Assembly Member Wicks
AB-1897 targets refineries and subjects these facilities to a different penalty structure of up to $30,000 for a violation, which is a 200% increase in fines. This represents the unequal treatment under the law of one industry, specifically refineries. Nor does this legislation give consideration to the air quality performance of the facility as a whole. Rather it focuses on isolated, individual events.
POSTED: June 8, 2022
STATUS: Senate – Referred to Environmental Quality and Judiciary Committees
POSITION: Oppose
Thoughts for consideration:
· This targeting of refineries for unequal and excessive monetary penalties will only serve to exacerbate the energy crisis and will ultimately lead to higher consumer prices for gasoline and other petroleum-based products.
· The U. S. is currently importing oil and petroleum-based products from countries where there is little or no effort made to curb emissions so this short sighted policy is actually creating a harmful effect on the environment.
· The CEO of Chevron recently noted that the last refinery built in the U.S. was 1970 and that he expects none to be built in the future due to decades of government policies. Will California penalize its existing refineries out of business?