Chevron leaving California is not out of the question<\/p>\n
Understanding the degree to which the city depends upon Chevron financially is of public interest because Chevron executives have indicated in recent months that ceasing operations entirely in California is not out of the question<\/a>, due to state regulations they describe as unfriendly to refineries. Given Chevron\u2019s contribution to Richmond\u2019s revenue, closing the Richmond refinery would greatly impact the city\u2019s finances and its ability to provide services. <\/p>\n Also relevant is Chevron\u2019s August 2024 announcement that it had moved its corporate headquarters<\/a> from eastern Contra Costa County to Texas while announcing layoffs in the Bay Area. That included 600 jobs at its corporate offices that were scheduled to be cut in June, 31 of them in Richmond and nearly three dozen more in El Segundo and Bakersfield, according to notices filed with the state<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \n Stay up to date with the latest news from AP.\n <\/p>\n Other oil companies have already closed refineries<\/a> or scaled back their operations in Contra Costa County. The Marathon refinery in Martinez abruptly closed in 2020, and the Valero oil company on Thursday, Oct. 23 confirmed on its earning call<\/a> that it would close its refinery in Benicia by April after its talks with the state failed to avoid a shutdown.<\/p>\n City tried to squash public dissemination of Chevron\u2019s tax payments<\/p>\n Nearly five months after the city released the spreadsheet, the city attorney\u2019s office sent an email asking that the record be destroyed. The Oct. 8 email<\/a> from Assistant City Attorney Christopher Dykzeul said that the city had \u201cinadvertently\u201d released protected taxpayer information and that disseminating this information would violate state law and city ordinances. However, there are legal precedents that protect journalists who publish information that is otherwise held privately, particularly if disclosure of the information is in the public\u2019s interest, so long as the no laws were violated.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s important for government agencies to remember that they cannot compel members of the news media to make certain editorial decisions, and they certainly cannot dictate what can and cannot be published,\u201d said Gunita Singh, a staff attorney with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. <\/p>\n Richmondside has been investigating air pollution<\/a> in the region since last summer, examining Chevron\u2019s role as the city\u2019s largest single source of pollution; its various settlements over flaring and other violations levied by the Bay Area Air District; ways the community is working to transition away from a fossil fuel-based economy; and what the future of west Contra Costa County might look like as refineries shut down across the globe<\/a>.<\/p>\n A recent community event<\/a> hosted by Richmondside explored how city officials are thinking about and responding to the potential closure of its largest and longest-standing single source of income.<\/p>\n Financial records reveal Chevron\u2019s recent payments to Richmond<\/p>\n Richmondside\u2019s Public Records Act request asked for \u201cAny and all documents\/spreadsheets\/memos, etc. that discuss Chevron\u2019s annual financial contributions to the City of Richmond and\/or what percentage those contributions account for in the city\u2019s overall budget between January 1, 2024 and the date of this request.\u201d<\/p>\n Ten days later, the city released a single PDF document<\/a> detailing Chevron\u2019s tax and settlement payments in the most recent fiscal year.<\/p>\n The document included two fields marked \u201cConfidential\u201d but the information was left visible, one line showing that Chevron paid $2,825,087 in business taxes for its refinery and local gas stations and another showing $1,187,417 was paid in business license taxes. <\/p>\n The document also lists the final $4 million payment from a 2010 settlement<\/a> in which Chevron agreed to pay the city $114 million over 15 years to end a battle over how much it should pay in annual taxes. The last payment from that settlement was received in June 2024, the spreadsheet notes. <\/p>\n Chevron\u2019s single largest line item on the spreadsheet is for utilities payments, which were nearly $37 million last fiscal year, an amount that the spreadsheet noted is updated annually based on the San Francisco Area Energy Services consumer price index. <\/p>\n All told, the city reported that Chevron paid $58,850,877 in taxes, utilities and settlement payments during the 2024-2025 fiscal year, equating to 23.6% of the city\u2019s general fund budgeted revenue<\/a> that year, which, after final cuts were made, was $248,935,372. (The spreadsheet sent to Richmondside had a slightly higher general fund budget amount.)<\/p>\n The general fund accounts for roughly half of the city budget and is used for operational costs such as staffing and basic city services. The other half of the budget, which was roughly $254 million last fiscal year<\/a>, includes revenue that\u2019s restricted for specific uses such as capital improvement projects and non-general program and service costs. <\/p>\n Richmond City Council member Claudia Jimenez, who has pushed for Chevron to pay more taxes because of the pollution it creates, said Friday that knowing the company\u2019s exact contribution to Richmond\u2019s finances is helpful as the city works to build an economy that\u2019s not reliant on a single industry. She suggested that the company should be taxed at a higher rate than it has been historically.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they would have paid the right taxes that they needed to pay since the beginning, there will be more and more money that they will have to contribute to the general fund, and they haven\u2019t done that,\u201d Jimenez said. \u201cChevron hasn\u2019t paid their fair taxes to the city in forever.