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Solar Vote Victory
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The new solar initiative will drive down the cost of solar power and make it accessible to all Californians. |
On Jan. 12, the California Public Utilities Commission approved the California Solar Initiative, a $3.2 billion dollar fund for investments in solar energy over the next 11 years.
CALPIRG supported the initiative, which will provide affordable, reliable clean energy for generations of Californians. The week before the vote, more than 1,000 CALPIRG members sent letters to the commissioners in support of the California Solar Initiative.
As the prices of oil and gas keep rising, solar power will play an important role in diversifying our energy supplies and keeping a check on costs. CALPIRG is now advocating complementary measures to make it easier for homes and businesses to install solar panels.
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An Attempt To Let Corporate Wrongdoers Off The Hook
A newly proposed initiative seeks to prevent consumers from holding a company accountable for “oppression, fraud or malice,” even when the company actually commits these crimes, as long as the company was in “material compliance” with government standards and rules.
In plain English: It would stymie many wronged consumers in their efforts to seek justice. Consider Vioxx, which was approved by the FDA (see page 1 story). Merck, the maker of Vioxx, hid from doctors and consumers the harmful side effects of the drug, and even though this smacks of fraud and malice, consumers wouldn’t be able to hold the company accountable for it in court.
“This would be like falling down a legal rabbit hole where a company guilty of fraud cannot be found guilty of fraud and lawyers spend all their time debating what is ‘material’,” said CALPIRG’s Steve Blackledge. “If proponents press forward with this initiative, I can’t imagine the public buying it.”
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EPA Sides With Pesticide Industry
In late January, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its new rules governing EPA use of pesticide tests conducted on humans. As CALPIRG argued during the public comment phase, the rules contain giant safety and ethical loopholes that benefit the pesticide industry at the expense of ordinary citizens.
The new rules allow EPA scientists to use results from these dangerous and often scientifically questionable tests to weaken public health standards.
The fight now moves back to Congress, where CALPIRG will continue working with Sen. Boxer and Reps. Solis and Waxman to implement a legislative strategy to put an end to testing pesticides on people.
In February, CALPIRG staff members went to Washington, D.C. to meet directly with the rest of the California congressional delegation and press them for action on this issue.
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Campaign Finance Measure Clears Hurdle
In an important campaign finance reform vote, the CALPIRG-supported California Clean Money Act passed the Assembly by a vote of 47 to 28 on Jan. 30. The vote marks the first time a public-financing bill has passed either house of the California Legislature.
The measure, AB 583 by Asm. Loni Hancock (Berkeley), would provide public funding to qualifying candidates who have proven they are legitimate contenders by raising many small contributions from individuals.
“If enacted, public financing will make sure that big money from special interests does not determine which candidates have the resources to run for office and win,” said Blackledge.
If passed in the Senate and signed by the governor, the bill will need to go before voters for approval.
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CONSUMER CHAMPIONS —CALPIRG Legislative Director Steve Blackledge (right) congratulates Asm. Speaker Fabian Núñez on receiving a perfect score on the CALPIRG Legislative Scorecard, which scored the voting records of legislators during the 2005 session. |
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