THE BUZZ: AGREE TO DISAGREE? — For years, California officials have blamed the state’s high gas prices on oil refiners. Oil industry leaders blamed it on California policies.
After a six hour meeting yesterday, it’s clear neither side is willing to budge.
The meeting, hosted by the California Energy Commission, was convened within the wake of a bafflingly-high spike in gas prices earlier this yr. The goal was to work out just why the state saw such a drastic spike in gas prices in September (topping out at $6.43/gallon) and discuss ways to stop that from happening in the longer term.
Things kicked off on a little bit of a sour note — with commissioners and lawmakers expressing their disappointment on the incontrovertible fact that not one of the five oil refiners who were invited to the meeting were actually in attendance. In letters to the commission, Phillips 66, Valero, Chevron and Marathon declined to attend, citing concerns about violating antitrust laws. They deferred, as a substitute, to testimony from the Western States Petroleum Association, which was in attendance.
PBF Energy was just a little more blunt in declining the invite, saying they opted to not attend due to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s “hostile rhetoric” and “baseless” attacks on refiners regarding high gas prices, which they argued are due, largely, to state regulations and “lack of a transition plan” related to the clean energy mandates.
The corporate isn’t entirely off-base — the governor has spent much of the autumn railing against oil firms, accusing them of “fleecing” customers and going up to now as to call a special session to pass a latest tax against them, which might claw back a few of what he sees as excess profits. Newsom even took to Twitter on Tuesday to chastise the businesses for his or her absence.
It was against that contentious backdrop that the hearing proceeded, with testimony from CEC staff, economists, academics and industry experts. There’s no easy answer to the query of high gas prices, that are determined by a large number of things. Some pointed to the incontrovertible fact that the worldwide supply of crude was disrupted this yr after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and a number of other West Coast refineries went down in the summertime. There’s also just certain details we don’t find out about how oil firms operate due to antitrust laws — though some have suggested a state subpoena could shed some light on the matter.
But those like Consumer Watchdog President Jamie Court argued that there’s no justification for oil firms bringing in record-high profits in a yr when consumers saw record-high costs. One of the best solution, he said, is the sort of windfall profits cap that Newsom has proposed, otherwise, “we’re going to be an ATM for these oil refineries in perpetuity.”
WSPA President and CEOCatherine Reheis-Boyd, unsurprisingly, didn’t agree.
“You can not tax your way out of this problem,” she said. “The one results of a windfall profit tax will make the issue worse.”
Newsom has called a special session on Dec. 5 to take up the windfall profits tax, but legislators have yet to see an actual bill. Newsom’s office said they expect details to be available by Monday, but it surely’s sounding an increasing number of unlikely that we’ll see any motion this month.
Speaker Anthony Rendon’s office has said they don’t anticipate any actual meetings on the tax until the conventional session in January.
Following the hearing, Newsom released a press release criticizing the businesses for “stonewalling,” and vowed to enact a price-gouging penalty. “…They haven’t any explanation – big polluters are lining their pockets while they cause financial pain for hundreds of thousands of California families and threaten the very way forward for our planet,” the governor said.
Within the meantime you possibly can expect opposition from the oil industry and anti-tax groups to be fierce and frequent. The California Taxpayers Association on Tuesday said the meeting made it clear that the state’s policies are accountable for the costs, and that a tax won’t do any good: “it makes every trip to the food market, soccer practice, and grandma’s house dearer,” President Robert Gutierrez said in a press release.
And Californians Against Higher Taxes has already spent a number of thousand dollars on Facebook ads opposing the tax, telling Californians to induce their legislator to vote “no on Gavin’s latest gas tax.”
BUENOS DÍAS, good Wednesday morning. Yesterday we got concessions in three closely-watched legislative races— with former state insurance commissioner Dave Jones conceding to Sacramento City Council member Angelique Ashby in Senate District 8, and Democratic Assemblymember Ken Cooley conceding Assembly District 7 to GOP staffer Josh Hoover. GOP Assemblywoman Suzette Martinez Valladares also conceded to Democrat Pilar Schiavo in AD-40.
Quick temperature check on the remaining legislative races —
- SD-16: Democratic Sen. Melissa Hurtado trails Republican David Shepard by 377 votes.
- AD-47: Democrat Christy Holstege trails Republican Greg Wallis by just 12 votes.
- AD-71: On this Republican-on-Republican race Kate Sanchez leads Matt Rahn by 3,764 votes.
