PBF Energy, Big Oil Make Their Choice Clear in Local Assembly Race
Former county supervisor Karen Mitchoff has raked in over $20,000 from oil interests, including owner of problem-plagued Martinez refinery; MUSD dashboard results; fishing pier closes
Big Oil, including the owner of the problem-plagued Martinez Refining Co., have made clear whom they want to see representing our portion of Contra Costa County in the state Assembly: former county supervisor Karen Mitchoff.
Campaign finance filings from the Secretary of State’s Office show that Mitchoff has raked in $21,500 in contributions from fossil fuel interests, including $5,500 from PBF Energy, which has come under intense scrutiny for the series of hazardous releases at its Martinez refinery over the past 14 months. Last month, Contra Costa County launched an “unannounced” inspection of the refinery that is ongoing, and supervisors John Gioia and Federal Glover visited the facility to meet with management.
Mitchoff is running in the March Primary against two fellow Democrats, Antioch Councilwoman Monica Wilson and Contra Costa County Board of Education trustee (and former Martinez councilwoman) Anamarie Avila Farias, and Republican Sonia Ledo, a local real estate professional, for the Assembly District 15 seat. Tim Grayson, who currently holds the seat, is running for state Senate (and also benefiting from Big Oil money).
Mitchoff’s campaign filings show $5,500 donations from PBF, Chevron and the Western States Petroleum Association as well as a $5,000 donation from Marathon Petroleum (operator of Martinez’s other refinery, which is currently under investigation by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board over a major fire in November that seriously injured a worker). In all, Big Oil made up more than one-quarter of Mitchoff’s reported $70,218 in contributions as of Friday.
All told, PBF has made $103,500 in donations during the 2023-24 election cycle to candidates for statewide office, according to the Secretary of State’s Office, with its largest single donation going to Mitchoff. It also has given $4,000 to Grayson’s state Senate campaign.
Mitchoff also has some significant local backing in her race for Assembly. Three of the five county supervisors (Gioia, Candace Andersen and Diane Burgis) who ultimately oversee the operations of PBF’s Martinez refinery have endorsed her, according to her campaign website, as well as Martinez Mayor Brianne Zorn, Councilman Mark Ross and former U.S. Congressman George Miller. Although he’s not listed among Mitchoff’s endorsements on her website, current Supervisor Ken Carlson, who was elected to Mitchoff’s seat when she retired from the board in 2022), gave her $250.
Her list of campaign donors also includes current Martinez Councilman Jay Howard ($200) and former council members Janet Kennedy ($500), Lara DeLaney ($200) and Tim Farley ($100).
Despite the local support, Mitchoff’s fundraising lags far behind Wilson, who has racked up an eye-popping $264,097 in contributions, much of it from organized labor groups. Avila Farias has raised $61,130, with her top backers being the Peace Officers Research Association and California Teachers Association. Ledo has raised only $2,336.
On their campaign websites, Mitchoff, Wilson and Avila Farias all list addressing climate change — an issue that doesn’t often draw the support of Big Oil — as being among their top legislative priorities. Mitchoff, who is from Pleasant Hill, was formerly chair of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), which regulates refinery emissions.
You can find each candidate’s campaign finance data the following link: https://powersearch.sos.ca.gov/
I hope to post a complete election overview for the March Primary next weekend.
MUSD board reviews California Dashboard results
The Martinez Unified School District Board of Trustees received some positive news at its Jan. 16 meeting when it reviewed its California Dashboard performance indicators from 2022-23 in a range of subject areas.
The dashboard ranks districts in a number of categories according to four colors: red (very low); orange (low); yellow (medium); green (high) and blue (very high). MUSD received blue scores in graduation rate (95.8%) and English Learner Progress (62.1% of students making progress toward proficiency, an 11% jump from last year). It received yellow scores in chronic absenteeism and English Language Arts. Its poorest rankings (orange) came in mathematics (37.2 points below standard) and suspension rate (4.8% of students suspended at least one day). The suspension rate was highest for African-American students and students from two or more races.
Some more good news awaits the board at Monday’s meetings when it will get a report on attendance trends, showing that the attendance rate so far in the 2023-24 school year has ticked up to 95.1% from 93.6% last year. Average daily attendance is a key factor in the district’s state funding. The board will also get an enrollment update at Monday’s meeting, which begins at 6:30 p.m. The meeting agenda can be viewed here: https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/SB_Meetings/ViewMeeting.aspx?S=36030321&MID=27697
Fishing Pier closed because of structural damage
The city announced last week that it has closed the Martinez Fishing Pier to public use because of structural damage, and asked a marine engineering firm to assess its condition.
“As a reminder, the city was approved for a $2.5 million Community Project Fund federal grant to renovate the pier,” the city said in a post on its Facebook page. “The city is working diligently to obtain the many state, federal and special agency permits and approvals needed to proceed with the project.”
Quick hits…
The city will hold its annual Measure D street selection workshop on Wednesday, Jan. 31, at 6 p.m. in the City Council Chamber and on Zoom to discuss the list of streets to be paved in the 2023-24 fiscal year. More information can be found by clicking the meeting agenda here:
In a small but meaningful step toward addressing its affordable housing crisis, the city recently announced that it has approved Eden Housing’s proposal to create nine affordable units at the historic Riverhouse Hotel, located at 700 Alhambra Ave. “Additionally, the project includes a multitude of other improvements to the Riverhouse Hotel that will increase the quality of the lives for existing and future residents, including accessibility upgrades, bike lockers, seismic upgrades, and new landscaping and benches along Alhambra Avenue,” the city announced in its newsletter.
The Police Department has scheduled a community engagement meeting on Thursday, Feb. 1, at 6 p.m. at the City Council Chamber to discuss its annual Military Equipment Report. Assembly Bill 481` passed in 2021 requires such meetings before police departments can take “certain actions relating to the funding, acquisition, or use of military equipment, as defined.”