This month, CBE intensified its advocacy efforts in Sacramento, raising awareness for key policy initiatives that protect frontline environmental justice communities and champion the need for a managed decline beyond fossil fuels. Wilmington, Richmond, Southeast LA and East Oakland live on the frontlines of pollution, displacement, and underinvestment. As Big Oil and other polluting industries continue to spend millions to derail and undo climate progress in California, it’s critical that we make our presence known in Sacramento.
Dedicated investments, deep community engagement, and bold leadership will push California past Big Oil’s campaigns of disinformation. CBE’s Director of Research and Policy, Bahram Fazeli, led with that premise as he gave a presentation with elected officials, decision-makers and advocates in attendance at the 2026 California Climate Policy Summit, hosted in Sacramento by The Climate Center. He uplifted the environmental justice perspective, recounted some of our success stories from the past five decades, and shared the urgent need to move California’s economy beyond fossil fuels.
“If you go talk to a lot of legislators, they are really scared,” Fazeli said, adding that the prospect of more refineries idling has discouraged work on oil accountability policies. “Even if I introduce some legislation saying, let’s paint the fences around the refineries green, [the oil industry] will oppose it, because they will say this is going to bankrupt them.”
Additionally, we gave testimony at several legislative hearings this month to protect the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and more. Here’s the scoop on some of CBE’s top legislative priorities for 2026 and what we’ve accomplished so far:
SB 1258 (Weiner) – Hazardous waste: site remediation: residential suitability guidelines
“We oppose SB 1258 as written [before being amended] which would lead to the development of housing on hazardous waste sites without the guarantee of an adequate clean-up,” Jubilee Martinez Brumbaugh, Equal Justice Works Legal Fellow for CBE.
As initially proposed, SB 1258 would lead to the development of housing on hazardous waste sites without the guarantee of an adequate clean-up (no CEQA review). CBE gave testimony opposing the initial version of this bill but moved our position to neutral as the bill was amended to require State agencies to release guidelines for adequate clean-up standards, making it a research bill and not a CEQA rollback.
SB 954 (Blakespear) – California Environmental Quality Act: advanced manufacturing facilities: exemption
“Our communities rely on CEQA as a tool for accountability and public participation. Without it, residents lose the ability to understand what is being proposed in their neighborhoods and the ability to advocate for safer alternatives,” Dilia Ortega, SoCal Program Co-Director for CBE.
SB 954 is an important step toward reversing the sweeping CEQA rollback created last year under SB 131 and restoring essential environmental and public health protections. The bill begins to put needed guardrails in place by requiring strong pollution limits, upholding labor standards, and ensuring projects are sited at a safe distance from sensitive receptors. It also establishes important CEQA oversight of ‘advanced manufacturing’ projects. CBE provided testimony in support and will continue working to pass this important legislation.
SB 1291 (Gonzalez) – Mutual water companies
“Our communities should not have to conduct their own testing or fight just to get basic information about their water. SB 1291 helps move us toward a system that is more accountable and responsive to the people it serves,” Dilia Ortega, SoCal Program Co-Director for CBE.
SB1291 would bring much-needed transparency and accountability to Mutual Water Companies (MWC) that serve several communities across California, and many in Southeast LA. The bill strengthens access to information, improves public participation, and directs the State Water Board to evaluate MWCs in disadvantaged communities. CBE gave testimony in support of SB 1291.
AB 2752 (Ávila Farías) – Bay Area Air Quality Management District and South Coast Air Quality Management District: policies: oil refineries
“As a statewide environmental justice organization dedicated to protecting fenceline communities—especially refinery neighbors in Contra Costa County and Southeast LA—we’ve witnessed firsthand how air district rules are lifesaving for the most vulnerable,” Kaitlin Alcontin, Legal Fellow with CBE.
AB 2752 could have delayed lifesaving pollution controls and impede critical public health protections by requiring the Bay Area and South Coast Air Quality Management Districts to speculate about cost of regulations “related to oil refineries.” It also targeted existing rules that protect refinery communities from deadly particulates and nitrous oxides. CBE gave testimony in opposition. The sponsor ultimately pulled the bill.
CBE will continue to track multiple bills to ensure that community members stay informed about key initiatives that directly impact them. Engaging in these hearings gives us a chance to change the discourse, and to uplift environmental and social justice issues on local and statewide levels.