# Tom Steyer

Static LLM evidence packet for the Said vs. Did California Governor 2026 research prototype.

## Use Rules

- This is a research prototype, not a voter guide, endorsement, or final assessment.
- Many rows are model-generated or unreviewed and should be treated as evidence-navigation aids.
- Missing or limited coverage means the dataset has not ingested, normalized, or balanced that surface yet; it is not evidence that a candidate lacks activity there.
- Use source URLs and record IDs when citing claims. Prefer the linked JSON/JSONL companion files for retrieval.

## Links

- App profile: [Tom Steyer](https://polit.pages.dev/app/?view=profile&candidate=tom-steyer)
- App claim network: [Tom Steyer claim network](https://polit.pages.dev/app/?view=network&candidate=tom-steyer)
- Machine-readable packet: [tom-steyer.json](https://polit.pages.dev/llm/candidates/tom-steyer.json)
- Candidate claim evidence JSONL: [tom-steyer-claims.jsonl](https://polit.pages.dev/llm/evidence/candidates/tom-steyer-claims.jsonl)
- Candidate index: [all candidates](/llm/candidates/index.md)
- Curated issue index: [issues](/llm/issues/index.md)

## Snapshot

- Candidate ID: `tom-steyer`
- Party: Democratic
- Ballot designation: Climate Advocate
- Campaign status: Active or not separately flagged
- Ballot status: unknown
- Priority candidate: True
- Generated from site artifact: `2026-06-02T08:01:06.314093+00:00`

## Summary

Climate advocate and major self-funder with campaign emphasis on climate, affordability, housing, economic power, and ballot-measure style advocacy.

## Current Program

Progressive affordability-plus-climate campaign: build housing, tax corporations and billionaires more, lower utility and fuel costs, abolish/limit ICE activity, expand education and health care, and defend climate policy.

### Program Sources

- [Steyer campaign home page](https://www.tomsteyer.com/)
- [Tom Steyer campaign biography](https://www.tomsteyer.com/about-tom)
- [Steyer campaign issues](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues)
- [Steyer housing issue page](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/housing)
- [Steyer AI issue page](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/ai-policy)
- [Tom Steyer climate issue page](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/climate)
- ... 8 more source links in the JSON packet.

### Normalized Promises

- **housing**: Build one million affordable homes over four years and pair housing supply with renter relief, insurance stabilization, and homelessness reform.
  - Authority path: budget, bond/finance tools, public land, agencies, local enforcement, legislation
  - Status: `pending_governor_action`; specificity: `5`
  - Mechanisms:
    - Use public land, finance tools, and budget authority to build one million affordable homes.
    - Pair supply expansion with renter relief and homelessness reform.
    - Use insurance stabilization tools so housing and rebuilding remain financially possible.
- **taxes**: Make corporations and billionaires pay more, including targeting commercial-property tax loopholes.
  - Authority path: constitutional/statutory tax changes, ballot measure path, legislation
  - Status: `pending_governor_action`; specificity: `3`
  - Mechanisms:
    - Close corporate and commercial-property tax loopholes.
    - Use ballot-measure or legislative paths for wealth and corporate tax changes.
    - Dedicate new revenue to affordability, education, and public services.
- **climate / energy**: Defend climate policy while lowering electric and gas costs through competition, anti-monopoly action, and oil/gas accountability.
  - Authority path: CPUC/CARB influence, attorney-general enforcement, legislation, market constraints
  - Status: `pending_governor_action`; specificity: `3`
  - Mechanisms:
    - Use utility competition and anti-monopoly action to lower costs.
    - Hold oil and gas companies accountable for excess profits or supply manipulation.
    - Appoint regulators focused on ratepayers while defending climate rules.
- **electricity / utilities**: Cut household electric bills by about 25 percent by adding competition, reducing utility guaranteed returns, expanding distributed clean energy, and appointing ratepayer-focused regulators.
  - Authority path: CPUC appointments, energy-agency direction, bond financing, utility regulation, and legislation
  - Status: `pending_governor_action`; specificity: `5`
  - Mechanisms:
    - Add competition in electricity markets.
    - Reduce guaranteed utility returns that raise bills.
    - Expand distributed clean energy and appoint ratepayer-focused regulators.
- **gas prices / energy**: Protect consumers from oil-supply manipulation by expanding strategic petroleum reserves, investigating excess profits, and using crisis tools when refinery shortages drive prices up.
  - Authority path: CEC petroleum-market oversight, attorney-general coordination, reserves policy, tax policy, and legislation
  - Status: `pending_governor_action`; specificity: `4`
  - Mechanisms:
    - Expand strategic petroleum reserves as a price-shock tool.
    - Investigate excess oil profits and refinery-driven shortages.
    - Use crisis tools and petroleum-market oversight when supply disruptions raise prices.
- **health care**: Move California toward single-payer health care that covers everyone, regulates rates, cuts out insurance middlemen, and protects rural hospitals.
  - Authority path: budget, federal waivers, Covered California, DHCS, rate regulation, and legislation
  - Status: `pending_governor_action`; specificity: `4`
  - Mechanisms:
    - Pursue single-payer coverage through state legislation and federal waivers.
    - Regulate rates and reduce reliance on insurance middlemen.
    - Protect rural hospitals during the transition.
- **education**: Fund free education from pre-K through community college by closing corporate tax loopholes and expanding access to UC and CSU enrollment.
  - Authority path: budget, tax legislation, UC/CSU coordination, and education finance policy
  - Status: `pending_governor_action`; specificity: `4`
  - Mechanisms:
    - Close corporate tax loopholes to fund free pre-K through community college.
    - Expand access to UC and CSU enrollment.
    - Use education finance policy to connect new revenue to free education.
- **immigration / civil rights**: Stop masked ICE agents from terrorizing Californians and seek authority for California to hold ICE agents accountable for violent or illegal conduct.
  - Authority path: state legislation, attorney-general coordination, oversight, criminal enforcement, and litigation
  - Status: `pending_governor_action`; specificity: `4`
  - Mechanisms:
    - Seek state authority to identify and hold ICE agents accountable for illegal or violent conduct.
    - Use Attorney General coordination, oversight, and litigation against abusive enforcement.
    - Limit masked immigration enforcement practices through state legislation where possible.

