CCAEJ Condemns Passage of AB/SB 131: Environmental Rollbacks, Community Exclusion, and a Pledge for Immediate Cleanup Action

Shane Ysais
7 days ago
2 min read

SACRAMENTO, CA — The Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice (CCAEJ) strongly condemns the Senate’s passage of AB/SB 131, a harmful CEQA rollback that was hastily pushed through the state budget as a trailer bill—eschewing the necessary public debate and scrutiny that such legislation demands. This undemocratic maneuver strips away essential environmental protections, silences community voices, and paves the way for unchecked toxic development, which they call, “advanced manufacturing,” in already burdened areas like the Inland Empire.

Crafted without public transparency or adequate tribal consultation, AB 131 disregards the unique environmental challenges faced by the Inland Empire, which suffers from some of the worst air pollution levels in the nation. By undermining the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), this bill endangers frontline communities—many of which are low-income and immigrant populations—that have relied on environmental review as a crucial tool to safeguard their health and neighborhoods from toxic developments.

“This bill represents the worst anti-environmental, anti-safety, and anti-public health legislation California has seen in recent memory,” stated Ana Gonzalez, Executive Director of CCAEJ. “We may have been shut out of the room this time, but we’re not going anywhere. Our communities are resilient, and we will do everything in our power to repair the damage this bill has caused. The advanced manufacturing policies tied to this bill will cause irreparable harm and exacerbate pollution exposure at unprecedented levels. We have already witnessed significant violations under CEQA—imagine the consequences without it, and best believe, in the IE there is no intention with this bill, to build housing!”

AB/SB 131 (formerly SB 607) marks a significant rollback of California’s fundamental environmental and community protections at a critical time when residents face unprecedented challenges, including federal attacks on their lives and livelihoods. AB/SB 131 is a betrayal of environmental justice communities, Indigenous communities, grassroots groups, labor, and the environment itself.

Legislators had a chance to demonstrate courage and integrity by rejecting this CEQA-dismantling trailer bill. Instead, they have chosen to endorse a bill that:

- Exposes vulnerable communities to toxic industrial projects with no protections for those living near industrial zones, thereby failing to safeguard residents and school children against severe health risks;

- Permits the destruction of hundreds of thousands of acres of precious habitats across California, including coastal areas, oak woodlands, chaparral, forests, deserts, and grasslands, without any environmental review or mitigation, leading to extensive and potentially irreparable harm to the state's biodiversity.

Why was this bill negotiated in secrecy, without public or legislative input? The truth is that such actions thrive in the absence of public scrutiny and are often facilitated by leveraging budgetary power against community needs.

We call upon our legislators and governor to make a choice: Stand with vulnerable communities and the environment cleaning this harmful legislation or accept a future that is detrimental to both. Our IE communities have suffered long enough and will continue to do so, until this is fixed. CCAEJ is committed to taking immediate action alongside our legislative allies to introduce cleanup legislation that will address the harm inflicted by this bill and restore critical protections for all Californians. Together, we will fight for a future where every community can be protected, live healthy and thrive.

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For more information about CCAEJ and our ongoing efforts, please visit www.ccaej.org