SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gov. Gavin Newsom's planned tours of five Chinese cities for discussions on climate change is set to be covered not by taxpayers, but by one of the wealthiest philanthropic foundations in the country.
An earlier ABC10 report revealed the Oakland-based nonprofit California State Protocol Foundation will be responsible for covering the travel expenses.
A registered nonprofit, the foundation has funded events like the governor’s State of the State address and the Capitol Tree Lighting ceremony. They also picked up the tab on Newsom's travel to El Salvador in 2019.
The foundation plans to cover the cost of his trip to China through requesting an environmental grant from the William + Flora Hewlett Foundation.
With a record $558 million in grants distributed in 2022 and total assets of $12.8 billion, the Hewlett Foundation is one of the wealthiest philanthropic organizations in the U.S.
Hewlett Foundation Spokesperson Edit Ruano told ABC10 the amount Hewlett Foundation is considering awarding the California State Protocol Foundation is $300,000.
"The grant request was for a portion of the (China) trip and for a California delegation which we played no role in selecting," Ruano said. "No representatives from the (Hewlett) Foundation are participating in this trip."
California State Protocol Foundation is being considered for the environmental grant because of California's leadership in advancing climate engagement and dialogue, he said.
"The California State Protocol Foundation has full discretion and control over the use of the funds to support the trip, consistent with its charitable mission," Ruano said.
Gov. Newsom's office released a statement to ABC10 saying, "Consistent with longstanding practice across multiple administrations, the California Protocol Foundation is covering the costs of the Governor’s international travel. The trip is not at taxpayer expense."
Newsom was the only American invited to deliver remarks at the UN Climate Ambition Summit in New York Sept. 20.
He also met with Chinese President Xi Jinping Wednesday to kick off a new partnership fighting climate change in an effort to reach both California and China's carbon neutrality goals.
"The governments of California and China are building on their long history of climate collaboration and deepening our work together to address these existential risk," read Wednesday's joint statement.
