California Assembly Republican Caucus
California lawmakers raise concern as core services in rural communities face delays, cuts, and inaction under Governor Newsom’s leadership.
SACRAMENTO — This week, Governor Gavin Newsom is touring several South Carolina counties to speak about public investment, infrastructure, and economic recovery. As he promotes his record in rural America, the California State Assembly Republican Caucus is issuing this public notice to provide background on how rural communities in California — the state he was elected to govern — continue to be left behind.
“While Governor Newsom speaks about forgotten communities in other states, he’s ignored the ones in his own backyard,” said Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher. “He’s bankrupting Medi-Cal while rural Californians get pushed to the back of the line. They’re losing doctors, losing access, and losing faith in a system that’s supposed to serve them. He’s not fixing anything — he’s abandoning them.”
This notice is provided as a courtesy, in case the Governor forgets to mention how things are going back home.
Medi-Cal Is Collapsing in Rural California:
- In March 2025, Medi-Cal ran out of funding, requiring a $6.2 billion emergency bailout.
- The Newsom administration missed a federal deadline to update Medi-Cal provider payments, losing millions meant for doctors and triggering care access problems statewide — especially in rural counties.
- Despite allocating over $12 billion for expanded coverage to non-citizens, many rural Californians are being dropped by providers and forced to wait months for basic care.
Cuts to Rural Safety and Infrastructure:
- The 2025–26 budget slashed wildfire prevention funding to $200 million, down from over $1 billion in recent years — even as fire-prone communities remain at high risk.
- Local fire agencies report fewer grants and reduced support for vegetation management and fuel breaks.
A Bullet Train That’s Bulldozing Rural California:
- Governor Newsom continues to pour billions into the state’s stalled High-Speed Rail project — a system with no completion date and no realistic chance of operation in the near future.
- Prime farmland in the Central Valley is being ripped up to build train segments with no ridership, no connections, and no functional plan — while real infrastructure needs go unfunded.
Rural Economies Under Pressure:
- Over 80,000 jobs were lost in 2024, with nearly 200,000 private-sector jobs gone since 2023.
- Sectors like agriculture, trucking, and independent construction — pillars of rural California — are being hit hardest by regulations, water uncertainty, and rising costs.
A Budget on the Brink:
- California’s budget problems haven’t gone away, they’ve just been pushed past Gavin Newsom’s term in office.
- The California Department of Finance projects operating deficits of $17.2 billion in 2026–27, $24.2 billion in 2027–28, and $17.4 billion in 2028–29.
- Newsom is relying on short-term patches, while long-term obligations — especially Medi-Cal — keep growing faster than the state can afford.
- When Newsom moves on, Californians will still be paying the price for the budget choices he made.
The Assembly Republican Caucus will keep speaking up for the California communities left behind by a governor too busy auditioning for another job to do the one he has.
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