When might Californians get more details about Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposal to enact a windfall profits tax on oil corporations, which newly elected state lawmakers are set to contemplate in a special legislative session starting on Dec. 5?
The specifics of the proposal aren’t prone to surface until the beginning of the special session, the identical day legislators can be sworn into office, Newsom’s office told CalMatters political reporter Alexei Koseff and me on Monday.
And lawmakers don’t expect to take substantive motion on the difficulty until January, when the following legislative session starts in earnest.
- The office of Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, a San Diego Democrat, said in a press release: “The Dec. 5 session can be focused on swearing in of latest members and organizational matters, and should include taking steps to determine and organize the special session. We anticipate working with the Governor and his team on the special session/windfall penalty and rebate issue once we convene in January.”
- Katie Talbot, a spokesperson for Democratic Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon of Lakewood, told Alexei that although the special session can be gaveled in on Dec. 5, meetings aren’t expected to start until January.
Newsom has proposed returning revenue from the brand new tax to Californians in the shape of rebates — potentially just like those the state is currently sending to tens of millions of residents — however the special session timeline suggests it could possibly be some time before checks start landing in residents’ mailboxes, in the event that they land in any respect.
Indeed, approving a latest tax could possibly be a politically perilous move for newly elected lawmakers facing their first vote — and could possibly be unpopular amid concerns of an impending recession and California’s projected $25 billion budget deficit for the following fiscal yr. Lawmakers are also expected to introduce their very own ideas through the special session.
Meanwhile, the California Energy Commission is slated to carry a gathering on Nov. 29 with oil industry executives and experts to hunt more details about gas price spikes, refinery disruptions and record industry profits. Regulators are also set to debate strategies to “insulate consumers from price shocks” ahead of the state’s 2035 ban on the sale of latest gas-powered cars.
Other Stories You Should Know
1
Newsom’s office won’t share location of private trips
The Newsom administration has a latest communications policy in terms of the governor’s trips: “When the Governor is traveling for official state business we are going to provide details about his travel. When the Governor is on personal or family travel we won’t provide details about his trip until his return as a consequence of security concerns,” Newsom spokesperson Erin Mellon told me in a Monday statement. Although the administration has previously shared information upfront about Newsom’s personal or family trips — including last yr’s Thanksgiving vacation in Mexico and this yr’s spring trip to Central and South America — that has modified in recent months, starting with Newsom’s summer trip to Montana to go to his in-laws and including his current Thanksgiving family vacation.
Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor and former president of the Los Angeles Ethics Commission, told me, “I don’t think that he’s under any kind of legal or arguably moral obligation to inform us where he’s vacationing.”
- But, Levinson added: “For critics of Newsom,” it raises the query of ” ‘Why did you stop being forthcoming, mainly? Why did you stop telling us? Do you’ve got something to cover?’ My … guess is he’s probably sick of the criticism about where he goes, including visiting his wife’s family. … It seems to me that it might be entirely in line with his personality to easily resolve that the criticism was unfounded, and he can go on vacation and never tell us.”
- Levinson continued: “I believe that whenever you resolve to change into president, you actually give over virtually all points of your privacy. And I’m undecided that the identical is true for being a governor. … Particularly if (Newsom) does wish to run for president, then I believe he knows those moments are gone endlessly … and he won’t have the ability to have those sorts of vacations again.”
2
Feds approve $1 billion to maintain Diablo Canyon open
California’s last nuclear power plant, which provides about 10% of the state’s electricity, just took a giant step toward staying open past its planned 2025 closure date: The U.S. Department of Energy announced Monday that PG&E, the operator of the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, was awarded a grant of about $1.1 billion to assist keep the power open. The move comes about two months after a controversial, last-minute process that culminated in Newsom and state lawmakers authorizing a loan of as much as $1.4 billion for PG&E to maintain Diablo Canyon open until 2030 to assist stabilize California’s fragile energy grid. Anti-nuclear advocates opposed the motion, noting that the aging facility near San Luis Obispo is positioned near earthquake fault lines and will pose issues of safety.
- PG&E said in a press release it should use the federal money to pay back the loan and “lower costs for patrons” if the plant’s operating license is prolonged, which still requires additional federal and state approvals. It also said the plant has “a wonderful secure operating record and is subject to rigorous regulatory oversight.”
- Newsom said in a press release: “This investment creates a path forward for a limited-term extension of the Diablo Canyon Power Plant to support reliability statewide and supply an onramp for more clean energy projects to come back online.”
- Laura Deehan, state director of Environment California Research & Policy Center, said in a press release: “It’s disappointing to see the federal government throw PG&E greater than a billion in taxpayer dollars for an outdated and potentially dangerous power source, when cleaner, safer and more cost-effective energy solutions exist. … California should turn a latest leaf and lean into constructing the electrical system of the long run.”
3
CalMatters editor-in-chief to steer latest investigative journalism desk
CalMatters editor-in-chief Dave Lesher, who seven years ago helped found the award-winning nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom covering state policy and politics, is entering into a latest role: leading CalMatters’ California Accountability Project, which is able to mix old-school shoe-leather reporting with artificial intelligence technology to assist journalists discover and dig into stories and never-before-seen trends to carry government officials and agencies accountable, CalMatters membership manager Sonya Quick writes.
- Lesher: “That is an exciting opportunity to do something once more that I think will change California for the higher and maybe change journalism with a team of investigative reporters and latest technology tools designed to assist journalists cover the policymaking process. I’ve all the time believed it’s easy to make people offended at government, but that alone doesn’t help. … It’s time so as to add the Accountability Desk with a latest layer of transparency and a watchdog capability that’s essential for a nation-sized state with a $300 billion annual budget.”
- CalMatters CEO Neil Chase: “CalMatters is a hit today due to Dave’s vision and his unique ability to execute on that vision while protecting our journalistic quality and status for unbiased work. That’s why I’m so enthusiastic about what he’s doing next: The vital accountability journalism that California needs and deserves.”
Other things value your time
Some stories may require a subscription to read
California Democrats slam Kevin McCarthy over his vow to remove them from committees. // NBC News
Why S.F. elections’ boss might lose his job after twenty years and 4 elections this yr. // San Francisco Chronicle
Pete Buttigieg delivers $150 million for brand new California port of entry. // BorderReport
How Jennifer Siebel Newsom became a champion of youth mental health. // EdSource
‘After School Devil Club’ approved by California elementary school has parents in uproar. // Sacramento Bee
Santa Cruz supervisors want California to eliminate family court reunification programs. // Newsbreak
Criticism accuses UC Berkeley law school of fostering antisemitism. // San Francisco Chronicle
L.A. City Council racist audio leak, transcribed and annotated. // Los Angeles Times
California goals to maximise medical insurance subsidies for staff during labor disputes. // California Healthline
Key freight rail union rejects deal, increasing strike risk. // Recent York Times
High-rise apartments in Bay Area suburbs? Builder’s treatment’ could make it a possibility. // Mercury News
The California company cooking up concrete solutions to cement’s carbon problem. // Every day News
Comcast told him it might cost $17,000 to hurry up his web. He rallied 41 South Bay neighbors to construct their very own lightning-fast fiber-optic network as an alternative. // Mercury News
