Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a set of energy bills Friday with the goal of lowering energy costs and stabilizing gas supply after years of allowing strict regulations to clamp down on the state’s oil and gas industry.
The set of bills were designed to “stabilize” California’s gasoline market by paving the way for more oil development in Kern County as well as working to “encourage” oil refiners to continue operations, though they will also keep California’s high speed rail project and its cap-and-trade program alive, according to Newsom’s office. Two major California refineries are gearing up to shut down after Democratic officials enforced stringent regulations that have helped prompt closures across the state for years while Newsom has previously sued and demonized energy companies.
“The Legislature recognizes the significance of oil and gas production in the County of Kern, while also affirming the state’s commitment to protecting public health, safety, and environmental quality, particularly for communities located near oil and gas operations,” one of the bill text states.
NEW: @CAGovernor Gavin Newsom just signed bipartisan bills into laws to lower Californians’ electricity costs, stabilize our state’s gas supply, & provide a stable source of investment for @CaHSRA.
Californians will soon start saving on energy bills & more! pic.twitter.com/R5M9lpkMe8
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) September 19, 2025
Environmental activists have long opposed drilling in oil-rich Kern County, and Newsom previously aligned with them — even joining celebrities and activists in May 2024 to advocate for a law limiting oil wells. Democratic California officials have unleashed regulators, allowing them to place strict rules on the oil and gas industry as the state still marches toward the goal of net-zero emissions by 2045.
Two major California oil refineries, including Valero and Phillips 66, are preparing to close in the next year. One analysis projects that these closures may bump California gas prices to $8 a gallon, while consumers already shell out for some of America’s priciest gas rates and pay the highest gas tax in the country.
“Millions of Californians will soon start saving billions on their energy costs, and the savings don’t stop there – we’re stabilizing the state’s gasoline supply to avert severe price spikes at the pump and we’re making it easier to build the abundant clean energy we need to keep bills lower,” Newsom said Friday. “On top of all that, we’re doubling down on our best tool to combat Trump’s assaults on clean air – Cap-and-Invest – by making polluters pay for projects that support our most impacted communities.”
Newsom also signed a bill in October 2024 that mandated oil refineries to store additional gas to help skirt shortages.
“They continue to lie, and they continue to manipulate. They have been raking in unprecedented profits because they can,” Newsom said as he signed the bill, criticizing the oil and gas industry. “They’ve been screwing you for years and years and years.”
Additionally, Newsom’s administration filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration almost immediately after President Donald Trump signed resolutions to terminate California’s de facto national electric vehicle (EV) mandate in June. California also filed a 2023 lawsuit against major oil and gas companies in the state over alleged climate change-related damages.
“For more than 50 years, Big Oil has been lying to us – covering up the fact that they’ve long known how dangerous the fossil fuels they produce are for our planet,” Newsom said at the time, arguing that oil companies should help cover the cleanup costs of wildfires and other weather events supposedly linked to climate change.
One of the bills also extends California’s “cap-and-trade” program, which is frequently cited as an example of an aggressive regulation driving refineries out of the state. The program requires natural gas power plants, coal power plants and other companies to purchase allowances to offset emissions, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).
Analysts have warned that Californians could see a steep gas price hike in the coming years, driven by the reauthorization of the cap-and-trade program as well as the refinery closures.
“After years of pushing radical climate policies that punished working families, Governor Newsom is finally waking up to what Californians need, he’s now scrambling to secure the very fossil fuels he tried to eliminate,” CEO of the American Energy Institute Jason Isaac told the Daily Caller News Foundation previously. “This sudden embrace of petroleum isn’t leadership, it’s survival. California’s energy future depends on realism, not green delusions.”
Notably, Newsom’s office claims that one of the bills will make “high-speed rail a reality by providing its first-ever stable source of funding.” California’s high speed rail project is billions over budget and years behind schedule, though recent polling shows that many residents still believe that the project can be completed.
Newsom’s office referred the DCNF to its press release.
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