Kings County Times

This week, Congressman David G. Valadao (CA-22) led members of the California Republican delegation in a letter to Governor Newsom requesting answers on the state’s efforts to end all oil and gas (O&G) production in California. The letter was first reported by Fox News.

The members stressed the detrimental impact ending O&G production would have on military readiness, noting that California is home to more than 25 active military installations.

“California’s crude oil refining capacity is lower than ever, with only nine remaining refineries for the transportation fuels California military bases need to function properly. If more refineries shut down in California, there could be significant disruptions to the effectiveness of our military bases in the state of California,” they stated.

The lawmakers also highlighted the irony of preventing domestic production while relying on the Middle East to fuel defense assets.

“The policies you are implementing make our state and our country more dependent on foreign oil, creating the threat of greater price volatility, and directly threatening military readiness,” they wrote.

The members requested answers regarding the state’s proposed transition away from O&G, including how the administration plans to transition nearly 55,000 oil and gas industry jobs in California.

Rep. Valadao was joined in the letter by Reps. Ken Calvert (CA-41), John Duarte (CA-13), Vince Fong (CA-20), Jay Obernolte (CA-23), and Young Kim (CA-40).

The full text of the letter can be accessed online.

Background:

The O&G industry in Kern County was responsible for 25,000 direct, indirect, and induced energy-related jobs in 2020. In addition to providing high-paying jobs for the local economy, O&G is the number one industry in Kern County in terms of gross domestic product and tax contribution. The industry contributed over $80 million to Kern County in annual property taxes for fiscal year 2018-2019; over $103 million for local school districts; and over $12 million for local special districts, totaling almost $200 million per year.