Camila Thur de Koos

Irvine Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris says the rebate would be equivalent to suspending the state's 51 cents per gallon excise tax for a year.

But it can get even worse, says UC Berkeley Professor Severin Borenstein — at least another dollar worse, if Russia, which produces 10% of the world's oil, loses access to the global market.

The OC Transit Authority and the union have been negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement since Jan. 28, 2021.