AS THE CITY & STATE WORK TO KEEP VALERO OPEN, A LOCAL REFINERY “POLLUTERS PAY” EXCISE TAX IS REQUIRED TO PROTECT US
By Dirk Fulton, August 17, 2025
URGENT: STATE ACTION & LEGISLATIVE HEARING THIS WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20
We know Governor Newsom, the California Energy Commission (CEC) and the legislature are seeking to keep the Valero Benicia refinery open. Our city leaders have been complicit with the State in this effort. In fact, the CEC is acting as a broker to find a replacement operator and the Governor is sponsoring legislation to cut refinery regulations as an enticement to attract a successor.
A hearing is set for 1:30 PM this Wednesday (8/20) before a Joint State Assembly Committee in Sacramento to consider the legislation, known as the ‘Petroleum Market Stabilization” bill. Benicia residents are encouraged to attend the hearing and express their opposition. A sign-up form is here. Further info and talking points will be provided once you’ve signed up. And please reach out to action@sunflower-alliance.org if you can give a ride on Wednesday or want to join some others on the train.
OUR HIGH CANCER RATES REQUIRE CITY ACTION
Benicia residents Dr. Richard Fleming and columnist Steve Golub have separately published articles documenting that Benicia’s rates of cancer are much higher than Solano County and the State of California. The rates are astonishing:
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- Our breast cancer rate is 94% higher than the California rate.
- Our prostate cancer rate is 70% higher than the State’s.
- Our rate of lung cancer is 44% higher than the State rate.
Valero’s emissions routinely exceed Air Board limits and over a 16-year period ending last November, the emissions exceeded Air Board limits by 360%, often constituting 2.7 metric tons of hazardous pollution daily. Extensive medical studies have found a well-documented connection between residents living in refinery communities and higher cancer rates.
A “POLLUTERS PAY” EXCISE TAX CAN BE USED TO PROTECT US
Unless citizens’ efforts in opposition to the Governor’s bill are successful on Wednesday, it appears likely that the State will cause the Valero refinery to remain open indefinitely, perhaps through a new operator.
The Benicia City Council, accordingly, should immediately take action to place a refinery $1-per-barrel excise tax (“Polluters Pay Tax”) on the ballot. Only a simple majority vote is needed for passage. The tax would apply to all feedstock refined at Valero’s two refineries, including product refined elsewhere and placed in storage tanks at the refinery, and would generate $50-$70 million per year for a 50-year period. The tax proceeds can support pollution-fighting services like real-time extensive air monitoring, air filters for schools, advanced health and safety monitoring for neighborhoods, and environmental oversight and cleanup. Importantly, the tax can be crafted as an excise tax—targeted specifically at local refining, not a broad manufacturing or consumer tax.
In mid-2024, the Richmond City Council unanimously approved placing a refinery excise tax ballot measure on the ballot targeted at the Chevron refinery. Chevron opposed the proposal which led to a settlement on June 18,2024 as follows: Chevron agreed to pay the city of Richmond $550 million structured as $50 million annually the first five years, and $60 million for the next five years in exchange for the city removing the tax proposal from the ballot.
Our Benicia City Council has a duty to protect us from refinery pollution and should move forward expeditiously to place a similar $1-per-barrel excise tax on the ballot. Should the City Council once again fail to act, residents can circulate Initiative petitions, gather signatures and cause the tax to be placed on the ballot in June 2026. Hopefully, our city leaders will do the right thing and the Initiative process will not be necessary.
Read Dirk Fulton’s series, A Great Day for Benicia
Dirk Fulton, Lifelong Resident & former Solano County Planning Commissioner, Vice Mayor, City Councilman & School Board President
For More Information visit: www.greatdayforbenicia.com
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