California passes polarizing energy bill that could help rescue gas plants

California lawmakers passed a sweeping, polarizing energy bill last night, making it easier for state officials to buy electricity from beachfront gas plants and diesel generators, and to approve solar and wind farms over the objections of local governments.

That’s a mouthful, so let’s back up a minute.

The Golden State has an energy crisis — not like the sudden, acute crisis two decades ago, when market manipulation prompted massive blackouts, but rather a slower, longer-lasting crisis in which California has had more and more trouble keeping the lights on. It’s...