Green California Advocacy Day: Protecting Oceans, Communities, and Climate

The press conference convened by the Green California Coalition drew a big crowd in opposition to legislation to weaken California's environmental and climate laws. Photo by Dan Bacher.

Our Director of Advocacy, Scott Webb, joined over 100 advocates at the State Capitol for a full day of legislative action with the Green California Network. We met policymakers, amplified environmental priorities, and advocated for our ocean, communities, and climate.

AB 1056, a leading ocean bill co-sponsored by RRI and Oceana, was highlighted. If passed, it would phase out destructive gillnets, which cause bycatch and death of sea lions, sharks, rays, seabirds, and more. Our goal is to promote sustainable, science-based fishing off California. Thanks to Green CA’s leadership, this bill is a top priority and is heading to the Senate floor soon.

Simultaneously, we fought to protect the integrity of California’s foundational environmental laws:

SB 131 is concerning legislation that grants broad CEQA exemptions to polluting 'advanced manufacturing' projects, potentially allowing hazardous chemical production, biomass processing, and strip mining without public review, risking public and environmental safety.

SB 54, passed in 2022 to fight plastic pollution, risks being weakened during implementation. CalRecycle’s draft rules create loopholes for chemical recycling and exempt categories of packaging. We urge the administration to realign SB 54 with its original goal, encouraging producers to reduce waste and invest in real solutions, not pollution.

We underscored the urgency of funding Proposition 4,
which voters approved for clean water, wildfire prevention, biodiversity, and climate resilience. We noted that hundreds of projects are waiting, and delays risk frontline and under-resourced communities. We urged lawmakers to push a strong FY 25–26 Expenditure Plan to honor voter commitments.

Through legislative meetings, we emphasized that California must pursue a future of biodiversity, accountability, and climate resilience, not shortcuts benefiting polluters at the public’s expense.

We're grateful to California Environmental Voters, Green California, our fellow advocates, and the legislators who are stepping up to do what's right for the planet and people.