California Assembly approves Newsom's oil proposal

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The California State Assembly on Tuesday approved Gov. Gavin Newsom's oil refinery proposal aimed at preventing price spikes at the pump.

The Assembly voted 44-17 – two Democrats joined Republicans in opposition – to pass AB 2-1, which would give the California Energy Commission the authority to require oil refineries to produce more gas as a buffer against associated supply shortages to save price spikes in the last two Septembers.

The Assembly voted on the bill, which would also require refineries to create replenishment plans for maintenance outages, during a special session of the Legislature called by Newsom in late August.

The proposal moved forward despite warnings from the oil industry, construction industry and the governors of Nevada and Arizona that it would inadvertently raise prices rather than lower them. The bill addresses a key challenge of California's climate transition: balancing fossil fuel demand and supply without major disruptions as the state transitions to renewable energy.