Got 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.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “These agreements represent a latest, best-in-class model that may improve quality of life — and the standard of research — for scientists across the U.S.” Neal Sweeney, president of UAW Local 5810 after UC postdoctoral scholars and researchers got here to a tentative agreement Tuesday that features what is claimed to be their highest-ever salary increase.
TWEET OF THE DAY:
WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced
PERSONNEL NEWS — “Faced with tight transition, Mayor-elect Bass invites Garcetti staff to remain on through April,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Julia Wick and Benjamin Oreskes: “Los Angeles Mayor-elect Karen Bass has invited all staffers in Mayor Eric Garcetti’s office to stay of their jobs through April, in accordance with a letter sent last week — an atypical move intended to regular the ship amid an unusually short transition period.”
WELCOME TO THE FUTURE — “San Francisco will allow police to deploy robots that kill,” by AP’s Janie Har: “Supervisors in San Francisco voted Tuesday to offer city police the flexibility to make use of potentially lethal, remote-controlled robots in emergency situations — following an emotionally charged debate that reflected divisions on the politically liberal board over support for law enforcement.”
— “Is Brooke Jenkins doing anything otherwise than Chesa Boudin? Here’s what the numbers say,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susie Neilson: “After Brooke Jenkins replaced Chesa Boudin as San Francisco’s district attorney, police ramped up the variety of arrests they dropped at the District Attorney’s Office for possible prosecution by nearly 20%, in accordance with an evaluation of information.”
PORTRAIT OF CONFIDENCE — “Republican John Duarte says he thinks he’ll win uncalled California House race,” by the Sacramento Bee’s Gillian Brassil: “Republican John Duarte, a farmer from Modesto, told The Bee on Monday that he thinks that he’ll win California’s thirteenth Congressional District.”
— “San Jose mayor-elect seeks special election to fill vacant council seats, despite multimillion-dollar cost,” by the Mercury News’ Gabriel Greschler: “In his first major political maneuver, San Jose Mayor-Elect Matt Mahan is asking for a special election — at a possible taxpayer cost of as much as $11 million — to fill two city council seats up for grabs after this month’s election.”
“PUT ME IN COACH” — “Is Newsom’s presidential boomlet a bust?” Opines Dan Walters for CalMatters: “If Newsom does stick around for 4 more years, he’d best do something about his tattered relationship with California’s political media, which he has stiffed while promoting himself within the national media.”
STILL ON BOARD — “Despite losing school board races, California conservatives confident in latest playbook,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Mackenzie Mays: “Even some unsuccessful campaigns garnered enough votes to feed into an already acute sense of political polarization that was once missing from local school board races. And conservative groups feel they’ve found a playbook for winning more.”
BALLOT WATCH — “These propositions are already attempting to make the California ballot in 2024,” by FOX 40’s Jacque Porter: “Votes for the 2022 general election are still being counted but efforts are already underway to get certain measures and constitutional amendments on the 2024 California ballot. There are currently eight proposals at various stages within the submission process.”
TAPELAND — “LAPD serves search warrants in investigation of who recorded racist City Hall leak,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Richard Winton: “Los Angeles police detectives have served several search warrants as they attempt to seek out out who recorded a gathering amongst three L.A. City Council members and a robust labor leader stuffed with racist and offensive comments, law enforcement sources told The Times on Tuesday.”
— “A whole bunch of striking UC student educators, researchers march to UC president’s office,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Michael Cabanatuan: “With final exams nearing for University of California students whose graduate instructors are on strike — and rent due for lots of the strikers — this third week of the educational employees’ walkout is hitting a critical stage for everybody involved within the labor dispute.”
FREE SPEECH FRENZY — “Is Spreading Medical Misinformation a Doctor’s Free Speech Right?” by the Latest York Times’ Steven Lee Myers: “When Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill that will punish California doctors for spreading false details about Covid-19 vaccines and coverings, he pledged that it could apply only in probably the most ‘egregious instances’ of misleading patients. It could never have the possibility.”
— “Tech layoffs wallop H-1B visa holders: ‘It’s not only dollars and a job. It’s our entire life,’” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Carolyn Said: “The software engineer from San Jose was dismayed when she learned that she was a part of Twitter’s massive layoffs. A native of India, she’s within the U.S. on an H-1B visa, a special permit for expert employees. Now the clock is ticking for her to seek out a latest job to maintain her visa status.”
