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California AG sues top 5 oil companies alleging decades-long false advertising campaign

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California AG sues top 5 oil companies alleging decades-long false advertising campaign


California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced Saturday that his office is suing the top five oil companies for allegedly misleading the public on climate change.

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The complaint was filed in San Francisco County Superior Court and alleges that Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and BP all knew since the 1960s that burning fossil fuels had detrimental effects on the planet. 

Bonta says California has spent tens of billions of dollars to combat climate change and is suing to establish a fund financed by the oil companies to further mitigate and adapt to future problems, and “to prevent the companies from making any further false or misleading statements about the contribution of fossil fuel combustion to climate change.”

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“Oil and gas companies have privately known the truth for decades — that the burning of fossil fuels leads to climate change — but have fed us lies and mistruths to further their record-breaking profits at the expense of our environment. Enough is enough,” Bonta said in a press release. “With our lawsuit, California becomes the largest geographic area and the largest economy to take these giant oil companies to court. It is time they pay to abate the harm they have caused.”  

The amount of the fund is yet to be determined, and Bonta adds that the lawsuit will cite specific details as evidence that the oil companies knew their products were harmful to the environment. 

The press release highlights a 1968 Stanford Research Institute study that found fossil fuel production could lead to “significant temperature changes” by year 2000.

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The press release also highlights an internal Exxon memo from 1978 stating, “[p]resent thinking holds that man has a time window of five to ten years before the need for hard decisions regarding changes in energy strategies might become critical.” 

Last year was one of the most profitable years for the top five oil companies, raking in nearly $200 billion in profits, according to a CNBC analysis. 

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Ryan Meyers, senior vice president for the American Petroleum Institute, which is named in the lawsuit, called Bonta’s actions a waste of taxpayer money.

“This ongoing, coordinated campaign to wage meritless, politicized lawsuits against a foundational American industry and its workers is nothing more than a distraction from important national conversations and an enormous waste of California taxpayer resources,” Meyers told the AP in a statement. 

Shell, on the other hand, recognized the need to address climate change.

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“Addressing climate change requires a collaborative, society-wide approach,” Shell told the AP. “We agree that action is needed now on climate change, and we fully support the need for society to transition to a lower-carbon future.”

Similar lawsuits have been filed in other states and Gov. Gavin Newsom backs Bonta’s decision, stating the lawsuit will bring justice to Californians and hold “big oil polluters accountable.”

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“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. “California taxpayers shouldn’t have to foot the bill for billions of dollars in damages — wildfires wiping out entire communities, toxic smoke clogging our air, deadly heat waves, record-breaking droughts parching our wells.”



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California Shelves Repeal of 1950 Housing Law That Stoked Racial Tension | KQED

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California Shelves Repeal of 1950 Housing Law That Stoked Racial Tension | KQED


“While SCA 2 was one of many efforts to help address the housing crisis, the November’s ballot will be very crowded, and reaching voters will be difficult and expensive,” Allen said in a statement. “In addition, the legislature recently passed my SB 469, which substantially addresses some of the most significant concerns about how Article 34 might be impacting housing production.”

SB 469 clarifies that the use of state affordable housing dollars does not trigger Article 34’s requirement for voter approval. Allen said his focus is on determining whether these efforts are “making a significant dent in addressing the problem,” adding that quickly building more affordable housing is a priority.

Backed by the California Real Estate Association, the forerunner to the current California Association of Realtors, Article 34 was first adopted by voters in 1950. Realtors played on voters’ fears that affordable housing would lead to greater racial integration of exclusively white neighborhoods.

CAR issued a formal apology in 2022 for its past support of Article 34, with association President Otto Catrina condemning the actions and vowing to address the legacy of its “discriminatory policies and practices.”

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The organization “remains a strong supporter of the repeal of Article 34 … which adds unnecessary hurdles and costs to the creation of affordable housing,” CAR spokesperson Sanjay Wagle said in a statement.

Wagle noted that a majority of Californians support repealing the provision but cited research showing a voter education campaign would be needed to explain the article’s effects.

