California

California Climate & Energy Update

Published

2 years ago

September 30, 2024

Buildings

Building code delivers: The California Energy Commission (CEC) approved a new building energy code that ensures the vast majority of new homes in the Golden State will be built without fossil fuel connections by 2026. Additionally, spurred by NRDC analysis on the opportunity to replace burnt out AC units with heat pumps that can cool and heat, the new code includes provisions to strongly encourage the replacement of gas rooftop HVAC (heating ventilation air conditioning) units for existing commercial buildings with two-way heat pumps. These units account for roughly 25% of the commercial market in California. A heat pump is nearly identical to an air conditioner with one small but important difference: a reversing valve that allows it to provide heating or cooling. This no brainer is becoming the norm for commercial buildings and needs to be the standard for residential homes too.

Stop investing in fossil fuel infrastructure: There is a growing consensus that it doesn’t make sense to keep investing in the gas pipeline system in California. NRDC commissioned analysis showing that targeted electrification, which equips homes served by aging gas pipelines with energy-efficient electric appliances, can save utility customers more than $20 billion in gas infrastructure costs by avoiding costly pipeline replacements.

Last week, Governor Newsom signed SB 1221 (Min) into law, a bill sponsored by NRDC, Earthjustice, and Building Decarbonization Coalition designed to avoid pipeline replacements. SB 1221 will help ensure that utility spending is aligned with an affordable, clean energy future by increasing transparency into gas utilities’ planned fossil fuel investments and authorizing cost-saving “zero-emission alternative” pilot projects to take place across the state. With this bill, California joined a growing list of states that are closing the chapter on unnecessary gas pipeline investment.

In July, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) also implemented a decision that removes the subsidies for electric line extensions in new buildings if they connect the building to the gas system – subsidies worth thousands of dollars per home to developers. The decision recognizes that subsidies for new buildings that burn gas are out of step with California’s climate and public health objectives and builds on the previous move to eliminate the gas line extension subsidies for new properties.

Ensuring clean, electric technology is available to all: Getting off fossil gas in buildings requires investing in clean, electric technologies and supporting households with fewer resources to make the transition. California continues to fund this work above and beyond the federal dollars for buildings flowing to the state:

A total of $525 million was secured for the Equitable Building Decarbonization program, which will provide home repairs and install all-electric appliances in the residences of low-income Californians starting in 2025.
The $71 million from the Aliso Canyon Settlement paid by SoCalGas was directed primarily to support building electrification in the Los Angeles region (appropriated through AB 157).
The California Heat Pump Partnership (CAHPP), seeded with state funding, officially launched this year to bring together state agencies, utilities, and manufacturers representing more than 90% of the U.S. heat pump market to help achieve the state’s goal to install six million electric heat pumps by 2030.

Industry

Digging into industrial emissions: Recently signed by the Governor, SB 941(Skinner) requires CARB to assess emitting industrial technologies and the availability of zero-emission alternatives in its next scoping plan. This assessment is a good first step to take stock of industry’s decarbonization options and should be followed by a comprehensive plan to abate those emissions.

Federal funding for cement decarbonization: Two innovative California-based cement companies secured federal funding awards of nearly $700 million to demonstrate decarbonized cement production processes. Successful adoption of such technologies will be crucial to meeting SB 596, which requires all cement used in the state to be net-zero emission by 2045.

Exploring new rates for industrial electrification: Electric rates that incentivize industrial loads to use clean electricity are critical to industrial decarbonization. While SB 993 (Becker), which would have required just such an industrial rate development, did not advance out of the legislature, the idea did: the CPUC updated the scope of its existing demand flexibility proceeding to develop a new industrial electric rate structure for industrial heat and hydrogen loads. This could price electricity at super low rates when renewables are abundant, and much higher when gas is the marginal resource to incentivize flexible industrial loads to only draw power from the grid when the costs and emissions of doing so are low.

