Latest Energy Releases

At a California Energy Commission meeting advocates expressed outrage at the oil industry’s stonewalling of reform

Los Angeles, CA--Consumer Watchdog and FracTracker Alliance said today that the latest oil and gas data confirms a long-term, irreversible trend. California's oil production is in terminal decline, and no amount of new permitting will change this regardless of the damage new drilling inflicts on transparency, climate, and public...

Sacramento, CA – The state’s petroleum watchdog has issued its annual report validating claims that Californians have overpaid tens of billions of dollars at the pump over the last decade due to the consolidated gasoline refining industry, an estimated $59 billion in overcharges from 2015 thru 2024. The Division of Petroleum Market Oversight,...

Los Angeles, CA — The Chevron El Segundo refinery explosion and fire last week was a wakeup call that the California Energy Commission (CEC) needs to mandate minimum refinery inventory and resupply rules ASAP, Consumer Watchdog wrote in comments to the CEC. While so far consumers have dodged a big...

Los Angeles, CA – The gasoline price spike likely to be sparked by last night’s fire at the Chevron refinery in El Segundo will be exacerbated by the failure of Governor Newsom’s California Energy Commission (CEC) to enact re-supply and minimum inventory regulations in a timely way, Consumer Watchdog said.  In...

Sacramento, CA - A bipartisan group of governors are threatening to leave the East Coast grid operator PJM unless they get the right to appoint board members and the right to file tariffs with FERC.  The bill that Governor Newsom signed last week to have California participate in a Western grid,...

Los Angeles, CA—Consumer Watchdog is urging Governor Newsom to veto SB 614 (Stern), a bill that lifts a moratorium on the construction of pipelines to carry compressed carbon dioxide away from Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) projects proposed by a host of companies including big oil producers.  “Consumer Watchdog writes...

The bills Newsom is signing that his office called “big beautiful legislation that promises to lower electricity costs, stabilize the petroleum market and slash pollution”... is a sham.

California regulators have not held the largest onshore oil producer in the state, California Resources Corp., adequately financially responsible for the wells of acquired companies such as Aera Energy. Now that the company known as CRC is buying yet another rival, Bakersfield-based Berry Corp., it’s time for California to demand enough bonding to...

Sacramento, CA  -- Eleventh-hour California legislation creating a regional grid eliminates all the guardrails added by the Senate and opens California consumers to price gouging, having to pay for coal power and federal preemption of California’s public health, environmental and cost containment laws. AB 825 (Petrie-Norris, Rivas, Becker) was only put in print at 5:43 AM this morning, so it cannot be heard by the legislature until Saturday...

Los Angeles, CA—Two oil and gas lobbyists are refusing to have included into two carbon pipeline bills legislative language creating a safe buffer zone between communities and these pipelines, Consumer Watchdog has learned. No language on an adequate buffer zone has been added to the bills, according to environmental...

Sacramento, CA --  Consumer Watchdog warned California legislative leaders that ignoring legislative rules and racing through a utility-backed regional electricity deregulation plan in the last ten days of legislative session that benefits donors to Prop 50 could imperil passage of the redistricting initiative. “What will it say about the abuse of power...

Sacramento, CA – The Newsom Administration’s California Energy Commission voted to freeze for five years deliberations on a gasoline price gouging penalty promised by Governor Newsom when he signed a special session reform in 2023.    Newsom was clear in 2023 on his position: “We are talking about a penalty for gouging people....

Sacramento, CA -- Consumer and environmental groups have written California legislative leaders taking issue with Governor Newsom’s latest claim that a Western grid is “our best shot a lowering energy costs.” The groups warn about a deal between the Governor and the utilities to prioritize the utility-backed grid proposal and a...

Sacramento, CA – Consumer Watchdog wrote Governor Newsom and the Vice Chair of the California Energy Commission (CEC) Siva Gunda today to remind them of their previous statements about the need for a public process to determine a gasoline price gouging penalty.  The CEC is voting on Friday to table the...