The Climate Center 
Decades ago, fossil fuel corporations’ own research teams warned that their pollution would irrevocably harm the earth. Instead of heeding scientists’ warnings, Big Oil executives spent millions to deceive our communities about the dangers of climate change and ramped up drilling and pollution in order to line their pockets with billions of dollars in profits. … Read more
California’s 2025-2026 state budget includes $273 million in cuts to climate and energy investments but protects huge tax breaks for oil and gas corporations. With unprecedented wildfires ravaging Los Angeles only days into 2025, California must strengthen critical climate programs, not cut them. Every dollar we invest in fighting the climate crisis today will save … Read more
This report details how global oil majors like ExxonMobil, Chevron, and Shell orchestrated the creation of California’s Water’s Edge tax loophole — a policy that now costs California taxpayers billions annually. It offers a first-of-its-kind, historical look at how oil giants lobbied for and have benefited from the Water’s Edge tax election, shielding their profits … Read more
What we do in California to address the climate crisis has a ripple effect across the world. With a climate-denying, pro-oil administration soon to take control of the White House, California’s climate leadership is more important than ever. Our elected officials — led by Governor Newsom, Senate President pro tempore Mike McGuire, and Assembly Speaker … Read more
California has a reputation for precedent-setting climate policy, and the last year has shown us why. Thanks to the support of our generous donors, The Climate Center has been at the center of passing nation-leading, new laws. This year, together with policymakers, scientists, business leaders, local governments, activists, and others across the climate movement, we: … Read more
In 2023, Governor Newsom signed SBX1-2, which aims to prevent fuel price-gouging. The law includes a provision for the California Energy Commission and California Air Resources Board (CARB) to conduct a Transportation Fuels Assessment and develop a Transportation Fuels Transition Plan that will determine how the state transitions to clean fuels. CARB will be starting … Read more
Facing a multi-billion-dollar budget deficit, California walked back critical investments in a climate-safe future. The best pathway we have to protecting climate resilience programs across the state is to introduce a robust, equitable climate bond on November’s ballot. We must act at the speed and scale the climate crisis demands, which means that we cannot … Read more
Updated May 13, 2024. In 2023, Governor Newsom signed landmark climate laws to set stricter standards for corporate polluters. SB 253 and SB 261 are two first-in-the-nation laws that require major corporations doing business in California to report the full scope of their climate pollution and their climate-related financial risk. Huge corporations mounted fierce opposition … Read more
Big Oil is pushing to greenlight the first-ever carbon capture and storage scam in California. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) prolongs the burning of fossil fuels and poses serious public health risks, despite Big Oil falsely advertising it as a climate solution. These projects have consistently proven ineffective, unsafe, and expensive. Fossil fuel corporations claim … Read more
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the state legislature enacted new processes that allow Californians to participate in legislative hearings by phone. During public comment, constituents can share their support for or opposition to bills under discussion, a process known as “me too’s.” Californians across the state have an opportunity to participate in the … Read more
