Charging the rich might not pay off

Oct 25, 2022 View in browser   By Debra Kahn THE BIG IDEA California environmental bankroller Tom Steyer is mostly sitting this one out. | Jose Luis Magana/AP Photo SEEKING DEEP POCKETS — A California ballot initiative that would tax the rich to pay for electric vehicle infrastructure has sparked a high-stakes political battle that shows how hard it may be to finance the green transition. Proposition 30, on the Nov. 8 ballot, would impose an extra 1.75 percent levy on personal income over $2 million and devote the proceeds to EV rebates, charging infrastructure and firefighters. It's triggered an expensive fight between Lyft Inc., which has spent $45 million on the measure, and a cross-section of wealthy Californians, who have spent about $20 million to stave off the tax hike. The measure was doing well in polls, until rich people started fighting back. And they have a key ally in Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), who publicly opposed it over the summer, citing Lyft's self-interest. It was polling at about 55 percent support before Newsom began running ads calling it a "Trojan horse that puts corporate welfare above the fiscal welfare of our entire state." Now it's on the ropes at 49 percent , and more opponents are piling on. Big donors to the No on 30 campaign since last month include Netflix CEO Reed Hastings; Mark Heising, chair of the Environmental Defense Fund's board of trustees; and Gap Inc. chairman Rob Fisher, who served on the Natural Resources Defense Council's board for decades. The 'no' campaign rolled out a statewide tour of "Gryfty the Lyft Grifter" on Monday. Backers say they are worried. "The opposition is really the opposition to a tax increase on the wealthy, but they know that the voters are fine with increasing taxes on the very wealthy, so they go after Lyft instead," said Bill Magavern, policy director for the Coalition for Clean Air, a California environmental group. Tom Steyer, the hedge fund founder who's been the go-to backer of past California environmental initiatives, including putting $20 million into a corporate-tax measure in 2012, has been noticeably quiet, contributing just $50,000 to the Yes on 30 campaign. His environmental group, NextGen America, hasn't taken a position on the measure. A spokesperson for Steyer didn't respond to requests for comment. Modeling by the firm E3 shows the measure is needed, even with the Inflation Reduction Act's added funding for electric vehicles and chargers. The roughly $80 billion that it would raise over 20 years would pay for an additional 7.4 million chargers, which would be enough to support the state's goal of selling only zero-emission cars by 2035. If it fails, policymakers will have to keep looking for more long-term funding. "It may not be the best way to do it, but no one's really answered the question of how is this going to happen?" said Rob Stutzman, a California Republican political strategist. "Everyone's going to end up paying for this transition. That becomes the inconvenient part to talk about." Sustainable Finance Treasury could delve into the voluntary carbon market morass. | Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images CARBON COPS — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Monday said she is exploring how the Biden administration could develop standards for voluntary carbon markets as part of broader efforts to address climate change, our Sam Sutton reports. "We're looking into what we might do to promote the development of a strong voluntary carbon trading market." Yellen said during a fireside chat at the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association's annual meeting in New York. Any voluntary carbon market would need to have "appropriate guardrails," she added. "Climate change is not something that the government can do on its own," she said. "It is going to require private efforts, private capital — both in the United States and around the world." CORPORATE PROMISES ANGLING FOR A WEDDING INVITE — The front line in the corporate culture wars has moved on. About a dozen corporations are directly lobbying Capitol Hill for the first time in support of same-sex marriage rights, Hailey Fuchs reports . The latest filings, which cover the third quarter of 2022, show corporate America is putting some financial heft behind its increasingly public affiliation with socially liberal causes like marriage rights. They come as conservatives amplify their attacks on corporations that are wading into politics. Ten companies — including Toyota, Dell, General Mills and tobacco giant Altria — lobbied for the Respect for Marriage Act, legislation that would write same-sex and interracial marriage protections into law. Others that have lobbied on the measure include UPS, Procter & Gamble, HP and TechNet, a trade association whose members include tech giants Amazon, Google and Apple. "We hear increasingly positive signs from Republicans, and not just limited to moderates, who believe this is a settled issue and look forward to supporting it," Carl Holshouser, senior vice president at TechNet, said in a statement. "TechNet sees this as a pivotal moment to have their back on an issue very important to our members and employees." AT LEAST IT'S EASIER TO PRONOUNCE — Don't call them Schlumberger anymore. Schlumberger Ltd., the world's largest oilfield services provider, is changing its name to SLB, Mike Lee reports for POLITICO's E&E News. The company said the name change is intended to show its commitment to developing new forms of energy in a decarbonizing world. (Because nothing says sustainability like SLB, right?) "Our new identity boldly symbolizes our ambition to accelerate the energy transition with sustainability at the center of everything we do," Katharina Beumelburg, SLB's chief strategy and sustainability officer, said in a statement. At the same time, the company's oil and gas business remains its biggest source of revenue, according to the latest financial results. Its well construction division brought in $3 billion of the company's $7.5 billion in revenue in the third quarter of this year.   NEW AND IMPROVED POLITICO APP: Stay up to speed with the newly updated POLITICO mobile app, featuring timely political news, insights and analysis from the best journalists in the business. With a fresh look and improved features, the sleek and navigable design offers a convenient way to access POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Don't miss out on the app you can rely on for the news you need, reimagined. Already a POLITICO app user? Upgrade today! DOWNLOAD FOR iOS  – DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID .     BUILDING BLOCKS BACKING THE BURN — The U.S. Forest Service is supporting an agency employee who was arrested by local police last week after a prescribed burn he was overseeing in the Malheur National Forest escaped onto private ranch land in Oregon, Marc Heller reports for POLITICO's E&E News. The incident has inflamed fire watchers in the West, where prescribed burns are seen as a crucial tool in reducing the severity of wildfires. They were already a touchy subject, especially after a planned blaze led to a major wildfire in New Mexico earlier this year. If locals are upset to the point where officials are arresting "burn bosses," that's a big problem. Craig Trulock, supervisor of the Malheur National Forest, told the local paper, the Blue Mountain Eagle , that some people in the area "are just anti-federal and don't want any federal agency doing anything that could affect their lands." The forest is 78 miles north of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, where a group led by Ammon and Ryan Bundy occupied the refuge in a 41-day armed standoff with federal law enforcement over federal land management in 2016. YOU TELL US GAME ON — Welcome to the Long Game, where we tell you about the latest on efforts to shape our future. We deliver data-driven storytelling, compelling interviews with industry and political leaders, and news Tuesday through Friday to keep you in the loop on sustainability. Team Sustainability is editor Greg Mott , deputy editor Debra Kahn and reporter Jordan Wolman . Reach us all at gmott@politico.com , dkahn@politico.com and jwolman@politico.com . Want more? Don't we all. Sign up for the Long Game . Four days a week and still free!   JOIN WOMEN RULE THURSDAY FOR A TALK WITH DEPARTING MEMBERS OF CONGRESS: A historic wave of retirements is hitting Congress, including several prominent Democratic women such as Illinois Rep. Cheri Bustos, House Democrats' former campaign chief. What is driving their departures? Join POLITICO on Oct. 27 for "The Exit Interview," a virtual event that will feature a conversation with departing members where they'll explain why they decided to leave office and what challenges face their parties ahead. REGISTER HERE .     WHAT WE'RE CLICKING — Companies and trade associations are trying to narrow the scope of New York's right-to-repair legislation. — Lego fans aren't excited about an upcoming switch to recyclable packaging because they won't be able to figure out which toy is inside .   Follow us on Twitter Debra Kahn @debra_kahn Greg Mott @gwmott Jordan Wolman @jordanwolman   Follow us

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