Free Republic

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday signed the nation's first statewide cap on greenhouse gas emissions. It was one of several bills related to global warming that was approved by the Democrat-controlled Legislature this year. A universal cap will have the greatest effect on industries such as power plants, refineries and cement makers. Here's what the law, authored by Assemblywoman Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills, would do: - Mandate that California cut its greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, about a 25 percent reduction. - Require the California Air Resources Board to devise a plan by 2009 outlining the...

Automakers can continue their lawsuit seeking to block strict vehicle emission standards adopted two years ago by California regulators, a federal judge said in a ruling filed Monday. U.S. District Judge Anthony Ishii sided preliminarily with a coalition of automakers on their three major arguments against the state law, which was passed in 2002 and adopted two years later by the state air board. He threw out two lesser arguments, but ruled the suit should go to trial Jan. 30. The tailpipe standards adopted by the California Air Resources Board were designed to cut greenhouse gas emissions from cars and...

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California sued six of the world's largest automakers over global warming on Wednesday, charging that greenhouse gases from their vehicles have caused billions of dollars in damages. The lawsuit is the first of its kind to seek to hold manufacturers liable for the damages caused by their vehicles' emissions, state Attorney General Bill Lockyer said. It also comes less than a month after California lawmakers adopted the nation's first global warming law mandating a cut in greenhouse gas emissions. An automaker trade group called the global warming move a "nuisance suit." Car manufacturers have also held...

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California filed suit against Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F - News), General Motors Corp. (NYSE:GM - News), Toyota Motor Corp. (Tokyo:7203.T - News) and three other carmakers on Wednesday, charging that greenhouse gases from their vehicles have cost the state millions of dollars.

<p>SACRAMENTO – Gov. Gray Davis will sign into law on July 22 the nation's first program aimed at fighting global warming by reducing emissions from cars and trucks, his staff said Friday.</p> <p>The bill, AB1493 by Assemblywoman Fran Pavley, D-Los Angeles, was fiercely opposed in a $5 million media blitz financed largely by auto manufacturers and dealers, who said the legislation gives state regulators the power to levy Draconian penalties, such as a $3,500 surcharge on gas-guzzling SUVs, and an added 50 cents per gallon on gasoline.</p>

Intense lobbying helped pass the bill COPLEY NEWS SERVICE SACRAMENTO – In the end, automobile mogul Cal Worthington was no match for former President Clinton, Hollywood celebrities, big donors, powerful members of Congress and even Jesuit priests. Gov. Gray Davis announced yesterday that he will sign landmark legislation to make California the first state in the nation to regulate tailpipe emissions believed to contribute to global warming. "It's the right step to take at the right time," Davis said. The decision caps weeks of intense lobbying and represents a devastating blow to automakers who fear any new California regulations will...

SUV/Driving Tax Bill Protest directed at Gray Davis. Drivers who like big, safe vehicles and who like to fit their entire family in one car will be descending on Sacramento Friday, July 12. Sponsors, John Kobelt and Ken Champeau of KFI-am Los Angeles, will rally southern California participants from 3pm-7pm in Orange County on Thursday for a caravan to Sacramento. They will foot the bill for rooms overnight and lead the protest on Friday. All interested are welcome to attend. Just look for the traffic jam! For info http://www.kfi640.com/johnken.htmlcall (213)427-7222email ray@kfi640.com

<p>The Legislature's Democratic leaders twisted arms, paid some political gate fees and resorted to some slick parliamentary maneuvering last week to gain approval of the year's most heavily lobbied bill, one that empowers the Air Resources Board to reduce so-called "greenhouse gas" emissions from cars.</p>

<p>Democrats accused of stalling on sending the bill to Davis to thwart a referendum.</p> <p>SACRAMENTO – The nation's first greenhouse-emissions rule for cars is only a 30-second walk from Gov. Gray Davis' desk and being signed into law.</p> <p>But nine days after legislators passed it, the landmark bill remains unceremoniously deposited in an off-white government-issue steel file cabinet in the office of the Assembly's chief clerk, E. Dotson Wilson. Davis has not even seen the eight-page document.</p>

The California Legislature has used a dirty trick to sneak through legislation Californians overwhelmingly oppose, AB 1058. They did it by changing the number of the bill in the dead of the night during a holiday weekend. The Bill, now called AB 1493, has been sent to the Governor. (To check out how your legislator voted, see below). This is the last chance to stop this bill in the legislative arena. Please call 1-800 988-2588 and ask the Governor to veto this legislation. These are some of the reasons to oppose this bill: • AB 1493 limits consumer choices in...

<p>A multimillion-dollar battle over legislation to regulate greenhouse gas emissions in California vehicles may be far from over, even though Gov. Gray Davis has said he is "strongly inclined" to sign the first-of-its-kind measure.</p> <p>After waging an extensive but unsuccessful advertising and lobbying campaign to kill the bill, AB 1493, opponents said they are weighing possibilities ranging from referendum to litigation should Davis sign the proposal.</p>

The California Legislature, controlled by Democrats, just pulled a stunt that makes the corporate bigwigs of Enron, WorldCom and Global Crossing look like pikers. Last Friday, Democrats in the legislature hijacked an innocuous piece of legislation entitled Assembly Bill 1493. They employed an assemblyman's trick -- called a "gut and amend" -- and removed some of the existing language of AB 1493 and replaced it with the language of another bill: AB 1058. Now, AB 1058 was the measure designed to limit CO2 emissions from cars and trucks. The bill's supporters believe that CO2 emissions lead to global warming,...