CFCA's Executive Director and members are in Washington, D.C. this week to advocate on behalf of the fuels industry. 

 

As California's representatives to the national level PMAA, those in attendance will be meeting with Congressional representatives to discuss this issues facing our industry. 

 

Today, CFCA's members Matt and Judy Cullen, Jimm Cross, Tom Van De Pol, and Rusty Rinehart met with Congressman Doug LaMalfa to educate him on the important work being done by CFCA and our industry.

 

Check back next week for a recap on the meetings, and any news from PMAA. 

Retail Petroleum Consultants, is the leading specialist appraisal firm for the going-concern valuation of gas stations, car washes, c-stores, QSRs, and other petroleum-related properties. With responsive national coverage, they have performed valuation services for over 7,500 properties throughout the United States. They’re continually leveraging our proprietary technology and expansive database to service top financial institutions, buyers, brokers, law firms, accountants, distributors, and leading oil companies.

 

Clients trust them for our time-exposed data & observations that span over a decade, detailed analysis & neighborhood descriptions, and a full parallax of value — litigation, insurable, projected theory, construction, sales reconciliation, etc. In addition, their clients enjoy same-day direct contact with their chief appraiser to address methodology and other nuances of the valuation.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) Office of Farm to Fork is now accepting proposals for the new Healthy Stores Refrigeration Grant Program. The program will fund energy efficient refrigeration units in corner stores and small businesses in food deserts throughout the state to stock California-grown fresh produce, nuts and minimally processed foods – improving access to healthy food choices in the small retail environment for underserved communities, while promoting CA-grown agriculture.

CDFA seeks proposals from corner stores, small businesses; or cities, counties or nonprofits working with corner stores or small businesses to promote healthy retail. A total of $4,500,000 is available for grants.

 

Applications must be submitted by email to cafarmtofork@cdfa.ca.gov, no later than Thursday, April 25, 2019, 5:00 P.M.

The California Community Colleges invests in the state’s economic growth and global competitiveness through industry-specific education, training and services that contribute to a highly skilled and productive workforce. With over a $1 billion in investments in career and technical education and workforce development, the California Community Colleges is providing our state with a strong and well-prepared workforce to help our economy prosper. 

 

California regulators are overestimating the impact the state's cap-and-trade system is having on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new policy brief from a researcher at UC Berkeley's Center for Environmental Public Policy, part of the Goldman School of Public Policy.

 

In the paper, published Tuesday, research fellow Barbara Haya argues that the California Air Resources Board has made rosy assumptions about a program protecting forests that may only have accomplished 18% of the emission reductions it claims have been made.

 

The discrepancy could be as much as 80 million tons of carbon dioxide since 2013, which is equivalent to more than the total annual emissions from California's entire electricity sector.

Gas prices in Fresno and other markets in the central San Joaquin Valley ticked up by another few pennies per gallon over the past week, continuing an unrelenting two-month trend of rising fuel prices with which motorists continue to cope.

 

The average price for regular unleaded gasoline was reported at $4.08 per gallon on Monday in Fresno, according to AAA Gas Prices. That's a nickel more than pump prices a week ago and 43 cents higher than on April 6, one month earlier. Almost two months go, on March 11, the average price was $3.24 per gallon, or about 84 cents less than on Monday.

 

Statewide, the average pump price was $4.10 per gallon, up two cents from a week ago and 36 cents from a month ago. But there are signs that the increases are starting to level off. In San Francisco, the average price fell by almost six cents per gallon. In Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura, the average prices either held steady or dropped by a few tenths of a penny.

Mayor Eric Garcetti unveiled a sweeping plan for a more sustainable Los Angeles on Monday, calling for dramatic changes to the car culture, built environment and air quality of America's second-largest city.

 

The mayor's sustainability plan imagines a city where, by the mid-2030s, 80% of the cars run on electricity or zero-emission fuel, 80% of the electricity comes from renewable sources and Angelenos drive 2,000 fewer miles each year than they do now. It's a far cry from today's L.A., where gridlock, tailpipe pollution and smoggy air have come to define a way of life.

 

Garcetti cited the “existential threat” of climate change, which scientists say is fueling bigger and deadlier heat waves, wildfires and floods in California and around the world. He said he worries that if Los Angeles doesn’t take aggressive action now, in 50 years the city will have little time for priorities other than survival.

Even in the best of California's economic glory days, no governor has entered office with the kind of fiscal tail wind that Gov. Gavin Newsom now enjoys.

 

The government's coffers are full of taxpayer cash, its reserve accounts are stocked to weather an economic slowdown and there's general consensus on new help for the state's youngest and most vulnerable residents. A major political victory would seem all but assured as he prepares to unveil a revised state budget this week.

 

And yet, Newsom's very real challenge is a quandary of quantity: more tax revenue, yes, but also more Democrats in the Legislature after last year's election landslide and more demands to raise spending.

Too many residents of the Golden State are forced to choose between filling up the gas tank or putting food on the table. Some families are unable to travel and have adventures with their children on the weekends. In order to find affordable housing, often times working families have to live far from the city, paying outrageous costs just to commute. College students cannot afford gas to make the trip home to visit their families. Seniors living on fixed retirement incomes in rural areas are struggling to afford fuel to critical doctor appointments on a regular basis.

 

Californians from every corner of the state are struggling to afford the high cost of gasoline. In many places, the cost of fuel is now over $4 a gallon. The governor has responded to this crisis by requesting an investigation led by the California Energy Commission as to why fuel costs are so high. Using taxpayer dollars to fund this investigation is a waste of money.