An Assembly panel voted Thursday to move two bills forward in a special session, called by Gov. Gavin Newsom in an effort to tamp down seasonal gasoline price spikes.
But lawmakers rejected a third bill, proposed by the Assembly’s top Republican, to exempt gasoline from the state’s cap-and-trade program, which GOP legislators argued would have immediately cut the price of gas and saved drivers money.
The main bill, proposed by Newsom in the final days of the legislative session, would require oil refineries to maintain a supply of gas using existing storage. It would direct the California Energy Commission to come up with the specific regulations…