SACRAMENTO —The Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), the largest and most powerful corporate lobbying group in California, on November 30 announced the addition of Margo Parks to their in house lobbying team.
“Margo’s energy, enthusiasm and understanding of California policy and politics will be a great asset to WSPA,” Catherine Reheis-Boyd, WSPA President and former Chair of the Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative Blue Ribbon Task Force to create “marine protected areas” in Southern California, said in a statement.
“Parks accepted the newly formed position of Manager, California Policy Advocate, where she will work with WSPA’s members, navigating policy and politics to help achieve the organization’s goals in the legislature,” according to Reheis-Boyd.
“I’m excited to help tell the oil industry’s story during this pivotal time in California, while legislators are designing policies that both protect our environment and ensure that Californians have the energy they need to power this great state’s economy,” Parks said.
Prior to joining WSPA, Parks was an associate lobbyist at Political Solutions, working on issues ranging from tax policy to agriculture to natural resources. Prior to her time at Political Solutions, she served as the Director of Government Relations for the California Cattlemen’s Association, according to WSPA.
She is a former Capitol staffer and Senate Fellow, and a graduate of Scripps College, Claremont.
Parks joins a growing staff to promote Big Oil agenda
Parks joins a large and expanding staff that promotes the oil industry’s agenda in the West.
On October 23, WSPA announced the hiring of international public relations expert Argelia León to the position of Manager of Strategic Partnerships, where she now manages “growing and maintaining WSPA's affiliations in the five western states including California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, and Nevada,” according to a WSPA news release. Information: www.dailykos.com/...
In March, WSPA hired former Assemblyman Henry Perea (D-Fresno) as Senior Vice President, Policy and Strategic Affairs. Perea advises WSPA on public policy and legislative matters in California: www.dailykos.com/...
In addition to Perea, León, and Parks, the organization this year also hired three public relations specialists and an in-house general counsel as the oil industry gears up to further expand its already huge influence and power in California politics.
The Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA) bills itself as a “non-profit trade association that represents companies that account for the bulk of petroleum exploration, production, refining, transportation and marketing in the five western states of California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, and Nevada.”
WSPA and Big Oil are top lobbying spenders in California
While state officials and the mainstream media tout California as the nation’s “green leader,” WSPA and Big dominate lobbying expenses in California every legislative session.
The oil industry spent more on lobbying in California, $16,360,618, just in the first six months of 2017 than was spent by the industry in all of 2016, $16.0 million.
That amounts to an average of $2.7 million per month – $90,000 per day – since Jan. 1, 2017, according to a report compiled and written by William Barrett of the Lung Association in California. Over the past ten years, oil lobbying in California has topped $150 million.
Oil industry money ranked #1-3 among all California lobbyist spending from January through June 2017, with Chevron spending $7,130,322, WSPA $3,916,353 and Tesoro $2,452,913.
As a result of this gusher of Big Oil lobbying money, every bill opposed by the oil industry with the exception of one has failed to pass out of the Legislature over the past three years.
The oil industry used this money to pass Governor Jerry Brown’s cap-and-trade bill, AB 398, controversial legislation that was based on a Big Oil wish list and was opposed by over 65 environmental justice, conservation and consumer organizations.
They also spent their millions to defeat Senate Bill 188, a bill authored by Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) to prohibit new pipelines or other infrastructure needed to support new federal oil and gas development.
“Of the $16.4 million spent this session, Chevron, WSPA, Tesoro and Valero collectively disbursed $8.8 million to the ‘Californians for Affordable and Reliable Energy (CARE) Coalition,’” the report noted. “Of that $8.8 million, the CARE Coalition spent approximately $1.3 million as of June 30, 2017 on climate policy lobbying according to the most recent disclosure data.”
To read the full report, go to: www.lung.org/…
Background: Big Oil spent $36.1 million lobbying in 2015-16 session
The California Oil Lobby was the biggest spender in the 2015-16 legislative session, spending an amazing $36.1 million on lobbying over the two-year period. Based on the oil industry lobbying over the past two quarters, it looks like the industry may set a new spending record this session.
Big Oil spending last session amounted to $1.5 million per month — nearly $50,000 per day. The $36.1 million surpassed the $34 million spent in the prior session, according to an American Lung Association report. To read the complete report, go to: www.lung.org/…
WSPA was the top overall oil industry spender during the 2015-16 session, spending $18.7 million. As is normally the case, WSPA ranked #1 among all lobbying spenders last session. In the seventh quarter alone, WSPA dumped $2.6 million into lobbying legislators and state officials.
Chevron, the second overall oil industry spender, spent $7 million in the 2015-16 session. It spent $3 million in 2016 alone, sixth among all lobbyists in the session.
The only bill opposed by the oil industry that made it out of the legislature to be signed by Governor Jerry Brown was Senate Bill 32, legislation that reduces greenhouse gas level to 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030. The reason for the bill’s passage was because billionaire Tom Steyer’s Next Generation Climate Action spent $7.3 million lobbying for the bill in the seventh quarter of the session.
Since the 2007-08 Session, the oil industry has spent over $150 million in lobbying in California when you include the figures for the first two quarters of 2017.
For more information, go to www.dailykos.com/…