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Gavin Newsom’s mind-boggling record of giveaways to unions

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A friend recently told me he was impressed that Gov. Gavin Newsom was standing up to California’s public employee unions by requiring state workers to return to the office at least four days a week.

But if he thought that meant Newsom had generally been tough on California’s powerful unions, I told him there was a lot more to the story — and he was about to get a lesson in seven years of union favors he wouldn’t forget.

Start with the California Teachers Association.

Soon after taking office, Newsom signed AB 1505 and AB 1507, strengthening traditional school districts’ power over charter schools.

CTA called it a “historic win after 27 years.”

As schools around the country reopened, California’s teachers unions continued demanding extraordinary conditions before returning to classrooms. Newsom spent months unwilling to seriously confront them while California children remained home.

By the time Newsom and the unions came to terms, California was among the last states in the country to fully reopen its public schools.

Fast forward to today.

Beginning next year, the new federal Education Freedom Tax Credit will provide taxpayers up to a $1,700 federal tax credit for contributions to scholarship organizations. States must opt in.

As of this month, 29 states have elected to participate.

California isn’t one of them — a win for the CTA, which opposes directing scholarship dollars toward private-school alternatives to unionized public schools.

Newsom still can opt us in. I wouldn’t hold my breath.

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