In December, California’s Democratic leaders dusted off their shelves to kick off a new two-year legislative session, all while nursing the hangover from Election Day. No need for a crystal ball: it was pretty clear that voters, frustrated with rising costs, were sending a loud and clear message thanks to the recent losses to Republicans in three legislative seats and the cringe-worthy showing of Kamala Harris in her home state.

In response, the grand poobah of the Assembly, Speaker Robert Rivas, stood tall before his colleagues and unveiled the urgent plea of the electorate: they still cherish California’s values of tolerance, equality, and human rights, but they’re also seriously distressed over their daily costs of living. Talk about mixed messages!

Rivas called on lawmakers to gear up for an affordability agenda, something that was badly needed as voters casually tucked their frustration over housing costs, grocery prices, and increasingly hostile insurance rates into their overflowing backpacks of worries. Fast forward to last week’s deadline for bill introductions, and the Democratic response looks… well, a bit haphazard. The assembly filed a dizzying number of around 1,160 bills, but a close look reveals that a whopping 250 are simply “spot bills”, essentially placeholders. Yikes!

Some 80 other bills seem to parade under the affordability banner, but most of these initiatives resonate more like lone rangers rather than a cohesive strategy to tackle the mounting crisis. According to Rivas’ spokesperson, they’re still puzzled about how to line up these bills with a unified plan while navigating the wreckage of recent wildfires.

Meanwhile, legislative peers from both sides of the aisle have jumped onto the affordability bandwagon. Senate Democrats are presenting grand proposals aimed at bringing down insurance costs while Republicans, ever ready with a tax-cutting pitchfork, have floated the idea of snipping gas taxes. Makes you think: are they giving us pennies while the wealthy dance off with thousands?

Gavin Newsom also spilled his thoughts on affordability, chastising the state for its remarkably efficient ability to get in its own way. He spouted off about pulling the state out of its bureaucratic snarl to tackle housing and homelessness as a pre-existing emergency. Good luck to him!

The reality is that affordability legislation is not just a wish list, it’s a critical need as California remains one of the most expensive states to live in. As a poll reveals that half of Californians are worried about these rising costs, Democrats have quite the challenge ahead. It’s a long road ahead, and we’re all simply wondering: is it too late to stop the train before it loses more cargo, in the form of Californian residents?