California's politically powerful labor unions have been preparing for this Supreme Court ruling for a long time

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - California's public employee unions, for decades some of the state's towering political giants, knew this day was coming.

Now, after a majority of justices on the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the legality of the fees charged to nonmember workers - sometimes totaling hundreds of dollars a year - union leaders are relying on plans they've been carefully crafting for more than five years.

"No one is trying to pretend that it's not a hit," said Alma Hernandez, political director of the Service Employees International Union's California state council.