By Dan Bacher, DAILY KOS
Sacramento, CA – Consumer Watchdog released a new video today to counter a disinformation campaign by the state’s oil refiners lobby, led by the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), as it seeks to discredit the price gouging penalty being developed by the California Energy Commission.
As a leading researcher on deep regulatory capture by Big Oil in California, I have spent since 2009 exposing how the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA) and the oil companies exercise their influence and power through a very sophisticated public relations machine in California and the U.S. that includes their latest campaigns to use Astroturf groups to spread disinformation and sponsor dinners and awards ceremonies for journalists.
Also today, Consumer Watchdog president Jamie Court participated on a roundtable panel at the Energy Commission today dealing with methodologies to establish the penalty.
Watch the “Consumer Alert” video.
“The oil refiners are up to their dirty old tricks again, but the public should not be fooled,” said Court. “Oil refiners’ profiteering from California gasoline is the cause of California’s high gasoline prices, which is why they are funding phony mailers to throw the public off the scent. The Energy Commission should not be dissuaded by such tactics.”
In the “Consumer Alert” video, Consumer Watchdog exposes the disinformation in a deceptive mailer by a refiner-funded Astroturf (front) group called Californians for Affordable and Reliable Energy or CARE, one of the many Astroturf groups that WSPA has funded over the years.
The front group was presented as being “activated” by the Western States Petroleum Association or WSPA to “contribute” to its advocacy goals in a 2014 internal presentation first made public by Businessweek (see page 5), according to Court.
The mailer blames Sacramento politicians for California’s high gasoline prices and falsely claims, “Sacramento politicians are adding $1.12 for every gallon of gasoline.”
In fact, Court said, “Californians’ added taxes and environmental fees add only 70 cents per gallon.”
The video breaks down the costs and shows how California oil refiner profits of more than $1 per gallon are to blame for the high cost of California gasoline, noted Court.
Deep tegulatory capture by WSPA exposed
The Western States Petroleum Association, the largest and most powerful corporate lobbying group in Sacramento, describes itself as “non-profit trade association that represents companies that account for the bulk of petroleum exploration, production, refining, transportation and marketing in Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.” WSPA’s headquarters is located right here on L Street in Sacramento.
I have documented how WSPA and the oil companies wield their power in 8 major ways: through (1) lobbying; (2) campaign spending; (3) serving on and putting shills on regulatory panels; (4) creating Astroturf groups; (5) working in collaboration with media; (6) sponsoring awards ceremonies and dinners, including those for legislators and journalists; (7) contributing to non profit organizations; and (8) creating alliances with labor unions, mainly construction trades.
The oil and gas industry spent over $34.2 million in the 2021-22 Legislative Session lobbying against SB 1137, legislation to mandate 3200 foot buffer zones around oil and gas wells, and other bills they were opposed to: cal-access.sos.ca.gov/…
For the oil companies, this was just pocket change when you consider that combined profits of California oil refiners, including PBF Energy, Chevron, Marathon Petroleum, Valero, and Phillips 66, were $75.4 billion in 2022.
The two biggest spenders were WSPA and Chevron. WSPA spent $11.7 million in the 2021-22 session, while Chevron spent a total of $8.6 million lobbying California officials.
It looks like 2023 could already be a record year for oil and gas spending on lobbying in California even without the fourth quarter expenses in yet. The total oil and gas money spent on lobbying for the first three quarters of 2023 is $21,973,138, according to data posted on the California Secretary of State’s website: cal-access.sos.ca.gov/…
This figure already surpasses the total oil and gas industry lobbying expenses for 2023 — $18 million. The results for the fourth quarter and the total for 2023 won’t become available until January 31, 2024.
Lobbying disclosures from Quarter 3, representing lobbying between July 1 – September 30, 2023, reveal that oil companies and trade associations spent more than $7.2 million on influence-related activities in an all out effort to kill California climate bills and hold Big Oil accountable, according to data compiled by the Climate Center.
The top three lobbying spenders — Chevron, the Western States Petroleum Association, and Aera Energy – far outspent all others in the oil and gas industry. – “Their filings depict opposition to a number of key pieces of climate and energy related legislation, including SBX 1-2 implementation, AB 1167, SB 252, SB 253, SB 261, as well as numerous other bills,” the Center reported.
The San Ramon-based oil giant Chevron topped third quarter fossil fuel industry lobbying expenditures, doling out a total of $3,866,296 in the third quarter. Of that, $71,192.89 of their influence spending went to WSPA and another $2.18 million to WSPA front group Californians for Energy Independence.
