Just a little over a year ago, Gov. Newsom was approving a dozen new permits for oil wells using hydraulic fracturing in Kern County.

The permits were awarded ahead of the July 4th holiday and brought to a total of 48 fracking permits since Newsom ended a fracking moratorium in April 2020.

Today, Newsom has put the oil and gas industry on the road to doom in California as if everyone will be driving electric vehicles this time next year.

The most recent blow came late last month when Newsom announced a proposed regulation that would curb new oil and gas development within 3,200 feet of schools, homes, hospitals, nursing homes and other “sensitive” locations. The proposal would also require retrofits to existing wells within the same 3,200-foot setback, according to the California Chamber of Commerce.

The result, as alluded to by administration officials, would be thousands of permits not approved, as well as existing wells likely decommissioned instead of retrofitted.

The CalChamber has responded by highlighting both the cost of the proposal and how it will only make the Golden State more dependent on foreign oil.

“Affordable energy and the tens of thousands of high-paying California jobs associated with domestic energy production are a critical part of California’s economy. The reality is that fossil fuels will continue to play a crucial role in our economy for the foreseeable future,” according to the CalChamber.

“Small businesses, hospitals, tens of thousands of trucks moving goods at our ports and millions of families all depend on reliable and affordable energy. This proposal will drive up energy costs for millions of Californians, threatening small business employers. The result will be job loss, not only in the oil industry, but in many other sectors of the economy.”

The CalChamber will continue to engage the state during this rule making process to ensure California continues to meet its energy needs in the near future.