Energy

Builders’ clout cited as flood bills stall

August 25, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Sacramento Bee</p> <p>Sen. Dean Florez, D-Shafter, said the building industry has become increasingly powerful since Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took office. "Let me put it this way: The governor is the tractor, and they're working the gears," Florez said. "And you can quote me."</p>

Guess who’s crashing fundraisers

August 23, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">THE SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE</p> <p>Doug Heller with FTCR said that with more than 1,700 pieces of legislation pending -- affecting everything from cable regulation to global warming -- all the schmoozing between politicians and powerful money interests has repercussions for the public. "It's just disgusting because at the end of the day, there is zero public interest in allowing politicians to hold fundraisers while legislating," Heller said.</p>

Feeling up about filling up;

August 23, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The San Diego Union-Tribune</p> <p>Yet while some analysts and consumer watchdog groups speculate that more price cuts at the pump are likely in coming days, no one is ready to declare that the worst is over. "The world price of crude oil, and concerns about Israel or Iran, don't mean anything when it comes to the price of gas in your hometown," said Tim Hamilton, an energy consultant to the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica. "What drives the price is how much gasoline you have on hand, what's in your inventory."</p>

Yes on 87: The Oil Companies’ Web of Fiction

August 22, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">PR Newswire US</p> <p>Put the oil companies front and center in your advertising, instead of hiding behind front people and concealing the true backers of the campaign against Proposition 87: Chevron, Shell, Exxon Mobil, Occidental and other oil companies. </p>

California initiative Prop 87 would tax oil to aid renewables, alternatives

August 17, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Electric Power Daily</p> <p>Beth Willon, spokeswoman for the Yes on 87, dismissed conflict-of-interest concerns, calling them "oil company fiction." The No on 87 campaign has raised about $30 million so far, and oil producers Chevron and Aera Energy have made the biggest donations.</p>

Yes on Prop 87 — Secretary of State Albright Backs Initiative

August 17, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">PR Newswire US</p> <p>Proposition 87 will reduce our use of foreign oil and increase the use of domestic fuel sources and will not increase gas prices or reduce oil production. That has been proven in Alaska, Louisiana, Texas and every other oil producing state in the nation, which have for decades charged drilling fees similar to the one called for by Prop 87. Prop 87 is a $4 billion effort to reduce California's dependence on gasoline and diesel by 25% over the next 10 years, which will be funded by oil drilling fees paid by oil companies.</p>

Market cited in high gas prices

August 16, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The San Diego Union-Tribune</p> <p>Jamie Court, president of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica, likened the state's gasoline market to what took place during the electricity crisis. "Oil companies are ripping off Californians in exactly the same way as electricity profiteers -- by shorting the market," Court said. He called on Schwarzenegger, who ordered the report, to return millions of dollars of campaign contributions from the energy industry.</p>

Report finds no evidence of manipulation in Calif. price spike;

August 16, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>But the study focused on underlying market forces affecting prices, not whether there was manipulation by oil companies.</h3><p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>A consumer group and a spokesman for state Treasurer Phil Angelides, Schwarzenegger's Democratic opponent in the November election, criticized the report. Jamie Court, president of the Santa Monica-based Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, called it a "whitewash." "Oil companies are ripping off Californians in exactly the same way electricity profiteers did by artificially shorting the market," he said.</p>

Gas price not pumped up;

August 16, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>State report says that oil companies didn't withhold supplies</h3><p class="source">THE SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE</p> <p>Consumer advocates greeted the report with scorn. They compared the price increase to California's energy crisis five years ago, when some power plant operators drove up electricity prices by shutting. "When outages or shutdowns of refineries are behind a big price spike, it shows there is a motive for the industry to keep supplies artificially low so prices can go up," said Jaime Court, president of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a group frequently critical of oil companies.</p>

Refiners Not Faulted for Gas Prices;

August 16, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Consumer advocates immediately branded study as apology for oil industry</h3><p class="source">The Los Angeles Times</p> <p>Jamie Court, president of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, said he was outraged by the high number of unplanned refinery outages. He called the commission's report a "whitewash" that ignored evidence that the oil companies "are artificially shorting the market to drive up prices."</p>

Drivers likely hurt by BP oil shutdown

August 10, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>Soaring profits have also opened BP up to much criticism over why it hasn't dedicated ample funds toward safety and maintenance yet has plunged about $36 billion into stock buybacks since 2000. This week's news confirms what many have chided the company for lately: an explosion last year at BP's Texas City, Texas, refinery that killed 15; a large oil spill at Prudhoe Bay earlier this year that has become part of a criminal investigation; and allegations of energy-market manipulation by BP traders this summer.</p>

Oilfield Closure to Hit Pumps;

August 8, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>A shutdown in Alaska will affect refiners in Western states, but it's not clear how badly. Pessimists say gas could reach $4 a gallon.</h3><p class="source">The Los Angeles Times</p> <p>"Every increase in the price of crude oil is translated immediately into more gravy for the oil companies, because they don't just pass through the price of crude oil; they take on indefensible profits for the oil itself and then again at the refinery," Judy Dugan with FTCR said. "Drivers will pay through the nose for this very preventable emergency."</p>