Introducing Newsom News Now
The Good - (A lot of) The Governor’s Budget Proposal
The Bad - Newsom Administration Continues to Tout Harmful Water Storage
What We're Keeping Our Eyes On - Commenting on the State’s 30x30 Implementation Plan
Welcome to Newsom News Now!
Announced in the November 2021 Letter from Sacramento, Newsom News Now is a new newsletter which Sierra Club California will publish every other month aimed at tracking Governor Newsom and his administration’s performance on several key issues that are important to Sierra Club California, its members, and Californians generally.
These issues include oil & gas regulations, electrification, land and water conservation, and many others that are important to advancing California's climate change goals. 2022 is a vital election year, and we want to document the actions Newsom and his administration are (or aren't!) taking on these vital issues, so we can hold them accountable.
Newsom News Now will be formatted to discuss one positive we’ve seen from the Newsom Administration, one negative we’ve seen from the Newsom administration, and also one issue or campaign that we are closely tracking and engaging in.
Just like our Capitol Voice, this newsletter will be written jointly by a rotating cast of authors, including Sierra Club California Director Brandon Dawson, policy advocates, conservation organizers, and myself, the communications associate.
Earlier this month Governor Governor Gavin Newsom released his 2022-2023 state budget proposal, which allocates $22.5 billion over five years across all state agencies to protect Californians against the climate crisis. In doing so, this proposed budget integrates key state dollars to combat climate change into every facet of state government.
To quickly summarize some of the highlights:
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$6.1 billion to put clean cars, trucks, and buses on the road and support an equitable transition to electrification for underserved communities. Included in this commitment is $1.5 billion for electric school buses and $2 billion for zero-emission trucks, buses, and off-road equipment and infrastructure.
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$962 million to decarbonize California homes and buildings, with over 622 million for a retrofit program that includes funding for replacement of fossil fuel appliances with electric appliances in low-income communities and homes.
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$180 million for improvements in water conservation, sustainability, and conservation programs.
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$1 billion to further sustainable communities and develop housing and communities that supports the reduction of climate emissions and furthers the state’s climate goals.
There’s much to be happy about in the Governor’s proposed budget. But there’s also some funding that we’ll be working to remove or clarify. Overall, large investment by the state is wholly necessary to boldly fight the climate crisis. The budget is a great first step towards seriously addressing climate issues in California, and we’re looking forward to working with the administration to make 2022 a landmark year for climate legislation and funding across the state.
The California Water Commission met on December 15th to vote on whether Sites Reservoir and the Pacheco Reservoir Expansion projects remained eligible for funding Proposition 1, approved by voters in 2014.
When California voters passed Prop 1 in 2014, they did so with the important caveat that water projects eligible for these Prop 1 funds must advance the long-term objectives of restoring ecological health and improving water management for beneficial uses of the Delta. The California Water Commission is required to find throughout the funding process that each project will provide these specific benefits.
But the benefits of both Sites Reservoir and Pacheco Reservoir are murky at best, while the negative impacts could be significant and deleterious for California’s environment. Sites Reservoir would divert water from the already overdrafted Sacramento River and flood a 13,200 acre area which contains valuable wetlands, oak woodland habitat, and 24 endangered species. Meanwhile, the Pacheco Reservoir Expansion project will flood 1,500 acres of land, including a portion of the ecologically important Henry Coe State Park.
Even then, the Commission advanced both projects over the objections of dozens of members of the public representing environmental justice, conservation, and fishing groups, as well as California Tribal representatives.
The Newsom Administration appears to be comfortable moving full steam ahead with these projects, despite the significant potential impacts to species and important habitat as well as the lack of complete environmental review. Moreover, Newsom’s own Water Resilience Portfolio progress report, released earlier this month, specifically states that the State intends to accelerate permitting of these projects.
Sierra Club California is disappointed that the Newsom Administration is encouraging and celebrating environmentally-destructive water projects without regard for the concerns expressed by numerous tribal, environmental justice, conservation, and fishing organizations.
The Newsom Administration should reevaluate whether these projects are capable of providing real benefits to California communities and ecosystems.
In October 2020, Governor Newsom issued an executive order directing state agencies to develop and implement a strategy to protect our state’s biodiversity. As a result, California joined the international effort to protect 30 percent of land and species around the world by 2030. But since then, the state has shared very little as to how they will meet by the 2030 goal.
Over a year later, the state has released the “Draft Pathways to 30x30 Report,” a document detailing how the state will accomplish the 2030 goal, and is welcoming public input on the document until Tuesday, February 15, 2022.
Sierra Club California’s 30x30 task force is hard at work putting together our comments on the document. But overall, here some preliminary takeaways:
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We applaud the Draft’s ambitious vision, which is focused on biodiversity, climate, equity and outdoor access, and support for Tribal knowledge and leadership. We also appreciate the Draft’s incorporation of the ten priorities for a successful 30x30 effort that our statewide 30x30 Coalition has championed throughout the public engagement process.
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However, the program needs a more concrete plan. We support the excellent framework of the report’s Key Objectives, which are the WHAT of our state’s 30x30 goals, but the draft requires more specifics on the equally critical HOW each element will be accomplished, and WHO will drive its execution. The final version must include a blueprint with specific interim goals, metrics, and prioritization strategies to achieve 30x30.
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Moreover, the program needs concrete commitments to stop ongoing harms. The Draft makes no mention of how the state plans to halt the harms that 30x30 is responding to, such as damaging projects, policies, substandard enforcement and regulatory regimes, and more. Examples include but are not limited to: oil and gas development, mining, harmful water projects, off-highway vehicle (OHV) use on public lands, and commercial logging. This is a glaring omission that must be meaningfully addressed in the final 30x30 Plan.
These are just a few takeaways we have about the document. We’re working with coalitions of other conservation groups, tribes, and environmental justice groups to ensure that the 30x30 goal is met. If you’d like to read and make your own comment about the report, you can find the document and how to do so here. Be on the lookout for a future alert from our office on how you can engage as well.
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