Newsom diaper deal lands in California’s no-bid spotlight
CBS California Investigates found the Baby2Baby diaper contract was listed as noncompetitive, alongside more than $1 billion in similar budget exemptions.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
4 min read
California’s $6.2 million diaper deal with Baby2Baby was listed in the state’s own contract system as “NON-COMPETITIVELY BID,” even after Gov. Gavin Newsom publicly said the arrangement went through a “competitive bidding process,” CBS California Investigates reported.
The contract covers a program to make and distribute millions of free California co-branded diapers to new parents. Newsom announced the partnership in May, drawing scrutiny over the nonprofit’s connections to the governor and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom.
According to CBS California Investigates, the diaper contract is part of a broader pattern in California’s budget. The station said it found more than two dozen similar exemptions in the 2026 state budget, covering more than $1 billion in appropriations across programs including a $253 million opioid-response fund, grants tied to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and a $12.9 million prison re-entry program.
Two-thirds of the exemptions identified by CBS California Investigates do not expire, according to the report.
California law generally requires competitive bidding for state contracts, with legal exceptions for certain situations. CBS California Investigates reported that the usual no-bid route requires agencies to justify the decision to the Department of General Services, and approved noncompetitive bids are posted in a public state database. The station said 474 such approvals have appeared there since 2018.
The Baby2Baby diaper contract followed a different route, according to the report. A provision in the 2025 Budget Act exempted Diaper Access Initiative contracts from competitive bidding, public bid advertising and review or approval by the Department of General Services.
That means the deal did not appear in California’s public database of approved no-bid contracts, CBS California Investigates reported. Its public footprint was instead a line in a state contract registry labeling the acquisition method as exempt and noncompetitive.
A spokesperson told CBS California Investigates that Newsom’s use of “competitive” referred to the state’s Request for Information process, and said the exemption gave officials flexibility to deliver the program at the scale needed. At a May Senate budget hearing, the department’s chief deputy director said the exemption allowed negotiated contracting outside state rules because the formal bid process can be cumbersome and time consuming, according to CBS California Investigates.
The state’s Request for Information, identified as RFI #24-25068, sought input from diaper manufacturers. CBS California Investigates reported that the document described itself as “Not a Solicitation” and said responses could not create a binding contract, while pricing would not be treated as a bid.
Fifteen organizations responded, according to the report. The department said it evaluated responses, interviewed some applicants and negotiated with Baby2Baby. Health Care Access and Information Director Elizabeth Landsberg told senators the process was “robust” and “meaningful,” CBS California Investigates reported.
Several respondents told the station they either were not interviewed or did not believe they were seriously considered. One large diaper bank network said it responded to the RFI but never received an interview, according to CBS California Investigates.
The station also reported that this is at least Baby2Baby’s third no-bid state contract. Budget language in 2022 named the nonprofit for a $1 million car seat contract, and 2023 budget language named it for $1.5 million tied to Los Angeles diaper distribution.
Baby2Baby’s public tax filings do not identify California payments by name, CBS California Investigates reported. The nonprofit’s most recent Form 990 lists government grants as a single $2.5 million line item, while its contributor schedule is restricted from public release, as federal law allows.
CBS California Investigates said it requested the Baby2Baby contract and bid records on May 12. The state confirmed the records are public and disclosable after 24 days, then delayed production three times, leaving the request pending for 66 days at the time of the report.
The station noted that the exemptions it identified are legal and were approved by the Legislature. It also reported that Baby2Baby is a highly rated charity, with its latest filing showing a co-CEO earning under $70,000 and celebrity board members receiving no pay.
Neither the governor’s office nor Baby2Baby responded to CBS California Investigates’ request for comment, according to the report.
This story draws on original reporting from CBS News.