CA Senate Enviro Committee Democrats Kill Gas Tax Relief Bill
‘Democrats in Sacramento refused to help struggling Californians’
By Katy Grimes, March 18, 2026 3:31 pm
Wednesday in the California Senate Environmental Quality Committee, Democrats killed Senate Bill 1035 by Senator Tony Strickland (R-Huntington Beach), which would have provided immediate relief for California drivers at the gas pump by lowering the price of a gallon of gas by $1.08. SB 1035, the Gas Tax Relief Act, would have offered a lifeline for drivers.
Gas prices today in California average $5.56 per gallon. Yesterday the average price was $5.54 per gallon. Lowering the price by $1.08 per gallon would take California’s average gas price down to $4.48 per gallon, and could save $21.60 per tank of gas.
USC Professor Michael Mische, a public policy expert on oil attended to testify in support of the bill. Professor Mische has long warned that gas in California would escalate to over $8.00 per gallon with the refinery closures and retributive state regulations on the oil and gas industry.
“To say I’m disappointed is an understatement. I’m frustrated because we have an opportunity to help working families at a time when we have an affordability crisis. Democrats in Sacramento refused to help struggling Californians,” said Senator Strickland.
Senate Bill 1035 would have provided immediate cost relief to Californians by temporarily suspending The State gas tax, The Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), and The LCFS cap-and-invest compliance mechanism, totaling approximately $1.08 per gallon, and saving a typical household with two drivers between $900 and $1,100 per year, according to Sen. Strickland.
The 2023 CARB Low Carbon Fuel Standard amendments document unabashedly outlines in black-and-white, the new gas tax increases through 2042 (page 57):
“California anticipated tightening fuel supply with planned refinery closures by Valero and Phillips 66. While these closures are expected to reduce in-state refining capacity over time, they are not immediate. With gas prices continuing to increase, my bill is the only immediate, short-term solution. The intent is to give California drivers breathing room. Meanwhile, the Legislature must work on mid- and long-term solutions, which is why I’ve called on the governor to convene an emergency session,” added Senator Strickland.
Today, California drivers are paying about $5.56 for gas, while the national average is $3.84. In January, California drivers paid roughly $4 per gallon for unleaded gas. By mid-February, prices increased by approximately 35 to 40 cents, largely due to short-term refinery disruptions and tight supply conditions.
“Today’s vote against lowering gasoline prices for Californians was predictable and unfortunate. Irrespective of the Iranian situation, California gasoline will continue to increase simply due to the taxes and environmental programs that support initiatives such as the high-speed rail project. Regrettably, because of today’s actions, Californians will still be paying the highest gasoline prices in the nation,” said Professor Mische.
In addition, SB 1035 includes transparency requirements requiring receipts to show the amount of tax that would have been charged, allowing Californians to clearly see the savings. The bill also includes a protection clause to ensure transportation projects remain funded by temporarily providing General Fund dollars to offset infrastructure funding losses.
Click HERE to listen to Senator Strickland’s post-reaction and USC Professor Mische’s economic analysis of oil prices, and HERE to watch the hearing.
Members of the California Air Resources Board are appointed as follows:
| Board Position | Current Member | Appointed By | Term Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chair, Law & Air Pollution Control | Lauren Sanchez | Governor | December31, 2026 |
| Agricultural Member | John Eisenhut | Governor | December 31, 2029 |
| Automotive Member | Susan Shaheen, Ph.D. | Governor | December 31, 2029 |
| Physician Member | John R. Balmes, MD | Governor | December 31, 2027 |
| Public Member | Diane Takvorian | Governor | December 31, 2029 |
| Public Member | Cliff Rechtschaffen | Governor | December 31, 2029 |
| Senate Environmental Justice Member | Dean Florez | Senate President Pro Tempore | December 31, 2024 |
| Assembly Environmental Justice Member | Miguel Santiago | Assembly Speaker | January 1, 2031 |
| Bay Area AQMD Member | Lynda Hopkins | Governor | December 31, 2026 |
| San Luis Obispo County APCD Member | David Silva | Governor | December 31, 2028 |
| Sacramento Region Air Districts Member | Eric Guerra | Governor | December 31, 2029 |
| San Diego APCD Member | Paula Stigler Granados, Ph.D | Governor | December 31, 2030 |
| San Joaquin Valley APCD Member | Tania Pacheco-Werner, Ph.D. | Governor | December 31, 2026 |
| South Coast AQMD Member | Patricia Lock Dawson | Governor | December 31, 2026 |
| Senate Ex Officio Member | Senator Henry Stern | Senate Speaker | – |
| Assembly Ex Officio Member | Assemblymember Corey A. Jackson | Assembly Speaker | – |
A California native and Navy mom, Katy lives in Sacramento, CA.
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Remember, folks – DEMOCRATS ARE NOT your friends….
The Tom “The Liar” Steyer is ANOTHER one who will pursue the “green agenda” and is ANTI-GASOLINE/DIESEL engines and made his money and fame by pursuing Al Gore’s “green” (greenWASHING) agenda and the very policies that are adding tax after tax on top of the cost of fuel and utilities…
Steyer’s TV commercials are BALD-FACED LIES and GASLIGHTING – DO NOT believe a word of his BS message….
The California populace is superfluous not integral to the elected operatives agenda.
Keeping us broke, hungry and confined their objective.
Elected operatives? You mean Gov. Hair-gel Hitler Newsom the WEF globalist stooge and his criminal Democrat thug mafia cronies who were all probably installed with Democrat voter fraud and rigged voting machines?
Yep, they’re the ones….
Kudos to Republican Senator Tony Strickland for trying to lower California’s gas taxes which are the highest in the nation. Senate Democrats killing his proposal was predictable as he pointed out. Maybe the majority Californians will finally awaken from their slumber and rise up against tyrannical Democrats who control the state once gas prices soar above $8 a gallon because of Democrats and their punitive policies?
Thanks to Katy Grimes for listing the unelected Democrat stooges who were appointed to the California Air Resources Board and who are responsible for Californians paying the highest gas prices in the country. Maybe their mug shots should have been included? With soaring fuel prices and looming shortages, it probably will not end well for them?
SERIOUSLY?
These people are crazy
GAH
Can we get a list of the democratic senators on the committee who voted this down? They need to be “celebrated”……
Did someone actually think Democrat politicians care about Californians? Hahaha!
The only way we change things in this state is by informing the voters of the horrible policies fostered by the democrats. We do not have the media on our side, so we need to use the advertising space on TV. We need to stop funding single races and fund a large campaign to expose the democrats and educate the voters, that voting for republicans will improve their lives. Tom Steyers spending 50 million dollars to get elected governor by attracting things he has no control over. He attacks the big bad wolf and it is very effective. We need to do the same to get more republicans elected not just a few, who are ineffective because of their lack of numbers.
The current democrats like making the people suffer, they are arrogant, condescending and they do not like nor respect us . They are trying to pass a mileage tax, too. They like stealing our money. Vote democrats out of office. What do we have to lose?
Without all those gas taxes, how would they be able to dump billions into the “Butterfly Bridge” and probably extend its completion another year or two or to dump into the No Speed Rail system that was to be fully completed six years ago but now needs at least twenty or more years of construction and still hasn’t put down a single iron rail?
The nerve of it all to even propose saving California Taxpayers their hard-earned money!
As career parasites, the democrat party will NEVER relent on their confiscated financial spoils. “Other people’s money” is their target, and they never let up in their efforts to steal it. They have ruined CA.