Gov. Newsom signed a package of ‘sweeping legislation’ in September 2022 to achieve statewide carbon neutrality
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In 1988, the state of California only imported about 4.5% of all the oil that we consumed in our state. By 2020 we were importing over 70%.
California Democrats’ war on the oil and gas industry is working, but not for the people. In his latest about-face, pivot, flip-flop, or career-saving move, Governor Gavin Newsom Thursday directed state officials to increase efforts to guarantee reliable fuel supplies for the nation’s biggest auto market, prompting oil companies to blame state policies for difficult business conditions and high pump prices, Reuters reported.
Gov. Newsom has been agitating for some time against “Big Oil” and their “windfall profits,” but always leaves out his and Democrats’ important role in escalating oil and gas prices in California through regulations, surcharges, “clean-air” and “low carbon” programs, cap and trade and more schemes.
Remember this climate grift:
Gov. Newsom signed a package of “sweeping legislation” in September 2022 to achieve statewide carbon neutrality as soon as possible, and no later than 2045, by establishing an 85% emissions reduction target, capping oil wells, slowing oil and gas permitting, making it impossible to increase refining capacity, and entirely phasing out oil and gas starting in two years.
That “sweeping set of laws” Newsom touted was 40 new climate change bills regulating California businesses and its people.
In another blow to California’s oil and gas industry, and the state’s fuel supply, Valero Energy Corporation announced last week it will shut down its Benicia Refinery in April 2026.
This latest hit comes after Chevron Oil Company announced in August their corporate relocation to Houston Texas from the Bay Area, and Phillips 66 announced that its Los Angeles refinery will shut down by October 2025.
Add to that devastating news, Senate Bill 1137, which took effect on June 27, 2024, bans the construction of new oil wells and the maintenance or repair of existing wells within 3,200 feet of loosely defined “sensitive receptors,” potentially threatening to shut down energy resource infrastructure statewide.
Add to that, California Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) introduced a bill in February to hold “Big Oil” responsible for natural disasters in California. You read that right – Senator Wiener is blaming the oil and gas industry for natural disasters, or disasters that should have been mitigated by the State of California – like wildfires. Sen. Wiener’s Senate Bill 222 would allow the state FAIR Plan, insurance companies, and individuals to sue oil and gas companies for wildfire damages.
Sponsoring Wiener’s bill is the the Rockefeller-backed Center for Climate Integrity, a Washington DC non-profit, which brags that they are “Exposing Big Oil’s Lies & Demanding Accountability.”
The oil and gas industry has taken one political hit after another with California’s Democrat Governor and Democrat supermajority in the State Legislature.
Gov. Newsom claims that the state’s highest-in-the-nation gas taxes and prices are not what cause dramatically spiking gas/oil prices but because of price gouging by the oil industry. In May 2024, Newsom even signed a gas price gouging law into place.
Gavin Newsom must be worried about his future if he suddenly cares about refinery output.
More from Reuters:
An observation I made several decades ago is that most California politicians pass laws that appeal to their base but they don’t seem to foresee the real outcome of their actions down the road. There is always a cost of some type involved. Also one might want to understand that the back peddling the California Governor is doing could be his way of trying to curry favor in the rest of the Country as he might really be aiming at a National office as opposed to righting wrongs in California. As the majority of the Country is wise to California politicians i.e. Brown/Harris I don’t think the rest of the Nation will respond kindly at the voting booth if he were to run.
40 Years of hating the largest energy sector of the State now has the entire Dem. party viewed as irrational and bigoted creeps.
SCG stated over 3 years ago it has carbon neutral gas products for sale. Did the Demo’s embrace a lower cost and wide spread energy source? Nope. Look at what Newsom did with his supposed great oil reserve bill. Openly anti oit and gas.
California Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) introduced a bill in February to hold “Big Oil” responsible for natural disasters…………………………. Hey idiot when you first use hard science to measure Hydrocarbon emissions from nature PRIOR TO CABRILL in Calif. then you will have a way of measuring what you claim are natural disasters.
Geez, do you Vote for these Idiots?
Are you that dumb?
Why don’t you STFU. Maybe he is trying to keep gas prices down idiot.
Laugh what a jewel you are.