Referendum to repeal oil and gas well setbacks will be on 2024 Calif. ballot

California voters will have a chance to roll back a law barring new fossil fuel wells within 3,200 feet of sensitive areas in the state's November 2024 general election.

The California secretary of state said Feb. 3 that a repeal measure sponsored by the oil and gas industry received enough signatures to qualify as a ballot referendum.

Senate Bill 1137 placed statewide restrictions on oil and gas drilling, including a minimum setback from houses, schools, hospitals and similar areas for new wells. Older wells inside the 3,200-foot boundary would have to meet stricter emissions control rules by 2025.

The rules outlined in S.B. 1137 have been suspended pending the outcome of the referendum, reverting control over oil and gas setbacks to local ordinances.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, blasted the industry in a statement following the secretary of state's announcement. "It's one thing for Big Oil to make record profits as they rip off Californians at the pump," Newsom said. "It's quite another to push to continue harmful drilling near daycares and schools and our homes."

Industry effort

After Newsom signed S.B. 1137 into law in September 2022, the California Independent Petroleum Association raised $21 million to put the repeal measure on the ballot. The trade group will now meet with its board and consultants to map out a campaign plan for 2024, CEO Rock Zierman said.

Companies represented on the group's board include California Resources Corp., Freeport McMoRan Inc. and Berry Petroleum Co. LLC.

"For a law that has such a monumental impact, there wasn't a single report on what the impact of S.B. 1137 would do to our increasing reliance on foreign oil or the number of California's climate-compliant oil wells that would be taken out of production," Zierman said.

California was a major oil producer in the 20th century. Although it still ranks in the top 10 of oil-producing states, it now accounts for only 3% of domestic crude oil production and less than 1% of the nation's natural gas production, according to the latest figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Concerns about potential repeal

An April 2022 geospatial study showed 28,000 active wells within 3,200 feet of a sensitive area in California, according to FracTracker Alliance, a nonprofit that analyzes oil and gas data with a stated mission of helping the public "better understand the harms posed by hydrocarbon extraction." The wells represent less than 24% of the state's oil and gas production, the study said.

Halting new permits inside the 3,200-foot zone would improve the health of 2.7 million Californians, according to FracTracker's analysis.

The director of the Sierra Club's California Chapter, Brandon Dawson, said his group is disappointed that the repeal measure found a place on the ballot.

"The Sierra Club will be doing everything within our power to ensure that the public is aware of how beneficial S.B. 1137 is for California communities," Dawson said in an email. "We'll be working with frontline communities in this effort."

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