\u201d<\/p>\n On Oct. 6, the city uploaded a new version<\/a> of the Chevron tax spreadsheet to its NextRequest portal, redacting Chevron\u2019s sales and business license tax payments, its total payments to the city\u2019s general fund, its total tax and settlement payments, and the exact percent of Chevron\u2019s contribution to the general fund. <\/p>\n Two days later, Dykzeul, the assistant city attorney, demanded that any copies of the original, unredacted document be destroyed.<\/p>\n In the letter, Dykzeul cites sections of the California Revenue and Taxation Code<\/a> and the Richmond Municipal Code<\/a> that prohibit the release of sensitive tax information. <\/p>\n \u201cIt is unlawful for any person who has obtained access to such information to disclose, disseminate, copy, or otherwise make use of it in any manner,\u201d Dykzeul wrote, asking that a written confirmation of the document\u2019s destruction be sent to him. Richmondside informed him it would not do so.<\/p>\n Chevron report claims annual contribution to west Contra Costa County economy is more than $1 billion<\/p>\n On May 20, Chevron Richmond refinery spokesperson Caitlin Powell sent Cityside a press release about a study Chevron had commissioned with Oxford Economics<\/a>, an independent economic advisory firm, highlighting the company\u2019s financial contributions to west Contra Costa County. <\/p>\n \u201cGiven the current policy environment, we thought it was important to take a snapshot of the economic impact that Chevron\u2019s refinery has on Richmond and West Contra Costa County,\u201d Powell\u2019s email said. <\/p>\n The report<\/a> states that, in 2022, Chevron\u2019s Richmond facilities contributed $1.1 billion to west Contra Costa County\u2019s gross domestic product (GDP) and supported 3,830 jobs (or one of every 29 jobs in west county), with pay 56% higher than the regional average: $153,000 versus $98,000. <\/p>\n \u201cThis was equivalent to 5 percent of local GDP and 3 percent of all jobs in West Contra Costa County in 2022,\u201d the report\u2019s summary states. <\/p>\n Oxford Economics\u2019 figures were also cited in a citywide mailer in June, which said Chevron has contributed $52 million toward local causes and charities since 2012, the year a fire at the refinery<\/a> prompted 15,000 people to seek medical treatment. (Chevron settled a lawsuit over the fire with a $5 million payment to the city in 2018, among other settlements.)<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, they want to use that as saying, \u2018Look at how great we are doing all of these things,\u2019 \u201d Jimenez said of the mailer. \u201cBut if we made a calculation from all the years that they have been existing and the lack of taxes that they have paid, does this make us whole? I would say no.\u201d<\/p>\n Chevron\u2019s Oxford report and flier lists 67 \u201csocial investment partners\u201d for 2024, including scholarships for high school students, food banks, religious organizations, parks and schools. <\/p>\n After being contacted by Richmondside Friday for comment, Chevron did not answer a list of specific questions. Instead, it referenced the Oxford Economics report, while stating, \u201cWe are an essential part of the City of Richmond\u2019s and the regional economy, contributing over $1 billion in economic activity annually. <\/p>\n \u201cWe believe a fiscally responsible city government that supports a wide variety of businesses is best for the local economy and the people of Richmond. Unfortunately, history tells us that the City of Richmond is not interested in pursuing that strategy.\u201d <\/p>\n Chevron pointed to the city of Benicia losing \u201cnearly 10% of its revenue\u201d because the refinery there is closing.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen refineries close, it\u2019s not just an industry issue \u2014 it\u2019s a community issue. Jobs are lost, local economies are impacted, and the state becomes more dependent on imported fuels,\u201d Chevron\u2019s statement continued. \u201cWe are proud of the partnership and benefits we bring to our Richmond community, but over-reliance on a single business is not a sustainable economic strategy. We must ensure policies, whether in Sacramento or Richmond, don\u2019t continue to add disproportionate costs and impact the viability of critical energy infrastructure in the state.\u201d<\/p>\n Why understanding Chevron\u2019s finances matters<\/p>\n While Chevron touts its charitable giving, it does not have an associated nonprofit overseeing that giving, so it isn\u2019t required to disclose its donations.<\/p>\n The last time Chevron\u2019s exact contribution to Richmond\u2019s budget was made public was in 2007, when the Pacific Institute in Oakland issued a report<\/a> stating that Chevron was responsible for 10%, or about $25 million, of the city\u2019s total revenue. <\/p>\n At the time, Chevron had sued the city and county, challenging its property taxes, which would have resulted in a $4.7 million loss to the city. The Pacific Institute found that Richmond lost out on an additional $4.7 million in revenue from changes in the utility user tax.<\/p>\n Knowing Chevron\u2019s exact tax payments can help the public determine whether the company\u2019s contributions are enough, in light of negative health impacts<\/a> that refinery emissions and fossil fuel burning continue to have on the area. This was the push behind the \u201cMake Polluters Pay\u201d campaign, which would have taxed oil refining in Richmond at $1 per barrel, resulting in Chevron paying the city an additional $60 to $90 million annually.<\/p>\n Chevron\u2019s first installment paid toward the recent $550 million settlement nearly doubles Chevron\u2019s overall contribution to the city\u2019s general fund. <\/p>\n Jimenez said the city council is still figuring out what to do with the settlement funds as the city works to transition away from extractive, fossil fuel-based industries to a more diversified economy. <\/p>\n \u201cWe can use the money in a really creative and smart way to move a little bit away from the dependency that we have today,\u201d Jimenez said. \u201cBut who has to pay for that? It has to be from the polluters, from Chevron.\u201d<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n
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