At the end of August, we gathered 50+ climate activists in Sacramento for a ’Make Polluters Pay’ rally to highlight three critical bills pending before California lawmakers:
- AB 1866 (Hart) would increase idle well fees and accelerate the clean-up of more than 40,000 toxic idle oil wells across California;
- AB 3233 (Addis) would protect local communities’ rights to limit oil drilling; and
- AB 2716 (Bryan) would fine oil companies in the Inglewood Oil Field — the largest urban oil field in America — $10,000/month for operating low-producing wells near communities.
Shortly after the rally, with thanks to your phone calls and letters to decision-makers, all three bills passed the legislature and now await the governor’s signature!
A new study confirms what many of us already know about California’s climate policy. ‘Make Polluters Pay’ policies are critical to fighting climate change. In fact, Southern California air regulators recently voted to impose millions of dollars in fees on the region’s heaviest polluters, including oil refineries.
With these new state and regional policies, California is finally beginning to hold big polluters accountable. Governor Newsom is still under pressure from oil and gas interests, so please take action today encouraging him to sign AB 1866 and AB 3233. Once you’ve taken action, reply to this email or reach out to us at info@theclimatecenter.org to let us know how it went!
In more good news, SB 59 (Skinner) — our bill authorizing the California Energy Commission to require electric cars and school buses to have bidirectional charging capabilities — just passed the state legislature and is also on Governor Newsom’s desk! You can urge Governor Newsom to sign this first-of-its-kind bill into law here.
This blog first appeared in The Climate Center’s bi-weekly newsletter. To keep up with the latest climate news and ways to take action for a climate-safe future, subscribe today!
