On August 28, a judge upheld a ban on the public financing of local campaigns, invalidating last year’s reforms put in place by Senate Bill 1107.

The Sacramento Superior Court ruled in favor of plaintiffs, Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and retired State Senator and Judge Quentin L. Kopp, invalidating SB 1107 and ruling that the matter must be sent to voters on a statewide ballot.

SB 1107 was passed in 2016 and allowed any municipality the option to create systems for publicly funded campaigns. In the absence of SB 1107, only six charter cities can offer limited public funds to match small campaign donations.