Category Archives: Benicia elections

Benicia City Council, Benicia elections, Corporate influence, Local elections, Valero PAC, Valero Services Inc.

Valero sitting on $232,000 in readiness to influence 2022 Benicia elections

Valero Political Action Committee files financial statement with City of Benicia on Jan 31, 2022

Source: City of Benicia website, 2022 Campaign Finance Reports
Document: “Working Families…” CA Form 460, covering 7/1/2021 – 12/31/2021
Summary:

FULL COMMITTEE NAME: Working Families for a Strong Benicia, a Coalition of Labor and Industrial Services Companies, Committee Major Funding by Top Contributors Valero and International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Ship Builders, Blacksmiths, Forgers and Helpers Local 549 PAC

Total Contributions:

This period: $200,000
Year Total to Date: $200,000
Detail: Received $200,000 on 12/23/21 from Valero Services, Inc. and Affiliated Entities, 3400 East Second St., Benicia [See CA Secty of State listing for Valero Services Inc & Affiliated Entities.  See also Valero Services’ year-end report showing this contribution.]

Total Expenditures:

This period: $6,366.34
Year Total to Date: $13,373.39
Detail: 6 payments to Nielsen Merksamer Parrinello Gross & Leoni, all for Professional Services (legal, accounting)

Current Cash Statement: $232,386.88

Outstanding Debts: $1,651.63

Detail: 2 expenses accrued but unpaid to Nielsen Merksamer etc. for Professional Services (legal, accounting)

2020 elections, Benicia City Council, Benicia elections, Terry Scott

An encouraging word of congratulations from Benicia City Council candidate Terry Scott

By Terry Scott, November 18, 2020

Terry Scott, 2020 candidate for Benicia City Council

Fellow Benicians, I’d  like to offer my sincerest congratulations to Trevor Macenski and Tom Campbell for your election wins to the Benicia City Council.

I’d also like to again congratulate Steve Young for his decisive Mayoral race win.

Benicia is such a wonderful town. I met some incredible folks along the campaign journey.  I owe a humble and heartfelt debt of gratitude to all  of my campaign team, volunteers, and the many folks who graciously supported my candidacy for City Council.

Soon the baton will be passed to a new Mayor and City Council.

But before we see the baton pass, I believe we must give Mayor Elizabeth Patterson a huge thank you for her contributions, leadership and commitment to our community.

Thank you Elizabeth.

I believe in Benicia and its resilient ability to prosper and sustain itself as we meet head-on the immediate impact of the pandemic and beyond.

I have great confidence in our new City Council leadership team and wish them the best in keeping Benicia such a special place.

Congrats Councilmember-elect Trevor Macenski, new Vice-Mayor Elect Tom Campbell and Mayor-Elect Steve Young.

Terry Scott

2020 elections, Benicia elections, Benicia Mayor, Benicia Mayor Steve Young, Campaign finance, Fair elections, Valero Benicia Refinery, Valero PAC

Valero PAC final 2020 campaign spending report: over $227,000 spent in failed bid

By Roger Straw, November 16, 2020

Valero PAC spends over $227,000 in failed bid to oppose Mayor-elect Steve Young, discloses $128,173 of that total in outstanding debt

The anti-Young Valero PAC submitted two more campaign financial reports as required by law on November 6, 2020.

Form_460_Pre_Election_4.pdf shows the following:

During the period Oct. 26 – Nov. 3
  • Income of $24,000 from the Int. Brotherhood of Boilermakers, etc. (previously reported here on the BenIndy on Nov. 3).
  • Accrued unpaid bills totaling $18,106
    • $5,000 for Live Calls (Winning Connections, Washington, D.C.)
    • $13,106 for professional services (law firm Nielsen Merksamer Parrinello Gross & Leoni LLP, Sacramento)
2020 Year to date
  • Total Income of $49,000
  • Cash payments of $99,333
  • Accrued unpaid bills of $128,173
  • Total Expenditures (cash & unpaid) $227,506
Current Cash Statement
  • Ending Cash Balance of $197,779

The PAC’s ending balance of $197,779 can pay its accrued unpaid bills of $128,173 leaving over $51,000 in Valero’s war chest for future projects.  Sigh….

Another form submitted, Form__465_3.pdf, did not disclose any new information.

Final accounting?

According to a Nov. 12 email from Benicia City Clerk Lisa Wolfe, no further campaign finance reports are anticipated until December 31, 2020.   Evidently, the Valero PAC will not need to report payment of its unpaid bills and any further income or outlays until then.

2020 elections, Benicia City Council, Benicia elections, Solano County Registrar of Voters, Terry Scott, Trevor Macenski

Benicia City Council – Friday update, Terry & Trevor both score 17 more votes

By Roger Straw, November 14, 2020

Scott still trails by 130 votes, with only 40-140 Benicia votes yet to count – I’m calling the race: Macenski the winner

Solano County didn’t post it’s Friday Nov. 13 update until Saturday, but it’s there now, showing that more mail-in ballots and provisional ballots were processed.

The one close race in Benicia was for the second seat on Benicia’s City Council.  Both Trevor Macenski and Terry Scott netted 17 more votes in the latest Solano Registrar of Voters report.  So Macenski continues to lead Scott by 130 votes.  And I’m calling the race.

CANDIDATE NAME TOTAL VOTES PERCENTAGE
8,627 36.45%
7,587 32.05%
7,457 31.50%

Potential ballots remaining to be processed, as of Friday’s Solano County report, include 0-250 mail-in ballots and 500-1,500 provisional ballots.  By my own calculation, Benicia might account for about 8% of those remaining ballots, or 40-140 outstanding votes.

It begins to look like a 130 vote margin is not at all likely to be overcome.  So I think we can say that Trevor wins, given the odds.

The Registrar of Voters won’t offer a FINAL count for awhile.  We’ll just have to wait for them to finish counting and certify the winner.  But meanwhile, we can offer sad well-wishes to our candidate Terry, and congratulations to Trevor Macenski.  Here’s hoping the next City Council will work together well and accomplish much!