Jason Barbose

Western states policy manager

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Jason advocates for UCS’s policy priorities in California and other western states. He meets with government officials, builds partnerships with allies, and helps manage legislative and regulatory campaigns to advance UCS priorities on climate change, energy, and transportation issues. See Jason's full bio.

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EV charging stations in parking lot
Open Grid Scheduler/flickr

Gov. Newsom’s Proposal to Invest $1 Billion in ZEV Infrastructure is a Smart Proposition

March 10, 2021 9:52 AM EDT

Governor Newsom’s executive order last year, which established a set of goals for fully electrifying cars and trucks, was an important marker of California’s commitment to vehicle electrification. However, it is a tall order to get to 100% ZEV sales for passenger cars by 2035 and 100% ZEV heavy-duty trucks and buses in operation by 2045 at our current pace. To meet this challenge, California must simultaneously make rapid progress on many fronts to increase use of ZEVs. This includes policies to require increased manufacturing of ZEVs, require that private and public fleets purchase ZEVs, help drivers at all income levels access ZEVs through purchase incentives and other programs that create access to ZEV mobility, and many other strategies. One of the most significant areas where state leadership is needed is supporting investment in the necessary infrastructure to charge electric vehicles and refuel hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Read more >

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This is Engineering/Flickr

How California Will Prepare Its Infrastructure for More Climate Catastrophes

October 13, 2020 5:05 PM EDT

Few people think very much about infrastructure. When roads, power lines, and water systems work, we tend to take it for granted. But when they fail, the loss is immediately apparent and sometimes hugely harmful to human life. As the impacts of climate change become more perilous, we must build infrastructure that can keep up with a changing climate. That is the essence of “climate-safe” infrastructure. Read more >

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AB 5 is an Opportunity to Protect Workers and the Environment

August 23, 2019 10:00 AM EDT

Among the major issues still being debated by the California Legislature this year is whether to codify a new standard for determining if certain workers must be hired as employees rather than independent contractors. AB 5, authored by Assembly member Lorena Gonzalez, is a top priority for organized labor and, as you might expect, is drawing considerable opposition from some segments of the business community, such as technology, agriculture, and trucking industries.

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Photos left to right: Washington Department of Commerce, iStockphoto/m-imagephotography

Will Washington Step Up on Climate in 2019?

January 25, 2019 10:27 AM EDT

While the majority of Washingtonians are worried about climate change and support taking steps to reduce heat-trapping emissions,  it’s no secret that the state has struggled to adopt many big-ticket policies on this issue. (Voters rejected initiatives in 2016 and 2018 to place fees on the state’s biggest emitters of global warming emissions; the Legislature has failed to pass previous proposals from Gov. Inslee to put a price on emissions, and a court also struck down an Inslee administration regulation tackling emissions.) However, I’m not one to linger on past failure, and fortunately this year has brought new opportunities that give me hope Washington lawmakers will seize the moment and take much-needed steps to curtail the state’s global warming emissions.

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Photos left to right: Washington Department of Commerce, iStockphoto/m-imagephotography
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California State Capitol
Photo: Rafał Konieczny CC-BY-SA-4.0 (Wikimedia)

New California Laws Address Climate Change—Some Bills Fall Short

October 2, 2018 4:44 PM EDT

It’s Fall. That means crisp morning air, dwindling sunlight, and a chance to take stock of legislative victories and setbacks in California, as Governor Brown has now signed or vetoed the last of the bills sent to his desk this year.

As always, the progress we make in Sacramento is not only improving Californians’ quality of life, but also keeping momentum going for other states and countries. Many of the gains we make in clean technologies, for example, are reducing costs and proving solutions at scale, charting a course from which others can learn.

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Office of Governor Brown
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