Oil Drilling Act Reveals What CA Legislators Will Sacrifice

By Sofia Carrasco, especially for CalMatters

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The health and safety of millions of Californians is at risk thanks to a law that bypassed almost the entire legislative process – negotiated and introduced by Big Oil.

the law Senate Bill 237it was entered and accepted in a fast 72-hour session. This is the legal minimum period of time that a bill must exist before it is passed. from avoid typing by key stakeholders, Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats are taking part in a troubling trend that allows lobbying industries and manipulate their way backroom deals.

California’s Democratic leadership is repeal of hard-won environmental regulationsgift industries and special interest groups that continue to exacerbate the climate crisispoison communities and provide false solutions to accessibility problems.

I’m only 16 years old and I lead a climate action campaign, Youth Against Oil, led by high school students in San Diego County. I reflect numerous organizers who they were not given a chance to stand up to this legislative attack on our environment.

To understand SB 237, it’s important to understand where Newsom came from hailing the end of oil drilling in 2024 to move forward with pride raw production.

A managed transition to fossil fuels – which according to California’s Climate Action Planwould create 4 million jobs and cut global warming gases by 85%—requires the shutdown of oil refineries as the country becomes more dependent on renewables.

The transition to clean energy must be equitable, including plans that consider the local tax base and employment. Yet in response to an earlier law designed to maintain fuel stability amid price spikes, oil companies announced a sudden closure of two key refineries without adequate justification or transition plans.

These refineries are causing cancer and asthma in their communities while benefiting from bailouts and tax loopholes. Instead of facing up to responsibility for cleanup and retirement costs, these companies used the threat of higher gas prices and swayed leaders to their agenda. In combination with about $18 million spent by the oil industry on California lobbying in the first half of the year, a zero-sum narrative was developed: Gut the life-saving protections or we’ll drive these refineries out of state.

Companies like Valero are not being “forced out of business.” They are making record profits but fear the inevitable decline they will experience in the coming decades. New permits for oil wells have declined from 2,664 in 2019 to just 73 in 2024according to Consumer Watchdog. In July, California reached a renewable energy milestone, providing two-thirds of the state’s electricity.

Reversing this kind of remarkable progress isn’t inevitable — it’s a choice Newsom and others are now making.

California’s geology produces some of the most climate-damaging oil in the world—most oil fields have already been depleted. But companies like Chevron spread rampant misinformation to convince us otherwise. And fighting back against industrial pollution, such as campaign to end oil drilling in the yardis more popular than ever.

SB 237 had opposition. Over 45 organizations signed a letter demanding this state legislators sided with people over pollutersoffering a plan to stabilize oil supplies and hold the industry accountable. The bill subsequently reduced its cuts to a critical environmental review of drilling sites. But that is not enough.

Behind-the-scenes politics comes at the expense of sickening the mostly low-income communities closest to these facilities while the top companies reap profits. Under no circumstances should our government accept proposals with flimsy evidence and minimal public input.

By passing SB 237, lawmakers at the Capitol demonstrated what they were willing to sacrifice. I urge them to follow the paths advanced by environmental, economic and racial justice advocates — even by the governor himself before this year.

We must invest in a responsible transition and expose this hypocritical deal.

The climate crisis is my future. For countless others, it is their present. Big Oil’s political donations are less important than the health of the 34 million Californians exposed to dangerous levels of air pollution.

Better, Governor Newsom.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and is republished under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives license.