Should California cities and counties be allowed to ban oil drilling? Gov. Gavin Newsom will decide

Should cities and counties in California be allowed to ban oil drilling? Even though oil has been drilled in California for 150 years, the answer has been somewhat murky since last fall when the state Supreme Court overturned a ballot measure that Monterey County voters passed in 2016 to ban new oil and gas wells there over pollution concerns. Handing a victory to Chevron, which had sued to overturn the Monterey County election result, the court ruled that state law, not local government or local voters, should regulate the methods and practices of oil production. Now a bill has reached Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk that would return the power to local hands.

Newsom’s decision to sign or veto the measure could affect a broad range of communities that have passed oil drilling restrictions over the past decade, from Antioch and Brentwood in Contra Costa County to Santa Cruz County to the city of Los Angeles. The drilling bill, AB 3233, passed the state Assembly and Senate two weeks ago, with Democrats mostly in support and Republicans opposed. Supporters say local residents have to deal with the health issues and pollution problems from oil and gas wells, so it’s only fair that they have a voice in whether, where and how drilling is allowed. “This is about health and well-being,” said Assemblywoman Dawn Addis, a Democrat representing a portion of Monterey County, who introduced the bill. “If you live near oil and gas production, you have a higher chance of major health problems.

We also know property values are lower if you are near oil and gas. Local communities want to be able to make these choices. ” The bill is supported by a long list of environmental groups, including Sierra Club California and the Center for Biological Diversity, along with the California Democratic Party and the California State Association of Counties. But opponents, led by the Western States Petroleum Association, an influential industry trade group whose members include Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell and Valero, say the bill goes too far. In a statement last month, the association said the bill would “impose impractical limits on oil and gas operations, creating a fragmented system.

” It also noted that California imports roughly 75% of the oil it consumes. “This reliance on imported oil not only drives up fuel prices for consumers but also compromises our environmental goals by bypassing California’s strict standards,” the association said. How Newsom will decide is unclear. In other actions, he has been steadily cracking down on Big Oil as part of the state’s efforts to reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, which cause climate change. Four years ago, Newsom signed a landmark executive order requiring all new passenger vehicles sold in California by 2035 to be zero-emission.

Two years ago, he signed a law requiring all of California’s electricity by 2045 to come from carbon-free sources such as solar, wind, geothermal.