Assembly privacy committee, referring to racist lending practices that relegated Black and other non-white families into less safe and less desirable neighborhoods prior to the Fair Housing Act of 1968. Proponents of SB 259 argue that without additional guardrails, companies could use consumers’ data to engage in similarly racist price discrimination.
“It was not OK then, and it’s not OK today,” Ortega said.Notwithstanding her concerns about equitable pricing, Ortega’s support for the union-sponsored proposal isn’t surprising. She is the former statewide political director for one of AFSCME’s local unions. Since 2023, she voted with AFSCME and its affiliate unions’ positions on legislation 100% of the time in 127 opportunities, according to Digital Democracy. She’s also received $77,800 in campaign donations from AFSCME and its affiliates.
Testing Newsom’s tech loyalty
As she pitched her proposal, Wahab has frequently referred to herself as “a former tech worker in Silicon Valley” and leaned on her experience working with tech companies as a business IT consultant. Yet she is also strongly aligned with labor and unions, voting their way more than 90% of the time. Since 2021 she has received nearly $50,000 in campaign contributions from the California Labor Federation and AFSCME, according to the Digital Democracy database.
Wahab painted the companies in her former industry as profit-hungry villains that unscrupulously use Californians’ personal data to pad their bottom lines.
State Sen. Aisha Wahab speaks during a press conference at the Capitol Annex Swing Space on April 15, 2024. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters
Wahab pointed to a ProPublica report that exposed the test prep company Princeton Review charging higher prices for online SAT tutoring to customers in zip codes that had a high percentage of Asian residents, even in neighborhoods with low median incomes.
“You are being discriminated against based on your perceived socioeconomic status,” Wahab told CalMatters.
She also cited reporting from SFGate that alleged hotel booking platforms would upcharge users whose devices showed they were browsing from the Bay Area, sometimes up to $500 a night more than users in other parts of the country.
And she highlighted a report from the advocacy group Consumer Watchdog that alleged ridehailing apps such as Uber and Lyft charged higher prices to riders whose phone batteries were low – a claim that the companies deny.
“Suggestions that our systems manipulate pricing unfairly or discriminate are simply false and not supported by evidence,” wrote Zahid Arab, a spokesperson for Uber, in an emailed statement. Shadawn Reddick-Smith, a representative for Lyft, said in an emailed statement that the company “does not base fares on battery percentage.”
At least one expert on tech says the critiques from business groups that the bill would stifle innovation and lead to profit losses are inaccurate, specious and “wildly overblown.”
“Industries have built a business model around systematically violating our privacy in ways that we do not want, and generally do not consent to,” said David Evan Harris, a former research manager at Meta and a lecturer at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business. “People shouldn’t have to be misled into consenting to things.”
Robert Boykin, a representative for the trade group TechNet, noted that California’s privacy law already gives consumers “meaningful rights,” such as the ability to opt out of the sale of precise geolocation and protection from discrimination should they choose to do so.
He said the law also allows companies to offer customers “benefits like loyalty programs and pricing discounts, as long as they’re tied to the value of the data and meet strict standards.”
Wahab’s measure is likely to be heard by the full Assembly when lawmakers reconvene from their summer recess in mid-August. It could end up on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk soon after.
