A bill aimed at helping Black families reclaim property unjustly taken by the government has been vetoed in California.
On Wednesday (September 25), California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed the bill, which “would have created a process for families to file a claim with the state if they believe the government seized their property through eminent domain due to discriminatory motives and without providing fair compensation,” NBC News reports.
Newsom said the bill would’ve been “impossible to implement” because lawmakers blocked another bill to create a reparations agency to review the claims. Black caucus members blocked the reparations agency from receiving a final vote in the Assembly last month due to concerns that the Legislature wouldn’t have oversight over the agency’s operations.
“I thank the author for his commitment to redressing past racial injustices,” Newsom said in a statement. “However, this bill tasks a nonexistent state agency to carry out its various provisions and requirements, making it impossible to implement.”
Democratic state Sen. Steven Bradford introduced the now-vetoed bill following the 2022 return of Los Angeles-area beachfront property to a Black family who it was taken from through eminent domain. In a statement, Bradford previously said the proposal was part of a crucial “framework for reparations and correcting a historic wrong.”
The California Legislative Black Caucus backed a package of reparation bills in an effort to atone for racism faced by the state’s Black residents. The caucus sent other proposals to Newsom’s desk including formally apologizing for slavery and its lingering impacts, improving protections against hair discrimination, and combatting book bans in state prison.
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