Gov. Gavin Newsom responded to recent findings by California's Reparations Task Force, which recommended how the state may compensate and apologize to Black residents after generations of discrimination, a response that some state leaders say is meant to temper expectations around what reparations in California might actually look like. Part of the preliminary recommendations includes payments to Black Californians, which some estimates have projected that the state would owe upwards of $800 billion — more than 2.5 times its annual budget — in payments.In a statement to KCRA 3, Newsom said many of the recommendations are things the state has already been addressing but did not give a clear indication if he would back the payments."Dealing with that legacy is about much more than cash payments," Newsom said in the statement. "This work must continue. Following the Task Force's submission of its final report this summer, I look forward to a continued partnership with the Legislature to advance systemic changes that ensure an inclusive and equitable future for all Californians." "I think he’s setting a realistic expectation there probably won’t be check payments in the amount we’ve bannered around," said State Senator Steven Bradford, who is also a member of the task force. "I’ve tried to temper people’s expectations that it might not be a check" Bradford noted reparations payments are more likely to come in the form of education, housing, land, and access to other resources that have been out of reach for a group of people that have been harmed by the societal impacts of slavery. "There's a lot of stuff we can do, and I just want people to be open and accepting to the fact that reparations could take many forms," Bradford said. The nine-member committee, which first convened nearly two years ago, gave final approval at a meeting in Oakland on Saturday to a hefty list of proposals. A final report is due to the Legislature by July 1. Secretary of State Shirley Weber, a former Democratic assemblymember, authored legislation in 2020 creating the task force with a focus on the state’s historical culpability for harms against African Americans, and not as a substitute for any additional reparations that may come from the federal government.The task force voted previously to limit reparations to descendants of enslaved or free Black people who were in the country by the end of the 19th century.The group’s work has garnered nationwide attention, as efforts to research and secure reparations for African Americans elsewhere have had mixed results.Here is the full statement from the governor“The Reparations Task Force’s independent findings and recommendations are a milestone in our bipartisan effort to advance justice and promote healing. This has been an important process, and we should continue to work as a nation to reconcile our original sin of slavery and understand how that history has shaped our country.Dealing with that legacy is about much more than cash payments. Many of the recommendations put forward by the Task Force are critical action items we’ve already been hard at work addressing: breaking down barriers to vote, bolstering resources to address hate, enacting sweeping law enforcement and justice reforms to build trust and safety, strengthening economic mobility — all while investing billions to root out disparities and improve equity in housing, education, healthcare, and well beyond. This work must continue. Following the Task Force’s submission of its final report this summer, I look forward to a continued partnership with the Legislature to advance systemic changes that ensure an inclusive and equitable future for all Californians.”