Transportation

Transforming our streets and highways: Two of the three bills NRDC supported as part of the ClimatePlan legislative package were signed into law. SB 960 (Wiener) requires Caltrans to make improvements for people biking, walking, and taking transit when it upgrades state-owned roads. AB 2086 (Schiavo) requires tracking and reporting on how state transportation investments support state goals on safety, equity, climate action, and economic prosperity. Each of these bills advances a key recommendation from our report highlighting gaps between California’s climate goals and its transportation infrastructure spending decisions. NRDC also filed a lawsuit against Caltrans for its unlawful approval of an expansion of Interstate 80 in the Sacramento region.

Defend clean cars rules: NRDC and partners helped block four bills that would have weakened California’s nation-leading clean air standards. We successfully secured the Governor’s vetoes of AB 637 (Jackson), AB 3179 (J. Carillo), Ab 1122 (Bains) and AB 1296 (Grayson), which would have given clean air carveouts for certain rental cars, vehicle fleets, and harbor craft.

Getting EV chargers online faster: NRDC worked to secure new rules from the CPUC to get EV chargers online faster to meet the growing demand for electric cars, buses, and trucks. This decision establishes the nation’s first deadlines for connecting residential, public, and workplace EV chargers to the grid and for California’s three largest investor-owned utilities to make necessary grid upgrades to support large projects like fast-charging plazas for passenger vehicles and charging stations for commercial trucks, while also requiring transparent data on utility compliance. The rule will help lower electricity rates because EV charging brings in more money than it costs utilities to serve, and that net revenue is returned to all utility customers through rates and bills that are lower than they otherwise would be.

Power

Offshore wind gets green light: Developing offshore wind (OSW) is important for California to meet its zero-carbon energy goals, support grid reliability, improve affordability, reduce air pollution, and grow a new industry that will support thousands of high-quality jobs. To advance this effort, the CEC published their final strategic plan, with feedback from NRDC and other stakeholders, which outlines opportunities, challenges, and recommendations to make responsible and equitable offshore wind development a California reality.

In a huge step towards this potential, the CPUC sent the strongest signal yet to advance OSW by adopting a decision ordering 7.6 GW of OSW to be centrally procured by 2035. This determination of need is significant enough to provide certainty for transmission, port, and other infrastructure investments to move forward, and is in line with what NRDC supported in our comments. This decision affirms that offshore wind will play a key role in California’s future energy system and lays the groundwork for market transformation by planning phased procurements to encourage competition and cost reductions.

Progress on Western grid regionalization: A west-wide electricity market would spur the development of clean electricity sources and lower costs for consumers across the region. With the California Independent System Operator’s (CAISO) western day-ahead electricity market approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and poised to bring some of these benefits to the region, an additional effort is underway called the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative to take it even further. The Pathways Initiative will both encourage broad participation in the western day-ahead electricity market to capture the value of the resource and geographic diversity of the region, and will create a path to stand up a new governance structure with full independence that could offer more services to the West that go beyond energy markets.

Equitable rate reform to improve how we pay for shared electric system costs: California is facing an electric rate crisis. NRDC has been at the forefront of identifying solutions, including an income-based monthly charge that more equitably shares the costs for electricity infrastructure while also supporting the transition from fossil fuels to clean electricity. The CPUC successfully adopted this new rate structure in May. This change will help, but more needs to be done in 2025 to reduce electric rates.

Looking Ahead

There’s still significant work needed to build a just and sustainable California, however, the recent progress made across every major sector is worth celebrating. California has the vision and leadership needed, and the will of the state’s residents on its side to create a livable future for all in the face of climate change.

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California

Trump claims without proof Democrats are ‘trying to steal’ California primaries

Published

12 minutes ago

June 4, 2026

Press Room

Trump claims without proof Democrats are ‘trying to steal’ California primaries

Donald Trump has alleged without evidence that Democrats are cheating in California’s primaries and claimed in a late-night social media post that the US attorney’s office in Los Angeles was investigating.

As counting continues in the most populous state in the US, the president’s unfounded remarks are likely to further alarm election observers, who have warned of the risk of escalating misinformation in the absence of a final result.

Trump has a history of undermining election results that don’t go in his favor. He has repeatedly alleged that Democrats “stole” the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to Joe Biden, despite privately admitting his defeat, according to aides.

