Newsletter - Feb 2026

Are you one of those Americans who says, " I don't always vote. It's too much trouble and my vote doesn't really matter." Earth to voter: If enough voters think that way the outcome for the country can be disastrous. 

Let's take a look at the governor's race in California. The primary will be in June. California law allows for only the top two candidates of either party to be on the November ballot. 

How about a review of laws that get passed when the governor is behind them.

Governor Newsom is responsible for the following legislation that he endorsed and the Democrat Legislature passed. The list was compiled by Assemblyman DeMaio.

AB 495 –  Allows strangers to assume custody of children without parental consent.

SB 155 –  Makes it a crime for officers to wear masks to protect their identity which effectively encourages doxing and intimidation.

SB 518 –  Sets up a massive new state agency to hand out taxpayer funds based on skin color.

AB 1207 – Extends California's costly Cap-and-Trade program to 2046 which adds up to 43 cents per gallon at the pump.

AB 1127 - Bans most handguns that could be converted to automatic fire even if they are currently legal.

AB 361 -  Forces public projects to use only "Project Labor Agreements" locking out non-union workers and driving up costs.

SB 42   -  Allows politicians to dip into taxpayer money to fund their own campaign operations.

SB 79   -  Allows developers to bulldoze single-family neighborhoods in order to build six-story apartment towers and strips local control.                                             

Even if you are a citizen who does not pay much attention to politics, it is probably safe to say that you do pay attention to the price of items and products you use all the time. How about gasoline?

Remember: California mandates a unique boutique fuel blend that is not used anywhere else in the United States. This results in the state being vulnerable to supply disruptions. If a refinery goes offline which several have done recently, California cannot easily import replacement fuel from neighboring states since that fuel does not meet the arbitrary regulatory specifications of California.

For years, Democrats in California have tried to drive energy producers out of the state. High state fuel taxes, cap-and-trade compliance costs, low-carbon fuel standards and a regulatory environment that has discouraged refinery investment for many years as an unwelcome industry have been a part of the Democrat Party playbook. They have now succeeded. Refineries are shutting down. Entire energy companies are leaving. Because of all of this great management, California has been forced to get gasoline from the Bahamas. Correct! California is now buying gasoline that will be shipped through a Caribbean country, sent by tanker through the Panama Canal and then to California. 

The safest way to transport energy is through pipelines. There are hundreds of thousands of miles of pipelines safely delivering energy throughout the United States. Unfortunately, environmental opposition, regulatory delays and political hostility have resulted in making pipeline expansion impossible in California. Let's look at major pipelines in California.

·Las Flores Pipelines in Santa Barbara County: Shut down since a major oil spill in 2015. In 2026, California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued the federal government to block a Trump administration decision allowing Sable Offshore to restart the lines, arguing that the move ignored environmental laws.

·Kern County Pipeline: Ceased operations in Kern County in December 2025. This resulted in increased trucking of oil across state roads.

·San Pablo Bay Pipeline: Oil is transported from the Bakersfield area to Northern California refineries via this pipeline. The pipeline has faced financial distress and potential closure due to declining volumes. An emergency rate increase was proposed in January 2026 to keep the pipeline operating. 

The closure of pipelines is exacerbated by the closure of oil refineries such as Phillips 66 in Los Angeles and a Valero refinery in Northern California. Closure of refineries means that California must rely more and more on imported gasoline. That costs more per gallon.

Reasons for higher gasoline prices in California.

·California isolates itself with unique fuel standards.

·California imposes regulatory and tax burdens.

·California discourages refinery investment and expansion.

·California blocks pipeline development.

·California treats conventional energy as a transitional nuisance rather than a necessary input to modern life.

Being a citizen means that you are involved in the civic life of your community. If citizens do not pay attention and get involved there will always be the power hungry individuals who will get involved and make sure that regulations and laws they want are buried deep in the system. The deeper these laws and regulations are buried and the longer they have been in existence, the harder they are to get rid of. 

If you want California to be a Golden State again, it is time to get involved. That doesn't mean only running for office. It means knowing who your representatives are, what they are doing, attending city council meetings, school board meetings and letting all of these elected officials know your opinions. 

Persons who want to run government based only on their goals and desires exist everywhere and have always existed throughout history. It is a very old saying but true: Freedom is not free. Living as a free citizen takes time, study and commitment to that freedom. If you want California to be golden again, it will take all citizens to be involved and pay attention to what is going on. Leaving the state should not be the first option.