Energy

Dem Official: Obama Taps Mary Schapiro To Head SEC

December 17, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

WASHINGTON, DC — President-elect Barack Obama has chosen Mary Shapiro, a veteran of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to lead and revitalize the agency now facing growing criticism for its failure to protect investors at a time of unprecedented market turmoil. But Jamie Court, president of Consumer Watchdog in Santa Monica, Calif., said a more strongly pro-investor regulator was needed to lead the SEC.

Warmer Weather Means Less Gas In Your Tank

December 4, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

California drivers were overcharged $376.4 million on gasoline in one year because fuel pumps don't adjust for changing temperatures, according to a state study. And that has consumer advocates livid.<br />

Parra Cashes Out Of Assembly

November 30, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<strong>LAME-DUCK LAWMAKER PARTIES, FUNDS WINERY JAUNT, JETS TO HAWAII</strong><br /> "I think this shows that all too often, candidates think of their campaign committees as slush funds," said Jamie Court of Consumer Watchdog, a political activist group.

The Players Club

November 3, 2008  ·  Judy Dugan

<p> Politics has long been the playground of millionaires. This election, however, the billionaires have taken over the table. According to Judy Dugan, research director of the nonpartisan Consumer Watchdog in Santa Monica, T. Boone Pickens' company controls 70 percent of the compressed natural gas sold in the United States and would stand to make a fortune fueling the newly subsidized trucks and cars. </p>

Chevron Profit Soars, Fueled By Summer Surge In Oil Prices

November 1, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<strong>The energy giant nets $7.9 billion in the third quarter, the latest in the industry to post eye-popping earnings.</strong><br /> "These profits show the extent of the oil industry's vampire attack on a weakened economy," said Judy Dugan, research director of the nonprofit group Consumer Watchdog. "Fuel and energy prices bled away the reserves of family budgets and corporate treasuries. Energy inflation deepened the effect of the financial markets' meltdown."

Exxon Beats Own Record for Earnings in Quarter

October 31, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<strong>It posts net income of $14.83 billion, the biggest profit ever for a U.S. company, amid sky-high oil prices.</strong><br /> Judy Dugan, research director of Consumer Watchdog in Santa Monica, said: "Consumers got credit card debt and empty wallets, while Exxon got double-digit billions. Citizens deserve to be mad. They should demand that government get back in the business of protecting them from corporate greed."

Hefty Profits Leave Big Test for Oxy, BP

October 29, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<strong>Momentum Could Fade in the Wake of Crude's Steep Price Decline</strong><br /> Speaking specifically about BP, Santa Monica-based Consumer Watchdog said the British company "rode the wave of the crude oil price spike to a staggering profit jump in the third quarter of 2008. It is a stark reminder of the damage inflicted by energy costs on a world economy that was heading into recession."

Gas Stations Make More Pennies on the Gallon

October 16, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

Gasoline prices also may get an artificial boost from oil companies cutting their output, said Judy Dugan, research director for Consumer Watchdog, a California non-profit group. "They are trying to drop supplies to keep the price supported," she said. "Nobody can say what the future will bring, but the fact is that gasoline ought to be coming down almost as fast as oil, particularly with the drops in consumption we've seen."

Out To Pickens Our Pockets

October 3, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<strong>Prop. 10 -- Lots Wrong With Billionaire's Energy Measure</strong><br /> There's something for everyone to object to in Proposition 10. Groups as varied as unions, anti-tax organizations, consumer watchdogs, environmentalists and chambers of commerce oppose the so-called Alternative Fuel Vehicles and Renewable Energy Bonds Initiative.

Economist says banks could be scheming for a bailout

September 26, 2008  ·  Doug Heller

Economist David K. Levine says: "I suspect that part of what we're seeing in the freezing up of lending markets is strategic behavior on the part of big financial players who stand to benefit from the bailout."

Oil Prices Jump, Partly From ‘Short Squeeze’

September 23, 2008  ·  Consumer Watchdog

The price of oil jumped $16.37 to $120.92 per barrel Monday, its biggest single-day gain ever, as investors spooked by the financial crisis sought a safe place to put their money. That the price of such a vital commodity could leap so high because of trading issues infuriated people who believe speculators play far too big a role in the energy market. "No war threat, pipeline leak, ship wreck - nothing, yet up goes oil nearly $25 a barrel," said Tim Hamilton, a petroleum industry consultant who works with the consumer rights group Consumer Watchdog. "Perhaps speculation is a greater factor than actual supply and demand."

Wall Street threats replay economic blackmail of 2001 California Energy Crisis

September 23, 2008  ·  Doug Heller

<p> A cautionary tale as bailout fever takes hold: On January 18, 2001, as electricity deregulation sunk California into its second consecutive day of rolling blackouts, a team of analysts at Credit Suisse First Boston in New York sent around a <a href="https://consumerwatchdog.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/images_creditsuisse.gif" target="_blank" rel="noopener">startling memo</a> to its clients.  </p>