SACRAMENTO
Battle lines drawn on clean air
President Trump is expected today to revoke California’s 50-year-old authority to set tougher auto emissions standards to combat smog, setting up what will be a precedent-setting court fight. California will fight back.
The L.A. Times: The move, which has been in the works for much of the past three years, would overturn the foundation for California’s role as an environmental leader in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving air quality.
Why it matters: California has seven of the 10 cities in the nation with the dirtiest air. It’s especially bad in the Bakersfield-Fresno area.
Gov. Gavin Newsom called the expected action a “political vendetta” that “could have devastating consequences for our kids’ health and the air we breathe, if California were to roll over.”
“But we will not — we will fight this latest attempt and defend our clean car standards.”
Attorney General Xavier Becerra is preparing to sue to block the feds’ attempt.
Some history:
- California received the waiver in 1967.
- At Gov. Ronald Reagan’s urging, U.S. Sen. George Murphy, a California Republican, blocked Detroit automakers’ effort to prevent the state from receiving the waiver.
- President George W. Bush moved to revoke California’s waiver.
- Barack Obama’s election ended that effort.
- The issue has never been fully litigated. The case will be heard in the Circuit Court for the District of Columbia.
Rebates for some, perhaps
With California enmeshed in a bare-knuckled battle over clean air with the Trump administration, carmakers could soon have to sign onto the state’s pact to cut air pollution if they want to offer customers the state’s EV rebate.
CalMatters’ Laurel Rosenhall reports that California is considering a plan that would reward automakers that have signed onto a pact with the state to cut pollution by reserving rebates for customers of zero-emission cars made by those companies.
On the flip side, people buying cars made by companies that aren’t aligned with California’s clean air standards would not receive rebates.
The plan has not been formally announced. But there are signs it’s emerging as California’s next salvo in a feud with the Trump administration over greenhouse gas and fuel-efficiency standards.
The Legislature has adjourned for the year. But Assemblyman Phil Ting, San Francisco Democrat, has drafted legislation that would direct clean vehicle rebates only to cars made by companies that have entered an agreement with the state to abide by emissions standards that exceed the Trump administration standards.
What’s Gov. Gavin Newsom’s view? “Give me a few days. And you’ll get a very specific answer to that question.”
UC’s bold divestment move
The University of California is divesting its $83 billion in endowment and pension funds from the fossil fuel industry, in a move that will reverberate throughout higher education and add to pressure on public employee pension funds to divest.
CalMatters’ Felicia Mello: The decision caps a multi-year campaign by students and faculty who argued the university had a responsibility to address climate change, but UC officials said they made it for financial reasons.
UC’s chief investment officer, Jagdeep Singh Bachher, and Richard Sherman, chair of the UC Regents’ investment committee, in a Los Angeles Times op-ed: “We believe hanging onto fossil fuel assets is a financial risk.”
Reflecting the view of environmentalists, author Bill McKibben, founder of the environmental group 350.org, tweeted: “Holy heck. The University of California system has just divested from fossil fuels. That’s $80 billion, from what is the biggest and arguably best public system in the world. Thanks to all who have campaigned so long and hard–this is a breathtaking win!”
Expect pressure to build on the $380 billion California Public Employees’ Pension System to sell off fossil fuel holdings. CalPERS has resisted demands for divestment, arguing that such efforts end up costing the fund money.
The Sacramento Bee: “CalPERS has missed about $8 billion in potential earnings because of its divestment choices dating back to the 1980s, according to a February report by Wilshire Associates.”
Not exactly a ticker tape parade
Air Force One touched down at Moffett Field in Mountain View on Tuesday, and President Trump was whisked away to a supposedly unknown location for a fundraiser.
Protestors figured out it was at the Portola Valley estate of Scott McNealy, co-founder of Sun Microsystems. The group Vigil for Democracy lofted a “Giant Baby Trump” balloon.
The cat-and-mouse will continue as POTUS heads to fundraisers in Beverly Hills and San Diego today, in service of his reelection campaign.
