California Governor Jerry Brown announced Tuesday evening that he had reached a deal with both chambers of the state legislature to extend the Golden State’s “cap-and-trade” program beyond its original expiration date in 2020.
Brown, Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) announced “a legislative package that will launch a landmark program to measure and combat air pollution at the neighborhood level – in communities most impacted – and extend and improve the state’s world-leading cap-and-trade program to ensure California continues to meet its ambitious climate change goals,” according to a statement released on the governor’s website.
The statement adds that the deal “includes AB 617 by Assemblymembers Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens), Eduardo Garcia (D-Coachella) and Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles) and AB 398 by Assemblymember Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles) and is the product of weeks of discussions between the administration and legislative leaders with Republican and Democratic legislators, environmental justice advocates, environmental groups, utilities, industry and labor representatives, economists, agricultural and business organizations, faith leaders and local government officials.”
The cap-and-trade system sets an upper limit for carbon dioxide emissions, and then issues emissions permits that can be bought and sold by producers. The system applies an effective tax on emissions (one that some businesses would prefer to leave the state to avoid). Companies that are more energy-efficient can sell their permits for profit — a model that Tesla, for example, has used to pad its bottom line.
The legislation will have to proceed in the absence of former Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez, who will be sworn into Congress on Tuesday — more than a month after winning a special election to replace Attorney General Xavier Becerra in the 34th congressional district. Gomez had delayed the ceremony partly to make his vote available for a cap-and-trade extension deal.
The deal, as noted by Bay Area public radio station KQED, will include provisions to allow local communities to monitor air quality and industrial air pollution, without allowing them to regulate carbon dioxide emissions. Climate change activists often confuse the two phenomena, though one has little to do with the other: carbon dioxide is an odorless, colorless gas that is not harmful.
KQED adds that the deal also ends “a fire prevention fee largely paid by residents living in rural, Republican areas of the state.” That could indicate that Democrats struck an agreement with Republicans to vote for the bills.
Without Gomez, the Democrats will not have the two-thirds majority required to renew cap-and-trade without facing a state referendum. But with Republican votes, that obstacle will disappear.
Following last year’s passage of Proposition 54, which requires bills to be on public display for 72 hours before a vote, that could mean a vote on cap-and-trade could come as early as Thursday.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. He was named one of the “most influential” people in news media in 2016. He is the co-author of How Trump Won: The Inside Story of a Revolution, is available from Regnery. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
This article was originally published by Breitbart.com/California
CA economic collapse to continue unabated – climate unaffected.
California will self destruct in 5,4,3,2,1
Who are the Republicans? I have some good ideas. CA GOP…….your brand is stinking more and more to this registered Republican. No deals with the devil. No gas tax deals. What the hell are you doing? Fight, damn you. Shame the traitors. Don’t send me requests for money when other people like Carl Demaio do the fighting. Christ, how hard is this?
“the deal also ends “a fire prevention fee largely paid by residents living in rural, Republican areas of the state.” News Flash, Republicans in Democrat areas of the state also pay the fire tax. I have filed a protest each year while paying the tax. Now that it ends, do we get our money back or to we have to wait until the lawsuit is decided?
Stupid Jerry brown will never understand the insignificant contribution of CO2 to the scheme of things. It makes up only .039% of the atmosphere while water vapor makes up 3%. And how Jerry, can you have a greenhouse ceiling on the atmosphere when you don’t have a solid?
And Jerry, why have you ignored the Little Hoover Commission’s request for a cost/benefit study of your wild assed climate regulations?
We’re waiting Jerry. Oh I forgot, you are flying around the World pretending you are president.
Watch Jerry Brown’s unhinged rant about climate change before a cap and trade extension hearing yesterday. It truly is scary that he should be governor.
Brown appears at 4:16:
“Gov. Brown Testifies at Cap and Trade Extension Hearing 7/13/17″
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6azim3cXAhs
Vote will probably be next week and they need 2/3 to pass this — but word is they wouldn’t get it without Repub votes. Republican Chad Mayes is the minority leader in the Assembly and apparently helped make the deal. We should be ringing his phones off the hook to tell him this is unacceptable.
(Republican) Assemblyman Chad Mayes:
Capitol Office: State Capitol, Suite 3104, Sacramento, CA 94249 | 916-319-2042
District Office: 41608 Indian Trail, Suite 1, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 | 760-346-6342
Jerry Brown and his minions will not be happy until they completely destroy this state with their merit-less laws. There is so much economic damage that has been done by these regulations that have NOT been proven. On top of that, there are the laws passed to greatly reduce punitive actions against criminals, AB109, Prop 47, Prop 57…all go to allow the worse of the worse out early, and reduce felonies to misdemeanors, such as rape, what constitutes Grand Theft, and crimes of assault/battery with bodily injury. If Brown doesn’t have the votes, he buys them off with our tax dollars.
CA complete financial collapse will probably end the country too. That is what the communist demorats & RINO’S want total destruction so the US can be a 3rd world country. DNC is a criminal organization and needs to charged under the RICO laws. Jail & fines might even get Moonbeam in line.