Energy

Audit the Pollutenator

July 2, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">The independent state auditor should investigate the reason for the dismissal of Air Resource Board Chairman Bob Sawyer after the resignation of Board executive director Catherine Witherspoon...</font>

Gov pressured board for weak greenhouse gas rules

June 29, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">New information from the Los Angeles Times about the governor's firing of top state air pollution regulator, Robert Sawyer (<a href="http://www.arnoldwatch.org/blogs/blogs_001035.php3">see last...</font>

Dismissal Tarnishes the Green Giant

June 28, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2"><a href="http://www.sacbee.com/111/story/246597.html">The Sacramento Bee is reporting</a> that Governor Schwarzenegger has fired California Air Resources Board Chairman Robert Sawyer, the top...</font>

State shifts gears on gas prices

June 25, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Pasadena Star-News (California)</p> <p>Jamie Court, of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, said the industry has "deliberately restricted California's gasoline supply, to the point that any unanticipated refinery outage boosts gas prices more than enough to make up for refiners' loss of sales."</p>

Assembly passes bills in effort to lower gasoline prices

June 22, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>Fuel expands when temperatures rise, but most retail gas stations set their prices assuming gas is pumped at 60 degrees. That means Californians could be paying 3 cents more for every gallon for so-called "hot fuel" when temperatures rise above 60 degrees and less gasoline flows into their tank. That costs motorists $480 million a year, according to a report by the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica.</p>

The Changing Relationship Between the Price of Crude Oil and the Price At the Pump

June 6, 2007  ·  Liza Tucker

Crude oil prices, gasoline prices, and consumer protection Read the report here.

It’s time to exhale with gas price dip;

June 6, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Last month's record was 19 cents higher</h3><p class="source">The San Diego Union-Tribune</p> <p>"The fact that we can consider a sigh of relief (at current prices) is a testament to the oil industry's ability to make us believe in a new normal for gasoline prices," said Judy Dugan, research director of <a href="http://www.oilwatchdog.org">Oilwatchdog.org</a>, a project of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica.</p>

Tesoro to pump funds into refinery;

June 4, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>The firm plans to invest $1 billion in its plant in Wilmington to boost production for the state and reduce downtime.</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>"We need more gas on the market," said Jamie Court, president of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, whose Santa Monica-based group is a frequent critic of the oil industry. "Putting refineries into the hands of a Tesoro or a Flying J is a good thing, because they are much more likely to expand refining than the majors."</p>

The “Katrina Syndrome”: What Oil Companies Learned From a Disaster

June 4, 2007  ·  Jamie Court

The oil industry is reporting second-quarter profits this week, and has signaled that refining profits will again be at record or near-record levels. Two consecutive...

Governor ignores gas price climb, critics say

June 3, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Sacramento Bee (California)</p> <p>Jamie Court, president of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica, said Schwarzenegger has not focused enough on increasing gas supply in California to drive down prices. He also accused Schwarzenegger of ignoring gas prices because the governor has received hefty campaign contributions from oil companies. Chevron Corp., the governor's largest oil donor, has given his political committees more than $650,000 since he took office, including $100,000 last month.</p>

Global Warming Vote Puts Exxon Management On the Defensive

June 2, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Hill - Congress Blog</p> <p>Shareholders of the world's most environmentally unfriendly oil company have now put renewable energy and global warming front and center, defying a strong management campaign against them.</p>

Price of gas pumped up, but it fuels no outrage

May 27, 2007  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The San Diego Union-Tribune</p> <p>So if oil is down, why is gas up? Ask the Big Oil executives, some of whom have doubled the profits they earn from refinery operations. For every barrel of oil being used to produce gasoline, refineries are now making an estimated $30 in pre-tax profits. That translates to at least $1 in profits for every gallon of gasoline you buy, according to Judy Dugan, oil specialist at Santa Monica's Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights.</p>