News & Updates - California Business Roundtable Responds to Governor Newsom’s Actions that Could Further Drive Up the Cost of Gasoline and Harm Economic Recovery
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 9, 2021
SACRAMENTO—Rob Lapsley, president of the California Business Roundtable, issued the following statement today in response to actions by the Newsom Administration to deny well stimulation permits, which could drive up the cost of gasoline and is a major step backward in our economic recovery:
“The governor’s actions don’t follow the science or data and will do major harm to working families and the economy. California is already in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, driven in large part by our highest-in-the-nation gasoline prices. This is a regressive regulation and will hurt lower-income and minority families the hardest. Not only will gasoline prices increase, but by forcing more oil to be imported from foreign nations, today’s actions will only further undermine reliability and sustainability while not doing anything to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
“Today, once again, the state has issued a Flex Alert and asked residents and businesses to conserve energy. The natural gas that keeps the lights on when solar power goes away comes from the very wells the governor is trying to shut down. The last thing the state should be doing is attempting to eliminate energy sources that can help prevent disastrous rolling blackouts, which risk the health and safety of countless Californians.
“What’s more, today’s actions are a significant step backward for the state’s economic recovery. California unemployment claims continue to rise and our economic recovery pace lags far behind many other states and the nation as a whole. Jeopardizing well-paying blue-collar jobs in the Central Valley and driving up the cost of doing business will only exacerbate this crisis even further.
“This drastic action could not come at a worse possible time. Regulatory bodies are not the place policies like this should be decided, particularly ones that have been repeatedly rejected by the Legislature. We fully anticipate litigation surrounding this type of unilateral decision-making, especially when it has such profound consequences on health, safety and the state’s cost-of-living crisis.”