WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: After record high gas prices and profits, Governor Newsom signed his special session bill to hold Big Oil accountable, the latest move the governor has taken to rein in the industry.
SACRAMENTO – Today, surrounded by lawmakers and community leaders in the rotunda of the California State Capitol, Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation to implement stronger statewide oversight and accountability measures on Big Oil in the nation, bringing transparency to California’s oil and gas industry. , shedding new light on corporations that have operated in the shadows for decades, while families stood by and reaped record profits.
It’s the latest case in which the governor has successfully taken on a historically powerful industry to put profits over people. Last year, Governor Newsom signed legislation that adds new reporting requirements to oil refineries, as well as a law that protects neighborhoods and schools from oil drilling.
What Governor Newsom said: “With this legislation, we’re ending the oil industry’s days of operating in the shadows. California stood up to Big Oil and won. Not only are we protecting families, we’re also loosening the grip Big Oil has had on our politics for the last 100 years.”
In the rotunda of the California State Capitol, Governor Newsom signs legislation holding Big Oil accountable.
HOW IT WORKS: Authored by Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley), co-sponsored by Attorney General Rob Bonta, and approved by supermajorities in both the Senate and the Assembly, SBx1-2 creates a dedicated, day-in, day-out independent watchdog to root for. eliminates oil company price gouging and authorizes the California Energy Commission (CEC) to create a penalty to hold the industry accountable. The law will go into effect on June 26, the 91st day after the end of the special session.
WHY TRANSPARENCY MEASURES ARE IMPORTANT: When the law’s new transparency and oversight requirements take effect at the end of June, the state will begin receiving more information than ever before, including last year when oil producers appeared to suppress supply to boost prices and make record profits. The industry knows that the new independent watchdog division will monitor them closely and refer any breach of the law, including industry misconduct or market manipulation, to the Attorney General for prosecution.
WHAT THEY SAY:
- Attorney General Rob Bonta: “Record retail gas prices, and record Big Oil profits, hurt those who can least afford it the most. For too long, Californians have been left in the dark about the industry’s practices of gas. And while oil companies have lined their pockets, many Californians are struggling to make ends meet. I stand proudly with the governor as he signs into law our co-sponsored bill to bring accountability and transparency to the gas industry. Together, we are fighting to balance the balance for California consumers and take this burden off their shoulders.”
- Senate President Pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego): “This bill provides important tools to help Californians get the answers we deserve about oil company profits and price gouging. Through the leadership of Senators Skinner, Bradford, Limón and McGuire, and our colleagues in the Assembly and Administration, these new reforms are strong on transparency and accountability. That’s a big part of what it will take to stop any crime and protect California consumers.”
- Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood): “Assemblymen deserve praise for developing and passing this legislation, collaborating with the governor and the Senate in the face of the intransigence of the oil companies. Our deliberations have been rigorous and transparent. Transparency is what we need now from the gas pricing system. That’s what this bill is about.”
- Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley), author of SBX1-2: “I am proud of my colleagues for passing this nation’s first protection against Big Oil price gouging. Last year, Californians faced outrageously high gas prices, prices that put pressure on budgets family members an additional $600 or more per month. Calling for immediate action, Governor Newsom responded decisively by proposing SBX 1-2, the nation’s strongest and most effective transparency and oversight measure. This historic law will allow us to hold accountable to oil companies if they pay their profits at the expense of working families.With SBX 1-2, California has sent a clear message to the oil industry: Open your books and show that you are not raising prices, or else Big Oil will pay the price, not consumers.”
- Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks): “A supermajority of the Legislature, working with the governor, just delivered to Californians struggling to afford gas. This new law will not only provide real transparency and oversight with expertise dedicated to overseeing the gasoline market, but it will also create a blueprint for achieving our low-carbon, clean-air future. While the work is just beginning, experts will now have the tools they need to tackle outrageous prices at the pump.”
- Dwayne Crenshaw, president of the Greater Sacramento Urban League: “For too long, Californians have been wrongly taxed at the pump by Big Oil. This tax has particularly hit low-income urban communities of color, where residents struggle to pay for basic needs and cannot afford the ‘price hike at the pump. Governor Newsom’s bold proposal addresses economic, environmental health and racial justice, while holding Big Oil accountable.’
- Mary Leslie, president of the Los Angeles Business Council: “The key to creating a clean energy economy that’s good for businesses and consumers is ensuring transparency and accountability in our fuel markets. Governor Newsom’s price increase bill protects families and workers in California, while supporting our transition to clean energy, which is a huge win for all of us. We thank the Governor and the Legislature for their swift action to bring much-needed transparency to the industry.”
- Max Vargas, Vice President of Economic Justice, Latin Community Foundation: “We applaud Governor Newsom’s leadership in addressing California’s rising gas prices. Latino workers and small businesses are the backbone of local economies, but they are still recovering from the massive drop in pandemic, which oil company price hikes are further exacerbating.The creation of an independent watchdog for such a powerful industry is especially affirming for grassroots community leaders across the state who serve working families directly affected by this price increase”.
- Melanie Morelos, Senior Director of California Strategy Programs, The Greenlining Institute: “We applaud Governor Newsom and the quick action of the California State Legislature to address the ongoing corporate greed of Big Oil. Too many California families are forced to choose between filling the tank to go to work, over spending essentials like rent and childcare, while oil executives line their pockets with record profits. This historic legislation sends a clear message that we will not allow corporations to take advantage of our communities and that the reign of unchecked big oil is coming to an end.”
- Teri Olle, California Campaign Director, Economic Security Project Action: “Finally, California called Big Oil’s bluff and won. The real reason this handful of big corporations charge California double for gas is that they can. We applaud Governor Newsom and the Legislature for taking meaningful steps to address the unchecked corporate concentration that has kept gas prices so high and to create a more equitable and fair economy.”
- Jamie Court, President, Consumer Watchdog: “This historic reform makes California the first state in the nation to authorize a windfall cap on oil refineries so they can no longer screw consumers at the pump. Combined with unprecedented transparency measures and a new comptroller’s office, this penalty to raise prices will prevent Californians from enduring the price spikes and profit spikes that have plagued the gas market for the past year.Governor Newsom has balanced the scales on behalf of millions of Californians who will no longer have to choose between $6 a gallon gas and putting food on their tables.”
- Matt Petersen, CEO, LA Cleantech Incubator: “The small business owners and startup founders we support, and the workforce they employ, are the engine of our state’s growing cleantech innovation economy, but all are suffering from rising prices in the bomb that is enriching oil companies. We applaud Governor Newsom and the leadership of the Legislature for pushing back to keep money in the pockets of our cleantech workers and small businesses while growing our economy, the fourth largest in the world, while launching bold and equitable climate action.
- Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan: “I have supported the price gouging penalty bill (SBX1-2) from the beginning because I saw firsthand the effect high gas prices had on our residents. Thanks to the quick action by Governor Newsom, Californians will no longer be charged unfairly at the gas pump by the big oil companies.”
- Meghan Sahli-Wells, California Director, Elected Officials to Protect America (EOPA), former mayor of Culver City: “I’m proud to join more than 150 local elected officials across California who support transparency and accountability for an industry that has put its profits above our health, safety and welfare for far too long . We represent communities on the front lines of fossil fuel pollution, unbreathable air and climate disaster, which, to add insult to injury, Big Oil has held hostage through unprecedented price increases at the pump. We applaud the governor to announce, and the Legislature to pass, this first-in-the-nation bill to hold multibillion-dollar corporations accountable for price gouging and lay the groundwork for a healthier, fairer, economically vibrant California for all.
