Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that he’s committed to passing a bill this year that would establish a West-wide energy market, calling the proposal “our best shot at lowering energy costs.”
What happened: Newsom threw his support behind regionalization efforts that would establish a California-led regional energy market to trade electricity more efficiently across state lines. He said in a statement that abandoning the bill would be turning our backs “on this proven model” and opting “for higher costs and power outages.”
“California must further enable continued cooperation with Western partners to secure our clean, reliable and affordable energy future,” Newsom said. “This is our best shot at lowering energy costs, now the legislature must take action this year and deliver for the people of California.”
Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D) on Wednesday also pledged to reach a deal this session, saying in a statement that lawmakers need to “get this done now.”
