SACRAMENTO\u00a0\u2014\u00a0In his first news conference since being elected governor, Xavier Becerra remained noncommittal on taxes, energy and healthcare policy \u2014 even refusing to commit to reversing cuts to Medi-Cal coverage for undocumented immigrants, a campaign pledge.<\/p>\n
But he asserted that he was already working with legislative counterparts on how to provide critical services and lower the cost of living.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t make a commitment without knowing what exactly I\u2019m facing,\u201d Becerra said of reversing cuts to Medi-Cal. \u201cI don\u2019t think any voter, any taxpayer, any Californian wants to have a governor who\u2019s still acting like a politician\u201d on the campaign trail.<\/p>\n
The governor-elect, speaking to reporters Thursday afternoon inside the state Capitol, had just concluded a meeting with Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and Senate President Pro-Tempore Monique Lim\u00f3n<\/a>. The three Democrats appeared side by side in a display of unity between two branches of government with a sometimes-prickly relationship<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cYou guys should get used to this,\u201d Becerra said, pointing thumbs at the lawmakers on either side of him. \u201cWe\u2019ve got lots to do, and the public made it very clear we should be focused on jobs one, two and three, and that is: cost of living, cost of living, cost of living. Letting California families know we want them to stay, we want them to thrive. We want them to retire in California.\u201d<\/p>\n Becerra has provided few specifics about his plans to ease inflationary pressures. Asked whether he would consider cutting income tax rates for low- and middle-income Californians, he responded that \u201ceverything should be on the table.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re probably going to be hearing me say that a lot, whether it\u2019s on energy, whether it\u2019s on revenue tax policy, whether it\u2019s on healthcare,\u201d he said. \u201cWhy should we take anything off the table? We will explore it. At the end of the day, what should stay on is what\u2019s smart and makes sense.\u201d<\/p>\n Although he did not support the billionaire wealth tax on Tuesday\u2019s ballot, Becerra has said repeatedly that he thinks the state\u2019s wealthiest should contribute their fair share.<\/p>\n As a trained lawyer who spent more than 25 years in Congress, Becerra has earned a reputation as a thoughtful politician who takes time to mull over decisions.<\/p>\n Rivas and Lim\u00f3n were equally noncommittal when asked about Becerra\u2019s proposal to provide low-income people with two daily hours of free electricity, which he calls \u201cpower hour.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCould there be some alignment on this idea of power hour?\u201d Rivas asked. \u201cPossibly, but specific to this proposal, I don\u2019t know enough about it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s an opportunity here to look both short-term and long-term\u201d at energy issues, Lim\u00f3n added.<\/p>\n California\u2019s three most powerful elected leaders \u2014 for the first time, all Latino \u2014 in their private meeting discussed healthcare, energy costs, artificial intelligence and implementing funding from an $11.25-billion housing bond voters approved Tuesday. Becerra, the state\u2019s first directly elected Latino governor, took several questions in Spanish.<\/p>\n The top Democrats will decide how to divvy up hundreds of billions of dollars in the state\u2019s budget beginning early next year.<\/p>\n The state expanded Medi-Cal coverage to undocumented residents over several years, but the costs proved higher than anticipated. In an October 2025 report, the Legislative Analyst\u2019s Office estimated program expansions cost the general fund $10 billion annually, \u201cmore than double the initial estimates.\u201d <\/p>\n