Statement by Encinitas Mayor Catherine Blakespear Condemning Oil Companies for Price Gouging

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 10, 2022
CONTACT: Kevin Sabellico, (760) 814-7260
[email protected]

Encinitas, California — On Monday, Encinitas Mayor and state Senate candidate Catherine Blakespear issued the following statement regarding the increase in gas prices seen across the state of California:

“I stand with the Chair of the California Energy Commission in demanding answers from oil companies on why Californians are paying $2.60/gallon more than the national average. Maintenance alone is not a sufficient explanation. Oil companies are taking advantage of working families and making inflation worse.

I’m calling on Attorney General Bonta and the rest of the state’s law enforcement agencies to investigate oil companies and impose hefty fines if any evidence of illegal market manipulation is uncovered.

I’m grateful to our House delegation for their leadership on this issue, and I support their parallel efforts to encourage an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission.”

Blakespear is a fourth-generation Encinitan whose great-grandparents put roots down in the area nearly 100 years ago. She has been the Mayor of the City of Encinitas for nearly six years, and an attorney for 16 years. In addition to leading her city as mayor, she serves as the Chair of SANDAG, the county’s powerful transportation agency, and as a board member on the San Diego County’s Airport Authority. She and her husband have two teenage children.

The newly-drawn 38th Senate District includes the communities of Pacific Beach, La Jolla, Carmel Valley, Pacific Highlands Ranch, Del Mar, Solana Beach, Rancho Santa Fe, Fairbanks Ranch, Encinitas, Elfin Forest, Carlsbad, Vista, Oceanside, Camp Pendleton, Rancho Mission Viejo, Ladera Ranch, San Juan Capistrano, Coto De Caza, Rancho Santa Margarita, Mission Viejo, and Laguna Hills.