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  Chevron in the News: City Council Resolutions, Property Tax Appeal
October 3, 2012
 

Richmond: Resolution calls on Chevron to meet higher standards in aftermath of Aug. 6 fire

By Robert Rogers Contra Costa Times
Posted:   10/02/2012 10:36:46 PM PDT
Updated:   10/03/2012 06:36:22 AM PDT

RICHMOND -- Along with investigations by a consortium of federal, state and regional agencies, Chevron's Richmond refinery will have to pass the muster of new city requirements in rebuilding the crude unit that burst into flames Aug. 6.
A unanimous City Council on Tuesday passed a resolution authorizing city staff to "ensure that Chevron uses the highest standards and best technology in the repair of their crude unit."
"It's our duty as a governing body to express expectations of our corporate neighbor," said Councilmember Jovanka Beckles, who co-sponsored the resolution with Mayor Gayle McLaughlin.
The resolution calls on the global energy giant's local refinery to improve safety, pay its "fair share" of taxes, hire more local residents, aid the city in education and economic development initiatives, and expedite installation of air quality monitors in the city, which it previously agreed to as part of a 2010 tax settlement.
Tuesday's resolution comes at a time of increasing backlash against Chevron. The Aug. 6 fire, caused by a deteriorated pipe in the No. 4 crude unit, sent more than 15,000 residents to seek treatment at area hospitals.
In recent days, Chevron has declined to enter into long-term leases for commercial and office space in the city's Marina Bay community and filed a new court challenge to a Contra Costa County property tax appeals board decision last spring that found the Richmond refinery was under-assessed by as much as $27 million. Investigations into the incident are expected to last several months.
The resolution also calls on the corporation to use the "best technology in the repair of their crude unit."
Chevron officials have said the 8-inch steel pipe whose failure caused the fire may have deteriorated due to low-silicon content, which allowed the oil's heat and sulfur to corrode it at an accelerated rate.
No Chevron representatives spoke publicly at Tuesday's meeting, but several residents criticized the resolution as symbolic and vague.
"This is a bold resolution," said resident Don Gosney. "But how do you accomplish this. ... What are consequences if they fail? This resolution is so poorly worded it's embarrassing." Resident Andres Soto was among the supporters. He praised the city for being the first agency to vow to impose new standards in the aftermath of the fire.
The Richmond refinery, Chevron's oldest, pays more than $30 million annually to the city in total taxes, said City Manager Bill Lindsay, nearly a third of the city's total general fund budget. It employs about 1,200 people, but fewer than 10 percent are Richmond residents, according to Chevron.
Lindsay said the resolution's provisions were comfortably in the purview of local government.
"The one (provision) that requires a different effort is the best technology in the repair of their crude unit," Lindsay said. "That would require coordination with the (Bay Area Air Quality Management District), but I see nothing troubling from a procedural point of view."
Contact Robert Rogers at 510-262-2726 or rrogers@bayareanewsgroup.com. Follow at Twitter.com/roberthrogers.

Chevron sues county over Richmond refinery property taxes

By Lisa Vorderbrueggen Contra Costa Times
Posted:   10/02/2012 02:00:34 PM PDT
Updated:   10/03/2012 05:06:36 AM PDT

Related

MARTINEZ -- Chevron has filed a court challenge to a Contra Costa County property tax appeals board decision last spring that found the Richmond refinery was under-assessed by as much as $27 million.
Company spokesman Sean Comey said the lawsuit filed in Superior Court late Monday will protect the corporation's legal rights while it continues to negotiate a broader settlement in its epic eight-year legal battle over the refinery's taxable value.
"We're confident we will reach a comprehensive resolution," Comey said. "We've been in negotiations with a mediator and the assessor, and I'm told there has been progress."
Chevron is already suing the Contra Costa Assessment Appeal Board's 2004-2006 decision. The refinery sought a $73 million tax refund for that period, but was awarded $17 million. The county, cities and special districts had to repay money that most had already spent on local services.
This latest lawsuit stems from the 2007-2009 assessment and subsequent appeal. Chevron argued it overpaid $73 million but the county appeals board ordered the company to pay an additional $27 million. The deadline to file a lawsuit was Tuesday.
Chevron has also appealed its 2010-2012 refinery fair-market values as set by Contra Costa Assessor Gus Kramer.
Kramer was unavailable for comment Tuesday.
Contra Costa Supervisor John Gioia, whose district includes the refinery, hopes the parties will settle and put an end to the fiscal anxiety generated by the massive unresolved tax dispute.
"My understanding is that Chevron is willing to drop all its appeals and forgo any refunds if it can reach an agreement with the assessor on (valuation) policies going forward," Gioia said. "While I am disappointed that Chevron filed the lawsuit, I am hopeful there will be an agreement between the company and the assessor that is fair to the taxpayers of this county and includes no refunds back to Chevron."
Chevron, the county's largest taxpayer, has characterized its decision to appeal the refinery's taxable value as one of fairness.
Its attorneys have accused Kramer of setting unsupported, arbitrary and excessive fair-market values on the Richmond refinery, which serve as the basis of property tax assessments. The lawsuit alleges the appeals board made similar errors.
Kramer has previously defended his refinery values as accurate and described Chevron as a corporate "bully" trying to bury the county in a costly and unrelenting legal assault.
The battle over its property tax assessments comes at the same time Chevron is pushing the city to approve an expansion at its refinery. A massive, smoky fire in a crude oil unit at the plant Aug. 6 sent 15,000 people to area hospitals seeking treatment for breathing and other respiratory problems.
Contact Lisa Vorderbrueggen at 925-945-4773, Twitter @lvorderbrueggen or www.facebook.com/lvorderbrueggen.

