Rep. Duarte Leads California GOP Members in Letter to Governor Newsom Regarding Natural Gas Prices

Last week, California GOP members sent a letter to California Governor Gavin Newsom addressing the recent period of high natural gas price spiking, referencing actions taken by his administration and offering suggestions on how to prevent a similar situation from happening again. This comes in response to a letter that the Governor sent to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission asking for an investigation into the price spiking and whether “market manipulation, anticompetitive behavior, or other anomalous activities are driving these ongoing prices…”. The letter was led by Congressman John Duarte (CA-13) and can be read here. Additional signers are Speaker McCarthy, and Reps. Garcia, Obernolte, Steel, McClintock, Valadao, LaMalfa and Kim.

“Governor Newsom’s letter to FERC proves that he truly does not understand good energy policy,” said Congressman Duarte. “His administration had several chances to change state policy on natural gas purchases and imports into the State of California and to expand opportunities for in-state production. Despite this, he chooses to turn to finger-pointing and asking the Federal Government to cover for his mistakes.”

“Representative Duarte may only be in his first term in Congress, but he is already proving to be a critical part of the California Delegation and our Conference as a whole,” Speaker McCarthy said. “As a farmer and businessman born and raised in the Valley, he has always understood the energy challenges directly facing our constituents. I commend his efforts to hold Governor Newsom and Sacramento Democrats accountable for their leadership failures and misguided policies that are costing all Californians more to power and heat their homes.”

“Spiking natural gas prices are the number one concern I heard from families across CA-23 during my recent town halls. In some areas of my district, natural gas bills have risen to nearly three times what they were last year,” said Congressman Obernolte. “California’s state government must reverse the bad policies that are hindering natural gas availability in our state and work to increase production of natural gas in California to lower prices for these families who desperately need relief.”

“I’ve heard from countless constituents about how their monthly energy bills have doubled or in some cases tripled over the last few months, putting yet another burden on people who are already struggling with rising costs,” said Congressman Valadao. “Governor Newsom’s energy policies continue to hinder our ability to produce energy in the state, resulting in increased costs for Central Valley families. I’m proud to join my colleagues in calling on the governor to reverse course on his misguided energy agenda. Increasing our supply of energy is the only long-term solution to lower the price of energy bills for Californians.”  

“If we want to lower the price of natural gas and energy for families, we need to address the actual causes of these high prices instead of doubling down on policies that clearly aren’t working,” said Congressman LaMalfa. “Stop overregulating critical industries, end ESG policies that prevent private investments, and start encouraging domestic production. That’s how you decrease prices and make more American jobs.”

“Due to the mishandling of California’s energy policies by Governor Newsom’s administration, like the forcing out of natural gas producers, 90% of the natural gas used in our state is produced elsewhere and brought in for our state’s use.” said Congressman Garcia. “This is unsustainable and the Governor must take a look in the mirror and realize that he is responsible for the price hike that is hurting so many Californians this winter. I’ve personally spoken with companies and providers like SoCalGas to learn more about the root cause of this energy price hike, but now the Governor must fix our energy policies so that California families no longer suffer to pay their natural gas bills.”

“California’s natural gas price hikes are a direct result of Sacramento’s failed policies that have depleted our energy supply. This is why we have the highest energy costs in the nation,” said Congresswoman Young Kim. “Californians can see through Gov. Newsom’s blame game. Our state deserves responsible policies that make life affordable and easier. I thank Rep. Duarte for leading this letter to demand change, and I will keep fighting for common sense.”

“While Governor Newsom blames the failures of leftist policies onto energy companies, families in California continue to suffer as natural gas prices keep climbing,” said Congresswoman Steel. “Californians are tired of the rhetoric and finger pointing. I hear from my constituents consistently that they simply want to run their businesses, raise their families, and pay their bills. All they want from the government is to stay out of their way. Anti-energy, progressive policies have made the cost of living skyrocket, with no plan to fix the root causes. I urge Governor Newsom to reverse course and empower our producers to do their jobs and bring down prices as quickly as possible.”