California backslides on climate progress. It’s (mostly) Gavin Newsom’s fault

The California Supreme Court just gave state officials a golden opportunity to revitalize the rooftop solar industry, helping millions of homes and businesses lower their electric bills and fight the climate crisis.

- SAMMY ROTH COLUMNIST

MYUNG J. CHUN Los Angeles Times THE ROOFTOP solar industry should be one of the governor's priorities, our columnist writes.

Unfortunately, there’s little chance Gov. Gavin Newsom will do it.

When the California Public Utilities Commission voted in 2022 to slash rooftop solar incentives, environmentalists sued the agency. They won a big victory this month, with the state’s top court ruling that a lower court was wrong when it said environmentalists couldn't challenge the agency’s logic in cutting payments to solar customers. Now the lower court will need to take another look.

This would be a perfect time for Newsom to make the lawsuit irrelevant and demand that lawmakers pass a bold plan to advance rooftop solar. He could deliver a huge win for climate progress amid President Trump's attacks on clean energy. And he could highlight his own climate credentials ahead of a possible presidential run.

Alas, Newsom has made clear that rooftop solar is not a priority. It was his appointees who slashed incentives.

If rooftop solar were Newsom's only climate failure, that would be one thing.

But critics feel he is increasingly shying away from the climate ambitions that have long defined California. As a result, they fear, the state is starting to backslide as a global leader — at the worst possible time.

“It’s super disheartening to see [Newsom] pivot to the middle,” said Alex Nagy, program director at public affairs firm Sunstone Strategies, which works with environmentalists. “It’s all with the oil industry whispering in his ear.”

Case in point: Right now, in the last weeks of the legislative session, Newsom is pushing lawmakers to streamline oil drilling in Kern County and elsewhere, with less environmental review — a sharp reversal for the governor.