## Record And Action Samples

- **Funded and organized climate advocacy rather than holding legislative or executive office**
  - Date: `2010-2026`; issue: climate
  - His campaign biography and climate page describe NextGen/Climate advocacy, ballot-measure work, and climate-focused political spending.
- **Put climate at the center of political action.**
  - Date: `2020 presidential campaign and long-running climate advocacy`; issue: promise outcome
  - American Presidency Project preserves his 2020 climate plan; current campaign biography describes NextGen and climate advocacy record.

## Claim-Network Evidence Samples

- `cl-app-event-2026-05-29-calmatters-governor-q-and-a-transcripts-tom-steyer-0b373e8f` 2026-05-29: Steyer says the biggest affordability lever is housing and that California should build more homes by simplifying permitting and zoning where people want to live. ([source](https://calmatters.org/california-voter-guide-2026/governor/videos/transcripts/))
- `cl-app-event-2026-05-29-calmatters-governor-q-and-a-transcripts-tom-steyer-7535d1e0` 2026-05-29: Steyer says he would call a first-day special election to eliminate a corporate real estate tax loophole worth over $20 billion and direct the funds to cities and counties to reduce their resistance to permitting housing. ([source](https://calmatters.org/california-voter-guide-2026/governor/videos/transcripts/))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-abolish-ice-issue-page-d0367666a08a3365-07825b65-tom-s-e0a4e29e` 2026-05-26: Stop masked ICE agents from terrorizing Californians and seek authority for California to hold ICE agents accountable for violent or illegal conduct. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/abolish-ice))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-ai-issue-page-b84cc86b5ce8033b-247308b1-tom-steyer-pi-897b61b4` 2026-05-26: Steyer says he would seek voter approval to create a state sovereign wealth fund funded by a token tax on corporate AI use. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/ai-policy))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-ai-issue-page-b84cc86b5ce8033b-247308b1-tom-steyer-pi-e81002c2` 2026-05-26: Steyer says he would require social media platforms to undergo safety audits and enforce age requirements, including independent safety testing of AI models before release. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/ai-policy))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-campaign-issues-69c79767203b5761-da0c004c-tom-steyer-c-43e2959c` 2026-05-26: Defend climate policy while lowering electric and gas costs through competition, anti-monopoly action, and oil/gas accountability. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-campaign-issues-69c79767203b5761-da0c004c-tom-steyer-h-fec40629` 2026-05-26: Build one million affordable homes over four years and pair housing supply with renter relief, insurance stabilization, and homelessness reform. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-campaign-issues-69c79767203b5761-da0c004c-tom-steyer-t-f90af656` 2026-05-26: Make corporations and billionaires pay more, including targeting commercial-property tax loopholes. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-education-issue-page-8bf6125014fa92d0-73c1e5ab-tom-ste-d49acf45` 2026-05-26: Fund free education from pre-K through community college by closing corporate tax loopholes and expanding access to UC and CSU enrollment. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/education))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-electricity-issue-page-e9b3957097a717da-53839a4a-tom-s-69298c71` 2026-05-26: Cut household electric bills by about 25 percent by adding competition, reducing utility guaranteed returns, expanding distributed clean energy, and appointing ratepayer-focused regulators. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/electricity))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-health-care-issue-page-f35cea4bebf5d202-7e14a4a8-tom-s-1ed969a9` 2026-05-26: Move California toward single-payer health care that covers everyone, regulates rates, cuts out insurance middlemen, and protects rural hospitals. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/healthcare))
- `cl-app-source-steyer-health-care-issue-page-f35cea4bebf5d202-7e14a4a8-tom-s-a4393988` 2026-05-26: Steyer argues California’s current health care system is unsustainable and that moving to a single-payer system is the best way to lower costs and expand coverage. ([source](https://www.tomsteyer.com/issues/healthcare))
- ... 30 more claim rows in the candidate JSONL file.

## Coverage Notes

- No limited or missing coverage notes were present in the coverage matrix.

## Assistant Guidance

- To compare two candidates, read both candidate packets and then inspect shared curated issue packets from `/llm/issues/index.md`.
- For ad hoc questions not represented by a curated issue page, search the candidate JSON, per-candidate JSONL, and all-claim JSONL records.
- Do not infer a candidate position from missing rows.
