Newsom's Latest Gasoline Relief Proposal Doesn't Square For All

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — Gov. Gavin Newsom has made combating climate change a centerpiece of his administration, yet on Wednesday he unveiled a proposal that would dole out billions of dollars to all Riverside County motorists — and those across California — to alleviate pain at the gas pump.

Under the proposal, California vehicle owners would receive debit cards from the state to compensate for skyrocketing gasoline prices. Motorists would receive a one-time $400 debit card for each registered vehicle they own, with a limit of two.

The program would cost taxpayers $9 billion, which is the lion's share of the $11 billion proposal.

The governor’s plan does not have an income cap, which means all registered vehicle owners would be eligible, and there's no mileage requirement.

For those who can't afford a vehicle or don't own one by choice, there's little compensation coming to them unless they use public transit. According to the state proposal, another $750 million in incentive grants — less than 7 percent of the $11 billion — would be provided to transit and rail agencies to allow free public transportation for three months. It's not clear how that would be monitored, but the governor announced that "roughly 3 million Californians per day who take the bus, subway, or light rail won’t have to pay a fare every time they ride."

Riverside County has no subway system and most local communities have no nearby light rail station. The Riverside Transit Agency announced earlier this month that it was rolling back its general bus fares to 25 cents through April 30.

For those who bike or walk for transit, the state proposal does offer $500 million to support "active transportation programs," like walking and biking projects, but the funding represents less than 5 percent of the $11 billion relief package. It's unclear how much of that $500 million pie would come to Riverside County and for what projects it would be used.

As for the carless homebound elderly — many of whom are on fixed incomes — there's nothing in the proposal for them.

In effect, the environmental steward who chooses to ride her bike to work, and the cook who cannot afford a vehicle and takes the bus to his place of employment, would help foot the bill for those $400 gas cards provided to Maserati and Mitsubishi owners alike.

The state proposal also calls for up $600 million to pause a part of the sales tax rate on diesel for one year, and $523 million to pause the inflationary adjustment to gas and diesel excise tax rates.

The proposal also fast-tracks a $1.75 billion portion of the governor’s $10 billion ZEV package that aims to reduce the state’s dependence on oil by investing in ZEV passenger vehicles and building more charging infrastructure throughout the state.

"We're taking immediate action to get money directly into the pockets of Californians who are facing higher gas prices as a direct result of Putin's invasion of Ukraine," Newsom said in a statement. "But this package is also focused on protecting people from volatile gas prices, and advancing clean transportation ... ."

Newsom's proposal came on a day that the average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Riverside County reached $5.902.

The proposal needs to be approved by the state Legislature. Newsom's office estimated the debit cards could be issued beginning in July.

Newsom has allocated billions of dollars in direct relief to Californians over the past two years, including $12 billion in direct checks through the Golden State Stimulus, $5.2 billion in rent relief, and $2 billion in utility relief.