At 12.48am on Thursday, Trump posted: “The Dumocrats are at it again! They are trying to STEAL THE GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA PRIMARY, AND THE MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES, PRIMARY, AWAY FROM TWO GREAT REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES. Here we go with the very late and massive numbers of MAIL IN BALLOTS.”

“There’s BIG cheating by the Dumocrats in California,” he said 17 minutes later in another post on his Truth Social platform. “Votes are all tied up. May not be in for weeks. Under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles. Why the vote counting DELAY??? President DJT”.

The US attorney’s office said it had no comment on Trump’s claim that his allegations of cheating are “under investigation” by US attorneys. The Department of Justice in Washington DC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The president presented no substantive basis for questioning the legitimacy of the election.

Mail-in ballots factor heavily in California political races – typically about 80% of votes cast – and those ballots can be counted up to a week after election day, as long as they are postmarked before election day.

California uses a “jungle” primary process, in which the two candidates with the most votes advance to a runoff – regardless of their political party – unless one candidate wins an outright majority. A huge field of 61 candidates fragmented the vote in the race for governor, but Republicans have coalesced around Steve Hilton. Together with Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer, the three are in a contest that remains too close to call as votes are tallied.

Mail-in ballots tend to favor Democrats, which implies the possibility that Hilton – whom Trump has endorsed – may drop into third place by the time all the ballots are counted.

The last Republican to win the California gubernatorial race was Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006. Republicans have polled just under 40% in each of the last four contests.

Last month Gavin Newsom sent a letter to elections officials to thank them for their work while warning that a long process invites disingenuous accusations of misconduct.

“We must acknowledge that the longer the vote count takes, the more mis- and dis-information spreads,” wrote the California governor. “That means we must do all that we can to tabulate votes quickly and accurately. Time is of the essence in preventing election lies from taking root.”

On Wednesday evening, election observers echoed those concerns. “Conducting elections with integrity and ensuring that every eligible vote is counted are fundamental to maintaining public confidence in our democracy,” said Mike DuHaime of the Democracy Defense Project, a bipartisan effort to combat election misinformation.

“At the same time, prolonged delays in ballot tabulation, such as those that have become increasingly common in California, can undermine public trust and create unnecessary uncertainty around election outcomes,” DuHaime added. “The longer election results remain unresolved, the greater the opportunity for misinformation and speculation to spread online, eroding confidence in our electoral process. Accuracy must always remain the highest priority, but accuracy and timeliness are not mutually exclusive.”

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California

California man charged with bringing explosives to Sacramento airport after repeatedly calling FBI tip line | CNN

Published

10 hours ago

June 4, 2026

Press Room

California man charged with bringing explosives to Sacramento airport after repeatedly calling FBI tip line | CNN

A California man was charged Tuesday after authorities say he brought an explosive device and other weapons through a security checkpoint at Sacramento International Airport.

Kimani Osayande Jones, who also uses the last name Jackson, attempted to bring an improvised explosive device, a knife and other bladed weapons, a torch lighter and zip ties through a TSA security checkpoint on May 30, according to court documents filed Tuesday in the Eastern District of California.

Officials believe Jones, 49, repeatedly called the FBI tip line to report he was being threatened and intimidated in the months leading up to the incident.

Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office bomb technicians safely removed the explosive device and tested its powder and fuse, both of which were determined to be “viable and energetic,” officials say.

Investigators said the device had the potential to damage an aircraft and cause a loss of cabin pressure.

Jones’ other luggage, which had already been through security and loaded onto an American Airlines flight to Charlotte, North Carolina, was hand-searched and examined by a canine unit upon arrival, and investigators said nothing “illegal or concerning” was found.

Jones has been charged in federal court with unlawful possession of explosive material at an airport. He faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted.

His attorney, Meghan McLoughlin, told CNN in a statement: “There is often more to these cases than the government’s allegations, and that the criminal process will reveal Mr. Jones’ story as well.”

Multiple cell phones and repeated FBI tip line calls

The Sacramento resident went through security on May 30 wearing a face covering and blue latex gloves, court documents say.

When officers found the explosive device and other items in Jones’ carry-on bag, he told them he was unaware the items were in his possession and said “he would be okay with just discarding them.” When authorities informed him that explosive material could not simply be thrown away, he denied ownership of the backpack.