— “‘I used to be in shock’: Woman describes sexual abuse by warden at Dublin federal prison,” by the Mercury News’ Nate Gartrell: “Ray J. Garcia, the retired warden of the ladies’s prison often known as FCI Dublin, is charged with sexually abusing three incarcerated women, then lying to federal investigators to obscure his guilt.”
REFERENDUM INFINITY — “Big tobacco tries to stop California flavored tobacco ban,” by AP’s Julie Watson: “R.J. Reynolds and other tobacco firms filed a request Tuesday asking the U.S. Supreme Court to impose an emergency order to stop California from enforcing a ban on flavored tobacco products that was overwhelmingly approved by voters earlier this month.”
— “Karen Bass Pledges To Tackle Homelessness Immediately; Experts Weigh In,” by LAist’s Aaricka Washington: “Approach almost anyone who lives in Los Angeles to speak concerning the state of the town and it’s just about guaranteed they’ll inform you homelessness is where they need to see change. So let’s speak about that, we could?”
CHECKING CHECKS — “California has paid out greater than 10 million payments — greater than half of the state’s inflation relief money,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Nathan Solis: “California has paid over $5 billion to 19 million eligible residents and their families as a part of an inflation relief program meant to assist soften the blow of rising costs. The most recent figures represent greater than half of the whole payouts expected under this system, with the balance of the payments expected to achieve eligible residents throughout the beginning of next yr.”
MEMO FROM THE MAYOR — “Mayor-elect Bass names LA28 executive Chris Thompson as chief of staff,” by the Los Angeles times’ Julia Wick: “Mayor-elect Karen Bass announced one in all the central roles in her administration Tuesday, naming LA28 senior vice chairman Christopher Thompson as her chief of staff. Thompson, who may even guide Bass’ transition, will start Monday. He’s the primary major hire announced by the brand new administration.”
— “This California city needs housing. But is a latest development destined to burn?” by Grist’s Jake Bittle: “Chico, California, needs housing. The booming city of just over 100,000 issues just a number of hundred constructing permits every yr, and it’s rare to see greater than a number of dozen homes in the marketplace at any given time. Housing costs have risen by double digits since 2018, and homelessness has spiked.”
SLOW BURN — The GOP’s same-sex marriage evolution: A slow, choppy tidal shift, by POLITICO’s Burgess Everett: Some political evolutions develop over a long time, then speed up immediately. That’s the way it happened for Democrats, who were divided over same-sex marriage during former President Barack Obama’s first term until then-Vice President Joe Biden announced his support 10 years ago. Obama followed, and the remaining of the party was not far behind.
BRUTAL HONESTY — Crisis managers warn Bankman-Fried: Shut up, by POLITICO’s Sam Sutton: The 30-year-old former executive has kept tweeting and talking to reporters since his digital asset exchange, FTX, collapsed under financial mismanagement in early November. He’ll be within the highlight again Wednesday because the fundamental attraction on the Latest York Times DealBook conference, where he’s already overshadowing interviews planned with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Ben Affleck.
— Twitter stops enforcing Covid-19 misinformation policy, by POLITICO’s Rebecca Kern: Twitter will not stop users from spreading false information concerning the Covid-19 virus or vaccines, in accordance with an update on its content moderation policies.
— Sacramento Bee investigative reporter Ryan Sabalow, longtime chronicler of California’s wetlands, announced he’ll leave the paper this week, taking over a job as communications coordinator for Geese Unlimited’s Western Division.
ON THE HORIZON — “‘Collapse’ in home prices is coming, experts say,” by Axios’ Matt Phillips.
— “California’s most up-to-date volcanic eruption rained ash for 300 miles,” by SFGate’s Katie Dowd.
— “What’s at Stake within the University of California Graduate-Employee Strike,” Opines Jay Caspian Kang for the Latest Yorker.
— “Scott Wiener calls out far-right activist’s homophobic misinformation as dangerous,” by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Jordan Parker and Dustin Gardiner.
— “A Snapshot of Homelessness Policies Across the U.S. and the World,” by the Latest York Times.
— Samuel Garrett and Madison Lynch are joining J&Z Strategies as a vice chairman and campaign associate, respectively. Garrett comes over from Equality California and Lynch most recently managed Faisal Gill’s LA city attorney campaign.
Steve Haro … Jocelyn Quinn … Erica Orden
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Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the leading candidate in AD-47. Greg Wallis was ahead of Christy Holstege by 12 votes as of Tuesday evening.