California voters rejected Proposition 23, which would have suspended the state’s strict carbon emissions standards.
Four years ago Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed AB 32 into law. The “Global Warming Solutions Act” set limits on California’s carbon emissions. Proposition 23 would have suspended those limits until unemployment reached five percent. Tom Steyer co-chaired the “no on 23” campaign. He says they were confident the measure would fail.
“We never felt that we had an uphill battle in terms of people agreeing with us, we always felt that the task was to make sure that they understood the pros and cons of this.”
The initiative was widely backed by oil companies, some based in Texas. In a speech to mark the measure’s failure, Governor Schwarzenegger said California already beat Texas in baseball this week.
“And today literally less than 24 hours later, we have beaten Texas again!”
In fact, Prop 23 opponents held their Election Night gathering in San Francisco, right next to the stadium where the Giants play.
