Green Party calls for passage of the Polluters Pay Climate Cost Recovery Act and ending fossil-fuel subsidies, so those responsible for climate catastrophe that created conditions for LA Fires are held accountable

For immediate release:
Monday, January 13, 2025
Contact: gplac-info@cagreens.org

The Green Party of Los Angeles County (GPLAC) calls for passage of the Polluters Pay Climate Cost Recovery Act at upcoming special State Legislative Session, and ending fossil-fuel subsidies, so those responsible for the climate catastrophe that created the conditions for the LA Fires are held accountable

In light of the tragic and historically unprecedented wildfires across Los Angeles County — and the widespread climate change related-damage and trauma they are causing — the Green Party of Los Angeles County calls for the California State Legislature to immediately pass the Polluters Pay Climate Cost Recovery Act in the upcoming Special Legislative Session called by the Governor, so that those truly responsible are held accountable.

“These wildfires in LA are not an accident,” said Michael Feinstein, GPLAC Secretary who as Santa Monica Mayor in 2001 saw the City become the first in the nation to power all of its municipal facilities with renewable energy. “Oil & gas companies have known for decades that their ‘products’ would cause this destruction. Yet taxpayers are left footing the bill for millions in damages, all while these polluters and climate destroyers make record profits, and corrupt our politics with their big money influence.”

The Polluters Pay Climate Cost Recovery Act (SB 1247), sponsored in 2024 by State Senator Caroline Menjivar (D-San Fernando Valley) would establish a Polluters Pay Climate Cost Recovery Program administered by the California Environmental Protection Agency, that would require fossil fuel polluters to pay their fair share of the damage caused by the sale of their products, in order to relieve a portion of the burden from climate harms borne by California taxpayers.

While the GPLAC supports the State of California’s lawsuit against major oil companies seeking compensation for damages caused by climate change, it may not even go to trial for three years.

“That’s why the State Legislature needs to take action now to support LA County’s rebuilding,” says Gardena Green Cynthia Santiago, a regional immigrants rights attorney who ran for State Assembly in 2010. “Not only have we lost thousands homes and small businesses, but also the jobs that go with them, including for the restaurant workers, gardeners, housekeepers, nannies and others in LA’s service industry who are losing their sources of employment and relationships with local businesses and families.

Because it would involve a tax increase, under state law, passing ‘polluters pay’ legislation would require a 2/3 vote.

According Feinstein, who also ran for California Secretary of State in 2018, “with Democrats holding super-majorities in both houses (60-19 with one vacancy in the State Assembly, 30-9 with one vacancy in the State Senate), it’s time for Governor Newsom to be consistent and publicly support ‘polluters pay’ legislation in 2025, just like he has for the State’s earlier lawsuit hoping to accomplish the same. And he should add it to the State Legislative Special Session he is calling, since he said “jump-starting” recovery from wildfires and helping with emergency response needs to be part of the emergency response.

Adds Feinstein, “For those ‘fiscal conservatives’ who normally oppose tax increases, recovery funds for climate-related disasters should not be taken out of other public services, when the fault lies with private entities who have wreaked havoc upon our environment. A ‘polluters pay’ legislation would be a targeted tax on those who are at fault.”

“And we can’t stop there,” adds GPLAC Co-chair Timeka Drew of Torrance. “California also must end the counterproductive tax subsidies that benefit the very fossil fuel industry that is destabilizing our climate. That includes closing the ‘waters edge’ loophole that allows big oil and gas companies that operate in California to run their profits through tax haven countries, instead of paying their fair share here at home. Ongoing savings from ending these harmful subsidies should go towards funding programs that protect California’s air, water, climate, and public health, strengthen California’s climate resilience, and helping places like Los Angeles rebuild from climate-related catastrophes like the unprecedented wildfires it is suffering from now."

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