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This story was originally published by CalMatters<\/a>. Sign up<\/a> for their newsletters.<\/p>\n Guest Commentary written by<\/p>\n Sofia Carrasco is a high school student in San Diego and has spent two years volunteering and leading environmental policy campaigns.<\/p>\n The health and safety of millions of Californians is in jeopardy thanks to a law that bypassed nearly the entire legislative process \u2014 bargained and brought to you by Big Oil. <\/p>\n The law, Senate Bill 237<\/a>, was introduced and passed in a hurried 72-hour session<\/a>. This is the\u00a0legal minimum amount of time\u00a0a bill must exist before it passes. By avoiding input<\/a> from key stakeholders, Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats are participating in a concerning trend, one which allows industries to lobby<\/a> and manipulate their way into backdoor deals<\/a>. <\/p>\n The California\u2019s Democratic leadership is revoking hard-earned environmental regulations<\/a>, gifting industries and special interest groups that continue to exacerbate the climate crisis<\/a>, poison communities and provide false solutions to affordability concerns<\/a>.<\/p>\n I am only 16, and lead a climate action campaign, Youth v. Oil, run by high schoolers across San Diego County. I reflect numerous organizers who were given no chance<\/a> to stand up against this legislative attack on our environment. <\/p>\n To understand SB 237, it\u2019s important to understand how Newsom went from lauding an end to oil drilling in 2024 to proudly advancing<\/a> crude production. <\/p>\n A managed fossil fuel transition \u2014 which, according to California\u2019s Climate Action Plan<\/a>, would create 4 million jobs and slash planet-warming gases by 85% \u2014 requires the closure of oil refineries as the state becomes more reliant on renewable sources.<\/p>\n The transition to clean energy must be equitable, including plans that consider the local tax base and employment. Yet in response to an earlier law intended to maintain fuel stability<\/a> amid price spikes, oil companies announced sudden closures<\/a> of two key refineries without adequate justifications or transition plans.<\/p>\n These refineries cause cancer and asthma in their communities, all while taking advantage of bailouts and tax loopholes. Instead of confronting responsibility for cleanup and retirement costs, these companies leveraged the threat of higher gasoline prices and bent leaders to their agenda. Combined with the estimated\u00a0$18 million\u00a0the oil industry spent<\/a> on lobbying in California over the first half of the year, a zero-sum narrative was developed: Gut your life-saving protections or we\u2019ll drive these refineries out of state. <\/p>\n Companies like Valero are not being \u201cforced out of business.\u201d They are making record profits, yet fear the unavoidable decline they will experience in upcoming decades. New oil well permits have decreased from 2,664 in 2019 to merely 73 in 2024<\/a>, according to Consumer Watchdog. In July, California reached the\u00a0milestone\u00a0of renewable energy providing two-thirds of the state\u2019s electricity. <\/p>\n Reversing this kind of remarkable progress is not inevitable \u2014 it\u2019s a choice that Newsom and others are now making.<\/p>\n California\u2019s geology produces some of the most climate-damaging oil in the world \u2014 most in oil fields\u00a0are already depleted. But companies like Chevron push rampant disinformation to convince us otherwise. And pushback against industry pollution, such as the campaign to end backyard oil drilling<\/a>, is more popular than ever.<\/p>\nSofia Carrasco<\/p>\n