Richmond leaders to call on Chevron to join Berkeley lab in investing in city's shoreline district

By Robert Rogers
Contra Costa Times
Posted:   10/02/2012 06:44:13 AM PDT
Updated:   10/02/2012 06:44:43 AM PDT

Related

RICHMOND -- Developers and business leaders have exhorted Chevron to expand operations in the city's Marina Bay district, and now elected officials are set to join the chorus.
The City Council is expected on Tuesday to pass a resolution urging its largest taxpayer to invest in new research and office space in the shoreline district, which many think is brimming with the potential to become the next hot high-tech hub in the Bay Area.
"Chevron talks a lot about supporting the local economy and buying from local vendors, and they have done some of that, which is great," said City Councilman Jim Rogers, the resolution's sponsor. "But we are looking for them to walk the walk in this case."
The city is expected to make a formal call on Chevron during a time of countervailing moods surrounding the global energy giant, the city and its growing waterfront district.
A fire at Chevron's Richmond refinery on Aug. 6 sent more than 15,000 people to the hospital complaining of illness and triggered multiagency investigations into the refinery's maintenance and safety practices. The fire was the latest blow to the refinery and the city, which has seen economic improvements in recent years but still strains under unemployment that is far above the state average.
Chevron's refinery-modernization project was halted in 2008 by a Superior Court judge on grounds that it violated California environmental law. Chevron plans to resubmit a revised plan later this year, and city leaders have expressed hope that a scaled-down version of the project will be approved.
Meanwhile, Richmond's southern shoreline was approved earlier this year for the next Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, a sprawling research campus that will be among the largest development projects in the East Bay in recent decades. Plans for major transportation upgrades, including an underpass and ferry service linking Marina Bay with San Francisco, are in the works.
City leaders and other observers see the area, with its ample space and hundreds of thousands of square feet of latent commercial space, as the next big green tech and energy research mecca, with the national lab and the global energy giant as twin anchors.
But Chevron has been pulling out, rather than investing in, the Richmond shore. Chevron officials confirmed last month the corporation was unwilling to commit beyond February 2013 to retain 64,000 square feet of waterfront commercial space at Marina Bay. The move followed another 50,000 square feet of space Chevron gave up in February, opting to move employees to San Ramon.
In a prepared release Monday, Chevron said "... our long-term future in Richmond is uncertain until our refinery modernization project is successfully permitted. While we are continuing our community partnership programs in Richmond as the permitting process proceeds, we will not be in a position to make any additional long-term investment decisions in Richmond until the renewal modernization project is successfully permitted."
Rogers said it is important for the city to be on record as supporting Chevron's expansion, despite the uneasy relationship between the corporation and its host city in recent years.
"I am trying to be realistic," Rogers said. "Chevron is a huge entity, and it moves very slowly, so it is important to come out and make our wishes known at an early point in the process."
On Tuesday, the council is also expected to pass a resolution directing city staff to hold the refinery to broad goals, including hiring Richmond residents, investing in renewable energy technology and installing air-monitors in the city. The resolution is co-sponsored by Mayor Gayle McLaughlin and Councilwoman Jovanka Beckles, responding to lobbying by environmental groups.
Contact Robert Rogers at 510-262-2726 or rrogers@bayareanewsgroup.com. Follow at Twitter.com/roberthrogers.
IF YOU GO
What: Richmond City Council meeting
When: 6:30 p. m.
Where: City Council chamber, 440 Civic Center Plaza

KQED Bay Area

Richmond Talks About Getting Tough With Chevron

by Amy Standen | October 2, 2012 — 5:44 PM
The Richmond City Council is expected to vote Tuesday night on whether to take a tough stance with the Chevron refinery. Chevron needs building permits. The city has a few things it wants, as well.

On August 6th, a major fire damaged one of the Chevron Refinery's crude units. To rebuild it, Chevron will need permits from the city.

But the relationship between Richmond and the refinery has often been rocky... including a long-running dispute over how much Chevron owes the city in property taxes.

City Councilman Tom Butt co-authored tonight's resolution. "We're showing goodwill by committing to process these permits as fast as we can, and I think we expect Chevron to show good faith by not continuing to appeal their taxes," says Butt.

Despite the tough talk, the resolution is not binding. It also asks the company to hire more Richmond residents, and operate safely.

The meeting is scheduled to start Tuesday at 6:30 at Richmond's Community Service Building.

 

 
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