THE BUZZ: Governor Gavin Newsom has the California oil industry on a losing streak.
Newsom ended his bid to limit industry profits on Tuesday, signing a bill that he quickly pushed through the legislature over protests by the Western States Petroleum Association and its allies. The governor made victory a political imperative after spending months denouncing industry greed and promising a response. He got his way thanks to some serious legislative legwork — and in doing so, kept the fossil fuel industry on its heels.
Back to last summer. Climate-focused Democrats and their environmentally conscious allies had suffered a string of defeats on legislation to reduce emissions and separate new oil wells from homes. Many have expressed despair at overcoming an alliance between oil companies and the construction industry and disappointment at the governor’s legislative inaction.
And then Newsom got engaged. He came to legislatures to rally troops for a renewed climate campaign, and — while ads for attacks on the oil industry ran in Florida — he framed the fight as a fair test of “whose side we are on.” He used the power of his office to get all but one of the bills across the finish line, then went on a lap of honor. “Big Oil lost, and they’re not used to losing,” he told a crowd in New York.
Now they lost again. Industry officials warned that Newsom’s profit penalty would distort a complex industry and hurt consumers; They called on the legislature not to rush an untested concept into law. But the zeal was strategic. After spending months courting lawmakers and drafting changes — an uncharacteristic level of commitment that signaled his seriousness — Newsom had Democrats act quickly to forestall an industry counteroffensive.
Newsom’s proposal has changed over the months, but his rhetoric has not: Big Oil is tearing you down, he kept telling us, and we’re going to do something about it. Most Republicans and industry officials blame California’s regulatory jungle and dwindling refinery supply for exorbitant prices; Newsom and Legislative Democrats are blaming the industry. Soon California will have the data to draw a more accurate conclusion and fines could follow.
Industry bashing is good politics for Newsom — and that points to greater momentum. Oil companies are spending millions of dollars electing moderate Democrats and filling Sacramento’s corridors with lobbyists. They’ve had plenty of success scraping bills that would hurt their bottom line, even if it maximized Gov. Jerry Brown’s zeal.
Politics are shifting: California is moving toward fossil fuel abandonment, Newsom is pushing things, and rising fears of climate change are impacting voters. That set the table for Newsom to wield the unique powers of the governorship and accomplish what the legislature could not accomplish alone. Here’s our story about the governor overpowering the oil industry.
BUENOS DÍAS, good Wednesday morning. Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón narrowly avoided recall, but he has yet to run for re-election this year — and it’ll likely be a bruise. Assistant District Attorney Jonathan Hatami is launching an initiative today that will challenge LA prosecutors’ long battle with their boss.
BUENOS DÍAS, good Wednesday morning. Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón narrowly escaped recall, but he has yet to run for re-election this year — and it’ll likely be a bruise. Assistant District Attorney Jonathan Hatami is launching an initiative today that will challenge LA prosecutors’ long battle with their boss.
Have a tip or story idea for California Playbook? hit us up [email protected] And [email protected] or follow us on Twitter @JeremyBWhite and @Lara_Korte.
WHERE IS GAVIN? Nothing official announced.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Just as there are no atheists in foxholes, when there is a bank crash there seems to be no libertarians in Silicon Valley.” Senator Sherrod Brown at a congressional hearing on the Silicon Valley bank collapse.
BONUS QOTD: “We no longer need a true crime podcast to shed light on where the mystery surcharge came from.” Assemblyman Jacqui Irwin before Newsom signed the oil profits fine.
TWEET OF THE DAY:
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HERE WE GO AGAIN – “’Extratropical Cyclone’ brings severe weather to parts of California. Here’s what to expect,” by Gerry Díaz of the San Francisco Chronicle: “Most of this severe weather will peak Tuesday morning and drop steadily through most of the Bay Area through the afternoon, but sustained showers and thunderstorms are expected through into the afternoon.” Last Wednesday afternoon – long after the worst of the storm has passed.”
— “Family left in the dark and grilled for information after police killings,” by Brian Howey of the Los Angeles Times: “For years, law enforcement agencies across California have been trained to quickly and properly terminate family members after a police killing to gather information that will be used, among other things, to protect the officers involved and their department, according to an investigation by the Los Angeles Times and the Investigative Reporting Program at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.”
