GOVERNOR Jerry Brown faced setbacks on Wednesday, Sept. 9, as his plans for climate change legislation were stripped of initial goals for reducing gasoline use, delayed efforts to fix decrepit roads, and a deal funding for public healthcare was non-existent.
Brown, who typically gets his way in Capitol, started his historic fourth term this year.
But he said he was “undeterred,” instead pledging to redouble his efforts to fight climate change by cutting the amount of gasoline burned on California roads, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“Oil has won the skirmish. But they’ve lost the bigger battle,” he said Wednesday at a Capitol news conference. “Because I am more determined than ever.”
“We’re not going to miss a beat,” the governor added.
The climate legislation included some of the biggest goals Brown outlined during his inaugural address in January. Without objectives for reducing gasoline use, it has two parts remaining: increasing renewable energy production, and boosting energy efficiency over the next 15 years.
The measure, which had passed the Senate with the gas target intact, is now expected to pass the Assembly and go right to the governor for his signature.
Although supporters described the remaining provisions of the bill as landmark steps, they were frustrated by not persuading enough fellow Democrats to support the gas component.
“We reached for something grand,” said Senate Leader Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), who authored the legislation. “But in the end, we could not cut through the multimillion-dollar smokescreen.”
Oil companies had launched a fierce opposition campaign to the measure, Senate Bill 350, including paid television and radio advertising across the state.
With the end of the regular legislative session on Friday, supporters tried to salvage the measure by proposing some limits on state air regulators’ power and making the gasoline goal more flexible, the Los Angeles Times said.
But Brown said the oil industry and its allies wanted more changes than he was willing to make, and it was “too important to preserve the authority of the California Air Resources Board,” one of the leading agencies involved in pollution policies.
California Board officials said they could keep moving toward the gas reduction target with existing policies, such as reducing fuel carbon content, pursuing tighter vehicle efficiency standards, and increasing mass public transit.
Assemblyman Henry Perea (D-Fresno), who fought the gas part of the legislation along with several Democrats in the lower house, said the bill was better off without it.
“We always wanted to say yes,” Perea said. “And now we’re going to get the opportunity to say that.”
Environmentalist groups were disappointed that the gasoline target was removed, but were also as determined as Gov. Brown following the ruling.
“I’m feeling oddly encouraged,” said Kathryn Phillips of Sierra Club California, who has urged Brown to take a tougher line against the industry. “I have not heard the governor be as strongly committed to protecting Californians from the effects of oil.”
Other climate-related legislation is still hanging.
SB 32, sponsored by Sen. Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills), would collate in state law long-term targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions that were set in executive orders by Brown and his predecessor, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. It also passed the Senate and is pending in the Assembly.
“We are still assessing how the Assembly wants to move forward,” Pavley said in a statement.
Still, no deal has yet been reached on paying for the repair of California’s dilapidated roads, which was another priority Brown set this year. With a special legislative session to address the issue, he and legislative leaders say they’ll convene a special committee in hopes of hashing out a deal.
The 77-year-old, environmentally-conscious governor wanted $3.6 billion in annual funding for road repairs, but Republicans refused to provide the necessary support for the higher taxes and fees included in the plan. Even some Democrats have resisted as well.
Business and labor groups, hoping the new road funds will help create jobs and promote economic development, hesitated at a $1-billion proposal floated by Transportation Secretary Brian Kelly on Tuesday, Sept. 8.
If lawmakers passed the smaller proposal, they feared, they wouldn’t revisit the issue and find a more substantive solution down the line.
“What was being contemplated wasn’t really going to fix anything,” said Jim Earp, executive consultant of the California Alliance for Jobs, which represents contractors and union workers.
Brown and Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins (D-San Diego), who has been trying to rally support for road repairs, also pledged to continue their fighting efforts.
“The roads are going to get fixed,” the governor said.
