SACRAMENTO, California — The state’s oil industry scored a win Thursday when lawmakers killed a bill that would have paved the way for the sale of more out-of-state gas blends in California. Several other refinery and oil measures that the industry opposed survived the Legislature’s fiscal gauntlet, though.
What happened: The state Assembly Appropriations Committee held state Sen. Henry Stern’s (D) SB 1245, which would have required the California Energy Commission, working with air regulators, to implement a strategy for allowing gasoline that does not meet California’s special fuel blend rules to be sold in the state. The sale of the potentially dirtier blend would have been allowed if officials determined that it would improve the reliability and affordability of the state’s overall fuel supply. It could have come with fees or other conditions to offset increased emissions.
Why it matters: California is trying to manage a shrinking gasoline market without triggering higher prices or supply shortages. Thursday’s results show lawmakers are still divided over how much flexibility to give the industry, while imposing new safety rules on the refineries that remain.
More context: California requires gasoline producers to make the state’s unique cleaner-burning blend, known as CARBOB, that relatively few refineries outside the state produce. This limits supply, leaving the state vulnerable to price spikes when refineries go offline or close. Stern’s bill builds on direction lawmakers gave regulators last year to study options to allow non-CARBOB fuels in the state.
