California Democrats fear new carbon standards could spur Trump reprisal

California legislators signaled concerns with state regulators' newly passed carbon standards, with one of the two appointees who voted against the standards warning the measure’s new costs — which the state said could add 47 cents to the cost of a gallon of gasoline next year — could empower president-elect Donald Trump to take federal action against the state's climate measures.

“The amendments were passed in a single 12-hour hearing, with little time for meaningful public input or thorough analysis. The expedited timeline, seemingly driven by fears of potential federal climate rollbacks under a Trump administration, unfortunately left many questions unanswered,” wrote Dean Florez, a member of the California Air Resources Board that just passed tighter requirements for the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard.

“Regrettably, the decision may end up fueling opposition and empowering climate policy critics like incoming President Donald Trump, who has already argued that California’s approach to climate action disproportionately burdens working families,” continued Florez.