“The cost of such a campaign in an election year with so many initiatives on the ballot made this campaign more costly and difficult, thus making it more logical to pursue a repeal on a future ballot,” Wagle wrote. “We thank Sen. Allen and Sen. Wiener for their efforts on this repeal effort and look forward to working [with] them and other stakeholders on this issue in the future.”





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California Quarterback Commits to Penn State’s 2026 Recruiting Class

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California Quarterback Commits to Penn State’s 2026 Recruiting Class


Though Penn State has been busily filling its 2025 recruiting class in June, the program hasn’t stopped looking ahead. The Nittany Lions on Tuesday received a commitment from 4-star California quarterback Troy Huhn, who became the second player in Penn State football’s 2026 recruiting class.

Huhn (6-4, 205 pounds) will be a junior at Mission Hills High, just north of San Diego. He threw for 1,623 yards and 16 touchdowns as a sophomore last season. Huhn quickly built a strong offer sheet that included Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, Texas, Auburn and Notre Dame, among many others. Huhn took an unofficial visits to Ohio State and Penn State in June, committing to the Nittany Lions two weeks after his trip.

Huhn is the 2026 recruiting class’ 10th-rated quarterback prospect, according to the 247Sports Composite, and a top-15 player in California. On3 ranks Huhn highest among the major recruiting services, slotting him at No. 60 nationally and sixth at quarterback.

Huhn, who committed to Penn State offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki and quarterbacks coach Danny O’Brien, spent time with head coach James Franklin during his unofficial visit. He told Sean Fitz of Blue-White Illustrated that Franklin made an impression.

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“Coach O’Brien was great, but really my main thing when I was getting out there was to have more time with coach Franklin. They definitely gave that to me,” Huhn said in his interview with Blue-White Illustrated. “I really felt the love from coach Franklin. He’s very business, he’s awesome, he’s a funny guy. My mom loves him, he loves my mom. That relationship with him is now a lot better and I’m glad I got to spend that time with him.”

Huhn joins Harrisburg athlete Messiah Mickens on the ground floor of Penn State’s 2026 recruiting class. Mickens committed to Penn State in August 2023. Penn State had been recruiting several 2026 quarterbacks alongside Huhn. One of their targets, Dia Bell, recently committed to Texas.

Huhn’s commitment continued a prolific stretch for the Nittany Lions. Franklin and his staff have received commitments from five players in a four-day stretch. Four of them committed to Penn State’s 2025 recruiting class.

The most recent 2025 commitment belonged to Max Granville, a 4-star prospect from Texas and first-team all-state honoree as a junior. Granville, who will be a senior at Fort Bend Christian Academy, is rated as a 4-star linebacker according to the 247Sports Composite. However, the 6-3, 220-pound Granville projects at defensive end and was recruited by Penn State defensive line coach Deion Barnes. Granville chose Penn State after making an official visit to State College earlier in June. He also visited USC, Texas A&M and Oklahoma in June and took an official visit to Baylor in April.

Penn State opens the 2024 football season Aug. 31 at West Virginia. The game is scheduled for a noon kickoff on FOX.

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AllPennState is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on Twitter @MarkWogenrich.





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Butte County issues evacuation orders for Apache wildfire

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Butte County issues evacuation orders for Apache wildfire


(FOX40.COM) — An evacuation order is in effect for areas of Butte County amid a wildfire, according to the Butte County Sheriff’s Office.

Around 8:30 p.m. on Monday, BCSO issued an evacuation order for the Apache Fire on the south side of Grubbs Road between Crossa Country Road and Alta Arosa Drive in zones 884 and 885. Shortly after, evacuation orders were also issued for all of zone 884, 865, 866, 868, and 869. For information about zone locations click or tap here.

An evacuation warning was also issued for zones 867 and 883.

At 9:45 p.m., the Apache Fire has burned through 466 acres, according to Cal Fire. By 10:30 p.m. it reached more than 650 acres.

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For more information visit www.buttecounty.net, or call (833) 512-5378.



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