Ballot Initiative to Suspend CA's Global Warming Law Added

A measure that would suspend AB 32, California’s landmark 2006 climate law, has qualified for the November ballot. The “California Jobs Initiative” secured more than 800,000 signatures, nearly twice as many needed to bring the measure before voters. If passed, it would halt enforcement of AB 32 until unemployment in the state, now over 12%, drops to 5.5% for at least a year. Under AB 32, California is setting limits on greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles, oil refineries and other industries, and will probably require that a third of the state’s electricity come from renewable sources by 2020. Supporters say it has spurred a large market for solar, wind and other clean energy sources. But backers of the ballot measure, whose six-month, $3 million campaign was largely funded by Texas oil giants Valero Energy Inc. and Tesoro Corp., who both operate refineries in California, describe the climate law as an “energy tax” that slows job growth and burdens consumers.