Jones also had five mobile phones in his possession. The cameras on each phone had been covered with painter’s tape, which authorities believe was intended to prevent his surroundings from being recorded.

One phone contained a 15-minute timer ready to start and another had a message from an unknown number on the screen stating, “we will be awaiting your call,” according to court documents.

An individual police believe to be Jones made approximately 13 calls to the FBI tip line leading up to the incident, beginning in March.

On May 24, the caller reported being followed to and from a doctor’s appointment and described what he said were threats and intimidation by another individual.

He said he was “being coerced in sleep to say certain phrases through digital media” and described “hearing sounds coming through walls, window panes, or even outside, attributing the outside sounds to drones,” court documents say. The call was ultimately terminated because of its “nonsensical nature.”

On the day of the incident, the same caller again contacted the FBI tip line, alleging that several individuals were threatening him throughout the past year through “cyber means.” He also referenced exercising his Second Amendment rights while denying any intention to harm others.

The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office also noted it had prior contact with Jones, “wherein he had a history of being paranoid.”

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California

California may take weeks to finalize primary results. ‘This is normal’

Published

21 hours ago

June 3, 2026

Press Room

California may take weeks to finalize primary results. ‘This is normal’

Although results from California’s primary election began rolling in on Tuesday, June 2, it could take days or even weeks before the final counts are certified.

“This is normal … We have a process that by law ensures both voting rights and the integrity of elections, so I would call on all Californians to be patient,” Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber said in a June 2 news release.

The Golden State’s lengthy vote-counting process has “become a national narrative about California elections,” according to Thad Kousser, a professor of political science at the University of California, San Diego.

“In California, it takes a long time to certify votes, to verify the signatures, to then count the ballots; all of that process takes a while,” Kousser said in an interview last week. “It may take a while for us to learn who the top candidates who emerge are.”

Here are some factors behind California’s lengthy vote-counting process.

Mail-in ballots come with added verification step

With each mail-in ballot cast, elections officials must compare the signature on a returned vote-by-mail envelope to the voter’s signature on their voter registration card. Various factors go into determining whether the signatures match, including the slant of the signature, whether it is printed or written in cursive, and the size, proportions, or scale.

Vote-by-mail ballots were Californians’ preferred voting method in both the 2024 primary and general elections, with drop-off locations — such as ballot drop boxes and voting centers — the most popular way to return mail-in ballots.

During California’s 2024 primary, more than 7.7 million votes were cast statewide, and 90 percent of those were mail-in ballots. This means election officials had to verify the signatures on more than 6.8 million ballots before they could be counted. For the November 2024 general election, 80% of cast ballots, or about 13 million, were vote-by-mail.

Reviewing conditional voter and provisional ballots

California also allows for same-day voter registration, also known as conditional voter registration. Voters who need to register, or re-register, within 14 days of an election can do so at their county elections office, polling place, or vote center. These ballots will be processed and counted after the county elections office has completed the voter registration process.

In addition to conditional voter ballots, there are provisional ballots that must be verified before they are counted. Voters cast provisional ballots for a wide array of reasons, including if their name does not appear at a polling place or if they’ve made a mistake on their ballot. After a voter casts a provisional ballot, it will not be counted until election officials have confirmed that the voter is registered to vote in that county and has not already voted in that election.

Vote-by-mail ballots can be sent on Election Day

Though state officials recommend voters mail their ballots sooner rather than later, state law allows vote-by-mail ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if they arrive within a specified window afterward, thereby extending the tallying process.

For the primary, ballots needed to be postmarked on or before June 2 and received by county elections office no later than June 10.

California is, well, big

California is the most populous state in the nation. And, as of May 18, a record total of 23,155,447 Californians were registered to vote.

While not all registered voters are expected to have voted, county election officials estimate that more than 5 million ballots were cast statewide.

When to expect final results

Under state law, county elections officials are required to report the results for most ballots by June 15, or 13 days after the election, according to Weber. However, some ballots can take counties up to 30 days to count every ballot and then conduct a post-election audit.

State law requires county elections officials to report final official results to state officials July 3. State officials then have until July 10 to certify the results of the election.

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