California Gov. Gavin Newsom attends the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials conference in Los Angeles, Tuesday, July 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) California Gov. Gavin Newsom is auditioning for the White House, trailing second among Democrats behind Kamala Harris according to the latest polls. Even though the roster for 2028 remains up-in-the-air, the Golden State’s chief executive is — in many ways — already acting the part. California is just 1 of 50 states, but routinely attempts to exert authority over the entire country.
Americans are not entertained.
A lawsuit filed in June against a California packaging law intends to loosen Newsom’s regulatory grip on the country. The legal drama is over the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, which limits single-use plastics and mandates that all packaging must be recyclable or compostable by 2032, among other rules.
Think you hate paper straws? Those flimsy, dissolving products were just the opening act.
California is free to experiment with foolish policies that impact Californians. Afterall, state voters have the power to hold their leaders accountable at the ballot box when ideas backfire. But such sweeping policies have ripple effects that extend beyond California’s borders. Companies — and their consumers — in any state that do business in California must comply.
“Once again, California is trying to enact a policy that negatively impacts the rest of the country,” said Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers when commenting on the problematic packaging rules. He warns that “if California goes unchecked, consumers will be forced to pay more for basic necessities.”
Holding California accountable in the courts is welcome, but the process can be arduous. Congress has the power to short circuit the legal proceedings and remedy the situation directly. A different saga unfolding in Washington over another attempt by California to regulate beyond its borders is acting as a trial balloon. Will lawmakers have the political appetite to go through with it?
Congress is currently debating an obscure California law called Proposition 12 that bans the sale of normal eggs and pork in Golden State supermarkets. Instead, consumers are limited to Whole Foods-style products at Whole Foods-level prices. Similar to the packaging statute, this strict animal agriculture standard impacts farmers in any state who sell pork or eggs in California.
Americans are expressing frustration with California’s edict because the policy is inflating food prices. It can cost millions of dollars for farms to retrofit facilities and adjust production systems to become California-compliant — a financial burden that rolls downhill to consumers at the checkout counter.
A bipartisan group of affordability-minded lawmakers is working to address the expensive domino effect as part of the farm bill. The House-passed version of the legislative package includes a food price fix that reins in California’s overreach. The provision confines Proposition 12’s enforcement to farmers within California.
More than a dozen House Democrats joined their Republican colleagues to make it happen. Even bitter rivals Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden agree that something needs to be done. Now, the ball is in the Senate’s court.
California is walking all over the rest of the country. Whether it’s micromanaging the design of packaging or banning certain foods from the dinner table, the efforts undermine the rights of people in other states. Congress needs to put a stop to it and focus on lowering prices for American families.
Jack Hubbard is the executive director of the Center for the Environment and Welfare.
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