HIGH DESERT SHOWDOWN — Palmdale Democratic City Councilman Eric Ohlsen jumps into the race for the inaugural district of the 23rd Senate, which looks like one of the most competitive of the cycle, with Democrat Kipp Mueller and former Republican Houseman Suzette Vallares already running for the D+10 seat. Ohlsen enters with confirmation from Representative Juan Carrillo.
SMALL CHANGE? – “As talks with teachers heat up, LAUSD budget shows higher ending balance, with caveats,” by Howard Blume of the Los Angeles Times: “For months, the Los Angeles Unified School District had been saying this, despite a ending tally of 4, $93 billion for the current school year, the district could be at financial risk in the future. Part of that equation changed Monday when the district updated that number to $5.12 billion — while noting that the system’s potential financial risk remains unchanged and available money for staff increases may be tighter than before.”
– Does SF have Mayor Breed or do supervisors have more power to fix crime, housing and homelessness? from Mallory Moench of the San Francisco Chronicle: “Responses are nuanced, but our reporting generally found Breed to have power over the policing and homelessness arenas. Supervisors exert significant influence over housing through legislation, although the mayor directs departments that oversee development.”
– “California Farmers Are Flooding Fields To Boost Aquifer”, by Amy Taxin of The Associated Press: “Taking a few tomatoes off production for a year is an easy decision if it means changing the future water supply of your farm about 35 miles (56 kilometers) southwest of Fresno. It pumps 300 acre-feet a day — enough to support hundreds of homes for a year — from the bubbling North Fork of the Kings River to former vegetable fields and other pistachio-studded fields that can withstand severe flooding.”
– “The Scramble to save California’s heartland”, by Mark Abramson and Adeel Hassan of The New York Times: “California’s Central Valley is essentially a large basin with an intricate piping system of reservoirs, dams, levees and spillways. But the dozens of atmospheric fluxes — long bands of humidity across the sky — that have swamped the region recently have left no room for excess water, forcing farmers and rescue workers to fight to save dairies, farmland and orchards.”
CORTESE’S REVIEW – “Due to accountability, San Jose’s homeless spending is under state scrutiny,” by Grace Hase of The Mercury News: Dave Cortese (D-San Jose) last year. The audit comes at a time when California has spent $15 billion on homelessness in recent years.”
– “Disney’s proposed community in California takes shape with nod to ‘The Incredibles,'” by Luke Money of the Los Angeles Times: “Officials on Friday released new details about the first Storyliving by Disney project in Riverside County, an ambitious one Attempt to infuse a master-planned community with the Burbank entertainment giant’s trademark whimsical and whimsical.”
— “Inside the Backchannel Communications Keeping Donald Trump on the Loop on Republican Investigations” by CNN’s Annie Grayer, Alayna Treene, Melanie Zanona and Kristen Holmes: “The constant and sometimes direct communication between Trump and the committees has proven to be a crucial method for Trump to shape Republican priorities in their newfound majority in the House of Representatives. It also underscores the extraordinary influence an ex-president still exerts on his party’s lawmakers and the deference he is still held by many.”
JUST A HICCUP? – “The Silicon Valley Bank bought, but Silicon Valley already moved on,” by Ethan Baron of The Mercury News: “We don’t even think about it anymore except to say, ‘Oh my god, remember, how crazy it was? said Chon Tang, general partner at SkyDeck, UC Berkeley’s startup accelerator.
— “Workers wonder as they tinker with ChatGPT: Will this take my job away?” by Lydia DePillis and Steve Lohr of The New York Times: “It’s too early to count the enablers and the vulnerable, or the overall impact estimate labor demand and productivity. But it seems clear that artificial intelligence will impact work in different ways than previous waves of technology.”
— “Two men take action against SF drug trafficking after lawyers argue they are victims of human trafficking,” by Megan Cassidy of the San Francisco Chronicle.
— “A campaign worker did not write this email. AI did it,” by Shane Goldmacher of The New York Times.
— “Three inmates died in Los Angeles County jails in just over a week,” by Keri Blakinger of the Los Angeles Times.
— “The Jobs Most Exposed to ChatGPT,” by Lauren Weber and Lindsay Ellis of The Wall Street Journal.
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