In a move that’s left many Californians fuming, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) pushed through a rule change that will likely drive up gas prices by as much as 65 cents a gallon—the latest blow to residents already paying the highest fuel prices in the nation.
With California’s average gas price hovering around $4.14 a gallon and reaching as high as $4.60 in places like Contra Costa County, this decision feels like an added slap in the face.
The timing? Just days after Californians delivered a powerful statement at the ballot box, pushing back on progressive policies by voting out George Gascón-style, soft-on-crime district attorneys and supporting common-sense crime measure Prop 36. Yet, in what feels like classic retribution, CARB voted 12-2 on Friday night to make fuel standards even stricter, potentially adding 65 cents to the already sky-high price per gallon. If you’re feeling targeted, you’re not alone.
This new regulation mandates that fuels like gasoline and diesel must meet tougher greenhouse gas standards and also retools how credits are awarded for lower carbon fuels. In simpler terms, it’s another layer of bureaucratic red tape that’s going to hit Californians where it hurts most: their wallets.
🚨 INSANITY ALERT: Democrat geniuses who just lost an election because their extremist policies hammered the working class…
…announce new plan to hammer the working class: California gas tax to rise by another 65c/gallon.
Stop the green extremism!https://t.co/m6rAqNhxK8
— steve hilton (@SteveHiltonx) November 9, 2024
Republicans in California are rallying, but in this overwhelmingly one-party state, resistance feels like pushing against a tidal wave.
Ahead of the vote, Senate Republicans managed to gather nearly 13,000 signatures to delay the decision, with Sen. Brian Jones pointing out the obvious: “This unelected board made up by a group of millionaires…raising our gas prices right now while Californians are struggling under the cost of living…is unbelievable to me.” But, as is often the case in California, the will of the working people was ignored.
For everyday Californians, this decision feels like another example of the state’s elite forcing their utopian climate agenda on people who simply can’t afford it.
As Bay Area driver Tanner Ramsey put it, “To vote on it, to make it higher just doesn’t make sense, because we are already kind of getting by. A lot of people live paycheck to paycheck.” He’s right—many Californians are already struggling to afford basic living costs, and adding more fuel costs only compounds their difficulties.
Why does California’s Air Resource Board, who is comprised of millionaires hand appointed by Gavin Newsom, wait until Friday night to vote on a policy that would raise gas prices for Californians by $.65 per gallon?
Why did they wait until the election was over to do it?
They… pic.twitter.com/9zRSXmZ2nf
— Michael Oxford – AKA The Santa Cruz Mountain Goat (@SCMountainGoat) November 9, 2024
California’s progressive policies and relentless cost-of-living increases have already pushed countless residents to the edge. While the nation’s recent election results signal a pushback against these destructive policies, in California, the agenda presses forward under the leadership of Governor Gavin Newsom. Newsom’s national ambitions are no secret, and it’s clear he’ll continue to angle for higher office in 2028.
If California is any indication, Newsom’s future agenda could mean more of the same: climate extremism, rising costs, and disregard for the concerns of the working and middle class.
