GOP Lawmakers Demand Audit of Gov. Newsom’s 65 Cent Gas Tax Hike Coming July 1st

Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones (R-San Diego) and California GOP lawmakers  announced Tuesday that they are demanding an independent audit of the California Air Resources Board for its overhaul of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, which will raise gasoline prices by up to 65 cents per gallon when it takes effect on July 1st.

“Californians are demanding answers and action before yet another hidden tax hits the pump,” said Senator Jones. “After nearly a month of stonewalling from the Newsom Administration, this audit is the only way to expose what they’re hiding. Meanwhile, thousands of Californians have already signed my petition to repeal the regulation entirely.”

In the request, Jones recommended that the auditor focus on four main questions:

1. Are CARB’s processes for assessing and analyzing the economic impacts of rules and regulations they craft adequate to inform staff, board members, legislators, and the executive branch, and guide decision-making among those parties?

2. Is CARB fulfilling its duties under all applicable laws in regard to transparency and accountability to the government, press, and public concerning the cost and economic impact analysis it conducts as a part of the rulemaking and enforcement process?

3. Is CARB appropriately weighing economic impacts alongside equity and environmental impacts of its regulations?

4. Has CARB taken any deliberate actions to obscure, withhold, or downplay projected cost impacts of its regulations from the public or decision-makers, and what internal processes exist—if any—to ensure transparency in communicating these economic impacts?

The request letter itself was directed to the Joint Committee on Legislative Audit and it’s Chairman, Assemblyman John Harabedian (D-Sierra Madre). It it, Jones said that he hoped that Harabedian would authorize an audit of the California Air Resources Board specifically focused on the previous four questions, and that the Auditor provide recommendations as he sees fit.

The upcoming tax increase

The fight over the LCFS Low-Carbon Fuel regulations and subsequent 65 cents per gallon increase date back to November of 2024. The LCFS standards, which are amendments that would create a new blend of gasoline that is designed to help meet California’s emission goals in the coming decades, were formally adopted. However, consumer price immediately became a concern. While CARB projected a 47 cents per gallon increase, independent researchers, including one study by the University of Pennsylvania, found that the increase would likely be up to 65 cents a gallon.

With the huge gas tax increase on the line, many lawmakers, led by the GOP, attempted to stop it. In February, the increase was briefly halted by the Office of Administrative Law, who rejected some of the changes. An admission by CARB Chair Liane Randolph in May that the Board does not consider how its regulations affect prices at the pump did nothing to halt it either. Finally, a Senate bill, SB 2, that would have stopped LCFS regulations from going into place, was killed in a Senate floor vote. The author of that bill, Senator Jones, continued pushing against the increase, leading to his audit request on Tuesday.

In a statement on Tuesday, Jones revealed that the audit request follows his previous Public Records Act (PRA) request filed on May 21st seeking all communications, economic projections, and briefing materials from CARB and Governor Gavin Newsom’s office regarding the LCFS. However, no documents or record was produced, with the audit being the next step. Throughout all of this, Senator Jones has stressed that CARB was very secretive in the changes it made to the LCFS, and that taxpayers deserve to know transparently about what went on.

“The public deserves to know whether CARB followed legal transparency requirements, whether they hid anything from the public, and whether they properly weighed economic and environmental impacts before pushing through this costly regulation,” added Senator Jones. “This audit will help uncover the truth and restore trust in the regulatory process.”

As the Globe previously pointed out, the LCFS 65 cent per gallon increase, plus an increase in the state’s gas excise tax to 61.2 cents per gallon and a lower gas supply thanks to recent refinery closures, could lead to gas being as high as over $8 a gallon by the end of 2026. In addition, LCFS changes will bring an estimated consumer impact of 47 cents to 65 cents more per gallon in 2025, escalating incrementally to an additional $1.83 per gallon by 2042.