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In 2015, the Refugio Oil Spill dumped more than 120,000 gallons of heavy crude oil into the environment, coated seven miles of California shoreline, and damaged beaches as far as 100 miles down the coast. After that catastrophe, California and the United States put into place court-ordered legal requirements and guardrails to prevent a disaster like that from happening again.
Now, in a stunning act of federal overreach, the Trump Administration has given an order that barrels through those requirements and breaks multiple laws. The oil company Sable Offshore Corp. is using that order as its basis to restart operations of the same pipeline that ruptured 11 years ago.
This week, we sued the Trump Administration to halt the order. The Trump Administration is, yet again, showing how far it is willing to go, how many laws it is willing to break, to reward the oil industry. I am, yet again, taking the Administration to court to protect our people and environment and to enforce our laws and our state’s sovereign interests.
In solidarity,
Rob
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Challenging Unlawful Conditions on USDA Grants
 The Trump Administration is attempting to impose new discriminatory conditions on U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) grants, which provide critical lifelines to vulnerable communities, families, and children through school lunches, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funding, and other essential programs. The conditions would require federal funding recipients to comply with vague, hateful, and unrelated policies on immigration, gender ideology, transgender athletes, and diversity, equity, and inclusion. Co-leading a coalition of 21 attorneys general, I filed a lawsuit this week to challenge these illegal changes. We don’t wake up looking to fight against the Trump Administration; we’re fighting for Californians. Unfortunately, all too often, those end up being the same fight.
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Ensuring Cities Plan for Housing
 Home to more than 45,000 people, Hollister is located in Central California's San Benito County. This week, Governor Gavin Newsom, California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) Director Gustavo Velasquez, and I announced that Hollister agreed to a settlement that will bring it into compliance with our state’s Housing Element Law on an expeditious timeline. This reflects a commitment to making California a more affordable place for all. When cities fail to plan for housing, they are really just planning for rising costs, longer commutes, and increased pressure on families struggling to find a place to call home. We will continue to hold local governments accountable when they do not take steps to build their fair share of housing.
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Supporting Access to Reproductive and Gender-Affirming Care
 California is a safe haven for reproductive rights and gender-affirming care. In the face of ongoing attacks by the Trump Administration, I sponsored three bills —Assembly Bill (AB) 1854 by Assemblymember Maggy Krell (D-Sacramento), AB 1930 by Democratic Caucus Chair and Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur (D-Hollywood), and AB 2448 by Assemblymember Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park) and Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda) — that strengthen our role as a safe haven. These medical decisions are deeply personal and should be made by patients with their providers, free from interference by politicians. California will not be intimidated into abandoning our values.
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Filing Lawsuit over $3.8 Million Fraudulent Charity Scheme at San Diego Sports Venues
 This week, I also announced a lawsuit against six individuals and three sham charities for diverting charitable funds and profiting from fundraising opportunities at Petco Park and Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego. The fundraising opportunities allowed charities to volunteer at stadium concession stands and receive 10 to 12% of sales proceeds for their charitable missions. However, Martin J. Rebollo, Noly H. Ilarde, and four other co-conspirators exploited this system, using fake charities — C V Fast Patch, Chula Vista Fast Patch Inc., and Chula Vista Fast Pitch — to defraud the public and steal at least $3.8 million in charitable funds. Charity is meant to showcase the best of our humanity, but these actions reflect the worst.
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Making Your Life Affordable
 From groceries to gas, costs seem to be rising and rising ... and rising. California DOJ has your back and is committed to protecting California families grappling with the high cost of living. In this segment, find some of the ways California DOJ is protecting Californians — and their wallets.
Case Studies: Settlements with Liberty Tax and Intuit (TurboTax).
What We Did: In the last few years, California DOJ has secured settlements with tax preparation providers for deceiving and misleading consumers into thinking their services were free, when they were not.
What This Means to You: Californians should be able to file their taxes safely and businesses should clearly state when a service is free and when it comes at a price. By going after deceptive practices in the tax industry, my office has sent a loud and clear message: We are watching and are prepared to go to the mat for California consumers. In 2023, as a result of our settlement with TurboTax, 400,000 Californians — consumers who were eligible for a free tax filing program and were instead deceived into paying to file their federal tax return — received settlement checks totaling approximately $12.2 million.
Don’t forget! Tax Day is Wednesday, April 15. Through the CalFile program, eligible California taxpayers can file their 2025 state taxes for free! You may qualify for up to $3,756 cash back or a reduction of the tax you owe under the California Earned Income Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit programs.
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Keeping You Safe
 Exploiting or harming children will never be tolerated in California. This week, my office secured an eight-year prison sentence against Kai Jones for the human trafficking and sexual exploitation of two minors.
In 2022, Jones operated across Los Angeles, Alameda, Monterey, Contra Costa, and Sacramento counties, targeting underage victims by luring them with false promises of protection and a better future in exchange for money earned through commercial sex acts. As a result of the diligent investigative work and prosecution by my office, Jones was charged with seven felony counts, including human trafficking of a minor, pimping of a minor, and unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.
I am deeply grateful for the dedication and professionalism of my team, both in the field and in the courtroom, whose efforts made this outcome possible and helped secure justice for the victims. Combating human trafficking remains a top priority for my office. Since 2021, approximately 1,035 traffickers have been arrested and 1,062 victims have been rescued and offered support.
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CARE Corner
 The Office of Community Awareness, Response, and Engagement (CARE) recently hosted a virtual presentation on the Justice Data and Investigative Services Bureau. The Justice Data and Investigative Services Bureau's mission is to provide reliable data and investigative services to our criminal justice partners and public policy stakeholders to support our collective efforts to protect public safety for all Californians.
If you missed the virtual presentation, you can watch the recording by clicking on the button below.
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FLASH BRIEFING
Attorney General Bonta Calls on Congress to Stop Government Mass Surveillance of Americans
Attorney General Bonta Opposes ExxonMobil’s Request to Preempt Hazardous Materials Protections
Attorney General Bonta Asks Court to Enforce Order Blocking HHS from Sharing Large Swaths of Medicaid Data with ICE
Attorney General Bonta Backs D.C.’s Large Capacity Magazine Ban
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Video of the Week
CalPrivacy’s DROP tool allows Californians to send one request to more than 500 data brokers to stop them from selling your personal information.
Join Senator Josh Becker and I in DROPing out of the sale and collection of our data.
Learn more at privacy.ca.gov/drop.
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Make a Difference at California DOJ
 Apply today to help California DOJ protect the health, well-being, and public safety of Californians. Check out our featured jobs below and visit oag.ca.gov/careers for a full listing of available positions:
Deputy Attorney General Supervisor, Environmental Justice and Protection Section
Deputy Attorney General IV, Employment Law Trial Group
Deputy Attorney General IV, Appeals Writs and Trials Section
Deputy Attorney General IV, Cybercrime Section
Deputy Attorney General Supervisor, Antitrust Law
Special Investigator, Tribal Police Pilot Program
Paralegal, Healthcare Rights and Access Section
Investigative Auditor III, Bureau of Gambling Control
Section Manager, Criminal Record Update Program
Administrative Supervisor, Civil Rights Enforcement Section
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