For Immediate Release

Sacramento, CA – Governor Newsom announced a gas rebate offering Californians direct payments of $400 to ease economic strain caused by high gas prices, but noticeably absent from his statement was any concrete action to end California’s production of fossil fuels. 

“Rebates are helpful for consumers but are surely a bandaid for the short term,” said Food & Water Watch California Director Alexandra Nagy. “The only way to safeguard Californians from the profiteering of the oil industry is to stop issuing new permits and transition to renewables immediately. Governor Newsom has touted California’s trajectory towards an oil free future, but how can we get there if he dodges every opportunity to end new drilling permits?”

Recent research from Food & Water Watch shows that fossil fuel companies are not only profiting from the increases in gas prices, their executives are seeing a windfall in their personal wealth. 

“The real issue here is the fossil fuel industry’s profiteering and price gouging,” continued Nagy. “While Californians suffer the economic fallout of high gas prices and climate disasters associated with fossil fuel extraction, the executives of Chevron, ExxonMobil and other dirty energy companies watch their profits soar. The only way to bring lasting economic relief to Californians is for Governor Newsom to initiate a just transition away from fossil fuels immediately. We can no longer afford to bankroll the profits of the oil and gas industry.”

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Contact: Jessica Gable, (202) 683-2478, [email protected]